Essay Database

Cultural Identity from 1865-1940 The cultural identity of blacks in the United States from 1865 through 1940 progressed from a racism based on inferiority due to bloodlines and biology to a racism centered on socio-economic policies and beliefs. Blacks that were middle-class in the 1900's were still considered "niggers," and not fully human (Lorini, 39). Racism was prominent during the world's fair era, with the imperialist dogmatic belief that the United States needed to spread its boundaries to …

…Racism existed through world's fairs, imperialist dogma, "race science," and other aspects of Lorini's public sphere. Race has never been a biological entity; it is a social aspect of culture. While many people did go along with the mainstream belief of blacks' and other nonwhite culture's inferiority, it is important to remember that there was a large undercurrent of protest from both blacks and whites against lynching, imperialism, and the entertainment industry's depiction of blacks.