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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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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

John and Jean Rosenburg Oral History Interview

Date
August 15, 2013
Created by
Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
Interview of
John Rosenburg J. D., born 1931
Jean Rosenburg, American
Interviewed by
David P. Cline Ph. D., American, born 1969
Subject of
Wilmington College, American, founded 1870
United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, American, founded 1957
Federal Bureau of Investigation, American, founded 1908
Duke University, American, founded 1838
United States Air Force, American, founded 1947
University of North Carolina School of Law, American, founded 1845
John Andrew Doar, American, 1921 - 2014
Hartman Turnbow, American, 1905 - 1988
Voting Rights Act, American, founded 1965
Appalachian Citizens' Law Center, American, founded 2002
Description
The oral history consists of ten digital files: 2011.174.100.1a, 2011.174.100.1b, 2011.174.100.1c, 2011.174.100.1d, 2011.174.100.1e, 2011.174.100.1f, 2011.174.100.1g, 2011.174.100.1h, 2011.174.100.1i, and 2011.174.100.1j.
Jean and John Rosenberg, J. D. begin this interview with recollections of their families' backgrounds. Jean learned about social issues as she was raised by a Quaker family in Pennsylvania, and John's family fled Germany under threat from the Nazis. Jean attended Wilmington College and became a research analyst for the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. John grew up in Gastonia, North Carolina, where FBI agents kept tabs on his family, attended Duke University, served in the Air Force, and attended the University of North Carolina School of Law. He became an attorney with the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, which became effective after reorganization by John Doar. Much of this interview concerns Jean and John's work with the Civil Rights Division, including support for voter registration efforts in Georgia and Alabama, the investigation of the Hartman Turnbow case, in which a black activist was arrested for an arson attempt on his own home, and an effort to address a murder in Mississippi. John also addresses the effects of the Voting Rights Act in the South, the role of the lawyers in the Civil Rights Division in relation to the FBI and local law enforcement, and a variety of other cases and issues he dealt with. After retirement, the Rosenbergs founded the Appalachian Citizens Law Center.
LOC ID: afc2010039_crhp0100
Place collected
Prestonburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, United States, North and Central America
Place depicted
Pennsylvania, United States, North and Central America
Germany, Europe
Gastonia, Gaston County, North Carolina, United States, North and Central America
Georgia, United States, North and Central America
Alabama, United States, North and Central America
Mississippi, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
Activism
American South
Associations and institutions
Civil Rights
Education
Law
Military
Social reform
Suffrage
U.S. History, 1961-1969
U.S. History, 2001-
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Collection title
Civil Rights History Project
Classification
Time-based Media - Moving Images
Movement
Civil Rights Movement
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in partnership with the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2011.174.100.1a-j
Type
video recordings
oral histories
digital media - born digital
Restrictions & Rights
© Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
digital
Dimensions
Duration: 2 hr., 36 min., 57 sec.
Total: 242.94 GB
Title
Title • John and Jean Rosenburg Oral History Interview
Record ID
nmaahc_2011.174.100.1a-j
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
JOHN AND JEAN ROSENBURG ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
2010s • 1930s
Name
Doar, John Andrew • Cline, David P. • United States Air Force • United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division • Appalachian Citizens' Law Center • Wilmington College • Federal Bureau of Investigation • Turnbow, Hartman • Rosenburg, Jean • Duke University • Civil Rights History Project • Rosenburg, John • University of North Carolina School of Law • Voting Rights Act
Place
North Carolina • United States • Europe • Prestonburg • Kentucky • Alabama • Pennsylvania • Gastonia • Mississippi • Floyd County • North and Central America • Gaston County • Georgia • Germany
Topic
Activism • American South • Law • Social reform • Suffrage • Education • Civil Rights • U.S. History, 1961-1969 • Associations and institutions • Civil rights • U.S. History, 2001- • Military
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
City • Prestonburg • County • Floyd County • State • Kentucky • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • State • Pennsylvania • Country • Germany • Continent • Europe • City • Gastonia • County • Gaston County • State • North Carolina • State • Georgia • State • Alabama • State • Mississippi
Type
Video recordings • digital media - born digital • Oral histories (document genres) • Interviews
Online Media Rights
Limited Use

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

NMAAHC

Letter written by Mrs. Marion Potter to Armand De Rosset and John Potts Brown

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Pinback button protesting the imprisonment of the Wilmington 10

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Photograph of fields near Wilmington, NC

Date: Date

Caption

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No preview image
NMAAHC

John and Jean Rosenburg Oral History Interview

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.