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GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS
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THE JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
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MY'STORY

The MOVE Fire

This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985 Philadelphia police fired thousands of rounds at the MOVE house, city officials approved dropping an explosive device on the roof, the resulting fire was allowed to burn, 11 people—including five children—died, and 61 homes were destroyed. Philadelphia City Council later called it a “brutal attack carried out by the City of Philadelphia on its own citizens” and acknowledged that no individual faced criminal consequences for the bombing. One timeline correction worth preserving for the BHP record: the major previous MOVE-police confrontation was August 8, 1978, about seven years before the bombing, not a year or two earlier. Officer James Ramp was killed, other police and firefighters were wounded, nine MOVE members were later convicted, and television cameras recorded police beating Delbert Africa during his arrest. The 1985 MOVE Commission later specifically criticized city planners for failing to adequately use lessons from that 1978 confrontation. And that actually strengthens the point you’re making: 1985 did not happen without precedent or institutional memory. There had already been a deadly confrontation with MOVE, years of conflict, negotiations and police involvement before Osage Avenue.

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BLACK FACTS
The Truths They Never Taught You...

Wilmington 1898 — An American Coup

Wilmington, North Carolina once had a thriving Black middle class and an elected interracial government. In 1898 white supremacists used violence to overthrow that government, kill Black residents and drive many others from the city.

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BHP gathered finds from its connected research sources. Showing the 4 strongest Black History matches.
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NMAAHC

Edgar Cahn Oral History Interview

Date
August 24, 2017
Created by
National Museum of African American History and Culture, American, founded 2003
Interview of
Edgar Cahn, American, born 1934
Interviewed by
Kelly Elaine Navies, American
Recorded by
Kim Moir, American
Subject of
Poor People's Campaign, American, 1967 - 1968
Jean Camper Cahn, American, 1935 - 1991
Swarthmore Collge, American, founded 1864
Senator Robert F. Kennedy, American, 1925 - 1968
Sargent Shriver, American, 1915 - 2011
Description
An oral history consisting of a single digital video recording (2018.78.3.1). It was collected as part of the Poor People’s Campaign Interviews.
In this interview, Edgar Cahn, a lifelong social justice advocate, discusses his upbringing in New York City and education at Swarthmore College; his work providing legal services to the poor throughout the 1960s; the research and writing of report, Hunger USA; his involvement with the Poor People’s Campaign; and his continued social justice work since then.
Cahn begins the interview by discussing his early life and the development of his relationship with his late wife, Jean Camper Cahn, whom he met at Swarthmore. Cahn then talks about attending Yale Law School and recalls how he and his wife began their careers providing legal services to the poor in New Haven, CT. Cahn then turns to a discussion of his legal work combatting poverty throughout the 1960s through both the government and government watchdog organizations. Cahn discusses his work around the publication of Hunger U.S.A, and he recalls his experience at Resurrection City in 1968. Cahn then connects the Poor People’s Campaign to what he sees as a broader shift toward the empowerment and participatory engagement of disenfranchised and marginalized people in the US. Cahn concludes the interview by discussing the role of women, such as Jean Camper Cahn, in his life and work, and by discussing a system for community engagement called TimeBanking that he developed in 1980.
Place collected
Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
Place depicted
New Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, North and Central America
Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
Activism
Civil Rights
Humanitarianism
Justice
Labor
Politics
Poverty
Race relations
Segregation
U.S. History, 1961-1969
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Collection title
Poor People’s Campaign Oral Histories
Classification
Time-based Media - Moving Images
Movement
Civil Rights Movement
African American - Latinx Solidarity
Poor People's Campaign
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2018.78.3.1
Type
video recordings
oral histories
digital media - born digital
Restrictions & Rights
© Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
digital
Dimensions
Duration: 01:50:15
22.75 GB
Title
Title • Edgar Cahn Oral History Interview
Record ID
nmaahc_2018.78.3.1
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
EDGAR CAHN ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
2010s • 1930s
Name
Poor People's Campaign • Cahn, Edgar • Navies, Kelly Elaine • Shriver, Sargent • National Museum of African American History and Culture • Camper Cahn, Jean • Swarthmore Collge • Moir, Kim • Kennedy, Robert F.
Place
New Haven County • District of Columbia • New Haven • United States • North and Central America • Connecticut • Washington
Topic
Justice • Activism • Poor People's Campaign • Poverty • Segregation • Civil Rights • U.S. History, 1961-1969 • African American - Latinx Solidarity • Humanitarianism • Labor unions • Civil rights • Politics • Race relations
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
City • Washington • State • District of Columbia • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • City • New Haven • County • New Haven County • State • Connecticut
Type
Video recordings • digital media - born digital • Oral histories (document genres) • Interviews
Online Media Type
Video recordings
Online Media Rights
Copyright Owned

Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. Rights and restrictions shown above are supplied by the Smithsonian record.

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NMAAHC

Edgar Cahn Oral History Interview

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Needlenose pliers from the workshop of C. Edgar Patience

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Two pieces of pyrite from the workshop of C. Edgar Patience

Date: Date

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NMAAHC

Stencil plate from the workshop of C. Edgar Patience

Date: Date

Description

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TOPIC OF THE DAY

Greenwood / Black Wall Street

Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.

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TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE DAY

What prosperous Tulsa district became widely known as “Black Wall Street”?

The Greenwood District.