Examkin

Question

Difficulty: EasyThe Great Migration and Demographic Shifts

An African American worker in Pensacola, Florida, sent the following letter to a northern newspaper editor in 1917:

'I am writing to inquire if you can assist me in finding employment in the North. The daily pay here is only $1.25, and we are forced to work from dawn until dusk. My goal is to find a position where I can earn enough to sustain my household and where my children will have access to better public schooling.'

Based on this historical document, which of the following statements accurately analyzes the push and pull factors shaping the worker's decision to migrate?

  1. A
    The worker was driven primarily by northern push factors such as high urban housing costs, with southern push factors like the sharecropping debt trap playing no role.
  2. Low daily wages and long work hours in the South served as push factors, while the prospect of higher earnings and better educational facilities in the North acted as pull factors.Answer
  3. C
    The presence of high-paying agricultural opportunities in the North served as a push factor, while the expansion of southern civil rights laws acted as a pull factor.
  4. D
    Economic hardships and racial segregation in the South acted as northern pull factors, while the search for industrial labor acted as a southern push factor.

Answer

Low daily wages and long work hours in the South served as push factors, while the prospect of higher earnings and better educational facilities in the North acted as pull factors.
The correct answer accurately identifies the southern conditions (low pay, long hours) as factors pushing the worker away, and the anticipated northern benefits (higher pay, better schools) as factors pulling the worker toward the region, which align with the historical definitions used to study the Great Migration.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the letter's description of Southern conditions.
The worker describes low daily pay ($1.25) and long working hours (dawn to dusk) in the South.
To identify the negative conditions driving the migrant to leave their home region.
2
Analyze the letter's expectations of Northern life.
The worker seeks higher earnings to sustain their household and better public schooling for their children.
To identify the positive opportunities attracting the migrant to the new region.
3
Classify the identified conditions into push and pull factors.
Southern economic hardships (wages, hours) are push factors; Northern opportunities (wages, schools) are pull factors.
To apply demographic vocabulary to the historical text.

Key Concept

Identifying push and pull factors of the Great Migration using a primary source.
Estimated Time:45s
Rate this question

Topics

The Great Migration and Demographic Shifts

More questions from this topic