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Timeline:
Wave of Immigration
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1941 - Defense plants initially resisted hiring African-Americans. But in 1941, A. Philip Randolph (front, center), president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, threatened to have 100,000 blacks march on Washington to protest job discrimination. President Franklin Roosevelt yielded to Randolph's demand. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, prohibiting discrimination in defense jobs or government.
Executive Order 8802 constituted the first major federal government response to the plight of blacks since Reconstruction. Executive Order 8802 has been called a second Emancipation Proclamation. Sociologist William Julius Wilson has pointed out the war accelerated the entry of blacks into goods-producing industries and helped reduce black poverty. Related Links:
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PBS Program | Trends of the Century | Viewer's Voices | Interactivity | Teacher's Guide |
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