First African American tenants moving into the Sojourner Truth housing project, 1942

Educational value

• This photograph shows the event that served as a catalyst for the first major incident of racial violence in the USA during World War II. The image and its caption are valuable sources for year 10 history studies of the background to the US civil rights movement, and also for year 11 and 12 modern history studies of the same topic as well as studies of the USA during World War II.
• The events surrounding this scene provide clear evidence of the deep-seated racism underpinning housing segregation in the USA at the time. As wartime production increased dramatically in Detroit and large numbers of African Americans moved to the city to work in the factories, the federal government realised that a new segregated black neighbourhood would be needed to house the workers. As the first families tried to move in on 28 February 1942, rioting began.
• Families such as the one shown here were harassed by large crowds of white Americans. In spite of the presence of 200 police, they were pelted with rocks and 40 people were injured. By the end of the day, the entry of black families had been stopped. It did not resume until 29 April 1942, when 1,100 city and state police and 1,600 Michigan National Guardsmen were on hand to protect the first six families.
• Arthur Siegel was a Detroit photographer who worked for the Farm Security Administration and its successor, the Office of War Information. He was on the scene in 1942 and took 24 photographs as events unfolded.

Topics Discrimination American history Riots Documentary photography