RACIAL TENSIONS.

Slavery was abolished after the American Civil War, and the black population gained constitutional rights in line with the whites. In the period that followed the Civil War called “The Reconstruction,” New Orleans was occupied by the North’s troops, an occupation that ended in 1877.   In 1896 the United States Supreme Court ruled a “separate but equal” doctrine meaning that segregation of blacks and whites in the public sector was okay as long as there were comparable facilities for both blacks and whites. This legalized segregation in public schools, higher education, transportation, and restaurants. That discrimination has plagued the United States until the sixties.

In 1889 came another assault on the black population with the Black Code Amendment, which robbed them of even more rights and at the same placed the Creole population on an equal footing with the black population. During 1880-1900 about 40,000 black farm workers immigrated to New Orleans from the surrounding areas in search of work, creating an explosive atmosphere that triggered the Robert Charles tragedy, which also involved Buddy Bolden.

Ten years later, a white boxer named Jim Jeffries, known as the “Great White Hope, challenged the black champignon Jack Johnson and was defeated. Now white people launched a new, vicious onslaught on the black people. Louis Armstrong saw it all and late in his life he wrote” At ten years old I could see – the Bluffings that those Old Fat Belly Stinking very Smelly Dirty White Folks were putting Down. It seemed as though the only thing they cared about was their Shot Guns or those Old time Shot guns which they had strapped around them. So they get full of their Mint Julep or that bad whisky, the poor white Trash were Guzzling down, like water, then when they got so Damn Drunk until they’d go out of their minds – then it’s Nigger Hunting time. Any nigger. They wouldn’t give up until they would find one. From then one, Lord have mercy on the poor Darkie. Then they would torture the poor Darkie, as innocent he may be. They would get their usual Ignorant Chess Cat laughs before they would shoot him down- like a Dog. My my my, those were the days.”

The living condition for the black population in the south at the time when Buddy Bolden and Louis Armstrong were young are summarized by the sociologist John Dollard, who in his book “Caste and Class in a Southern Town” published in 1937 wrote “Every Negro in the South knows that he is under a kind of sentence of death; he does not know when his turn will come, it may never come, but it may also be any time.”

Tiden

Racespændinger

Slaveriet blev ophævet efter den amerikanske borgerkrig, og den sorte befolkning fik konstitutionelle rettigheder på linje med de hvide. I perioden efter borgerkrigen, kaldet ”The Reconstruction”, var New Orleans besat af tropper fra Nordstaterne, en besættelse der sluttede i 1877. I 1896 vedtog højesteret en ” separate but equal” doktrin, der indebar, at adskillelse af sorte og hvide i den offentlige sektor var tilladt, så længe der var sammenlignelige faciliteter. Dette legaliserede adskillelse i skolevæsnet, universiteter, transportsektoren og restauranter. Diskriminationen har plaget USA helt op til tresserne.

I 1889 kom endnu et angreb på den sorte befolkning med ”The Black Code Amendment”, en lovgivning, der frarøvede dem endnu flere rettigheder og ved samme lejlighed placerede den kreolske befolkning på lige fod med den sorte befolkning. I perioden 1880- 1900 immigrerede ca. 40.000 bønder til New Orleans fra de omkringliggende områder på jagt efter arbejde. Dette medførte en eksplosiv atmosfære, som udløste Robert Charles tragedien, der også involverede Buddy Bolden.

Ti år senere udfordrede en hvid bokser ved navn Jim Jeffries, kendt som det store hvide håb, den sorte mester Jack Johnson, og blev besejret. Nu gennemførte hvide bøller et nyt ondskabsfuldt angreb på de sorte. Louis Armstrong så det, og i slutningen af sit liv skrev han: ”Da jeg var ti år gammel, så jeg det fupnummer, som disse gamle fede, stinkende endog meget stinkende, hvide folk udviste. Det virkede som om, at det eneste som betød noget for dem var deres ”Shot Guns”, som de havde bundet i en snor på ryggen. Men så drak de sig fulde i Mint Julep eller hjemmebrændt Whisky, som” poor white trash” bællede i sig som vand. Så blev de så skidefulde, at de gik amok- så var det ”Nigger Hunting Time”. Enhver nigger var et mål. De gav ikke op, før de fandt en, og så ”Lord have mercy on the poor Darkie”. Så torturerede de den stakkels sorte, om han var uskyldig var ligegyldigt. Så grinede de deres vanlige tåbelige ”Chess Cat laugh”, før de skød ham ned som en hund. Du milde himmel, sådan var de gode gamle dage.” (oversat af Peter Nissen)

Livsbetingelserne for den sorte befolkning i Sydstaterne, da Buddy Bolden og Louis Armstrong var unge, er opsummeret af sociologen John Dollard, der i sin bog ” Cast and Class in Southern Town”. (udgivet i 1937) skrev: ” Enhver neger i syden ved, at han er idømt en slags dødsstraf. Han ved ikke, hvornår det bliver hans tur, og det bliver det måske aldrig, men det kan også være når som helst.