From separate hotels to cemeteries, striking historical photos show what segregation looked like in Jim Crow-era America
- Throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries, segregation laws, known as Jim Crow laws, created restrictions for Black Americans.
- While these laws were constantly challenged, it wasn't until 1964 that the discriminatory laws were outruled by Congress.
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, segregation laws, also known as Jim Crow laws, were instated throughout most parts of the American South to separate white and Black Americans after the abolishment of slavery. From separate housing and education, to restrictions on transportation and restaurants, and even the prohibition of interracial marriage, segregation laws were proposed under the guise of "separate but equal." Instead, these regulations allowed continued racism and discrimination toward Black Americans and forced restrictions to keep them from being allowed to succeed or thrive.
Prior to Jim Crow, "Black Codes" were introduced throughout the South starting around 1865. These laws dictated where Black people could work and live, as well as ensured their availability for cheap labor. Many Black people were forced to sign annual labor contracts and risked being arrested, fined, and forced into unpaid work if they refused to sign.
Black Americans who challenged any of the unfair laws placed upon them often faced extreme consequences, like jail time, beatings, and lynchings.
Public transportation, including buses and trains, were segregated throughout the Jim Crow era with Black transients either sitting in the rear of the vehicle or completely denied entrance.
In 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested after refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, catapulting the civil rights movement.
Discriminatory laws and practices, including Black travelers being denied access to services like gas, food, restrooms, and lodging, as well as unreasonable police stops, made driving solo a hazardous experience.
To counteract these issues, the Green Book, a Black travel guide was created, recommending safe accommodations, stops, and locations for Black travelers to use while on the road.
White-dominant residential areas were also prohibited from Black families through various zoning laws across different cities.
It wasn't until 1917 that the Supreme Court decided this form of zoning was unconstitutional because it interfered with owners' property rights.
In Richmond, Virginia, people were prohibited from residing on any block where they were not allowed to marry the majority of residents, leading to the state's anti-interracial marriage law.
Even as segregated housing laws were challenged, other tactics were used to keep Blacks and whites from living among each other.
From primary schools to colleges and universities, public educational institutions were segregated until 1954.
Black colleges like Howard University and Fisk University were created to address the fact that there weren't any establishments of higher education that Black Americans were allowed to attend.
In 1954, segregation of education was considered unconstitutional by the Supreme Court after Brown v. Board of Education.
Restaurants, cafes, public parks, dance clubs, and theaters were all places of segregation.
Violating these discriminatory laws could have resulted in jail time.
Public restrooms were also segregated.
At movie theaters, Black patrons were forced to sit on the balcony, which usually meant climbing several stairs.
Blacks and whites were prohibited from being in the same waiting room in professional offices.
Public phone booths and water fountains were also segregated.
Cemeteries, asylums, and even jails were segregated.
For cemeteries specifically, Black communities were forced to create their own, with very little funding, usually in potter's fields with terrible infrastructure and wooden paddles for identification.
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