State Historical Society of Iowa

"White Tenants in Our White Community" Sign Directed at U.S. Federal Housing Project in Detroit, Michigan, February 1942

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Courtesy of Library of Congress, Siegel, Arthur S., "Detroit, Michigan. Riot at the Sojourner Truth homes..." February 1942

Description

This is a photograph of a protest sign placed outside a housing project for African Americans in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit was one of many northern cities African Americans migrated to from the South during the Great Migration.

Source Dependent Questions

  • Without reading the source description, predict the location of this sign. Use evidence from the photo to justify your prediction.
  • What message was explicitly being sent by those who created this sign? What message was being implicitly sent?
  • This sign was directed at a federal housing project. Use this source to explain the role both government and local citizens can play in effecting major social change in their communities.
  • Think back to a time when you felt personally excluded from a group or were made to believe you weren't wanted or accepted. How would your emotions be similar or different to those of African Americans who viewed this sign in Detroit?

Citation Information

Siegel, Arthur S., "Detroit, Michigan. Riot at the Sojourner Truth homes, a new U.Sn federal housing project, caused by white neighbors' attempt to prevent Negro tenants from moving in. Sign with American flag "We want white tenants in our white community," directly opposite the housing project," February 1942. Courtesy of Library of Congress Courtesy of Library of Congress