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Cargando... Rising from the Rails: Pullman Porters and the Making of the Black Middle Classpor Larry Tye
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An engaging social history that reveals the critical role Pullman porters played in the struggle for African American civil rights When George Pullman began recruiting Southern blacks as porters in his luxurious new sleeping cars, the former slaves suffering under Jim Crow laws found his offer of a steady job and worldly experience irresistible. They quickly signed up to serve as maid, waiter, concierge, nanny, and occasionally doctor and undertaker to cars full of white passengers, making the Pullman Company the largest employer of African American men in the country by the 1920s. In the world of the Pullman sleeping car, where whites and blacks lived in close proximity, porters developed a unique culture marked by idiosyncratic language, railroad lore, and shared experience. They called difficult passengers "Mister Charlie"; exchanged stories about Daddy Jim, the legendary first Pullman porter; and learned to distinguish generous tippers such as Humphrey Bogart from skinflints like Babe Ruth. At the same time, they played important social, political, and economic roles, carrying jazz and blues to outlying areas, forming America's first black trade union, and acting as forerunners of the modern black middle class by virtue of their social position and income. Drawing on extensive interviews with dozens of porters and their descendants, Larry Tye reconstructs the complicated world of the Pullman porter, and provides a lively and enlightening look at this important social phenomenon. No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
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Google Books — Cargando... GénerosSistema Decimal Melvil (DDC)331.88Social sciences Economics Labor economics Labour Unions, labour-management bargaining and disputes Labor unions and other organizationsClasificación de la Biblioteca del CongresoValoraciónPromedio:
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I checked out some of his figures for living wages and found that these men(and women) did alright for themselves. Yes, the conditions were extremely poor but that was true for ma y of the works at this time.
I wonder how the author can say that the jobs were passed down within the family, from father to son and to brothers if it was such a lousy job. More truths and meaningful statements would go a long way to help this book. And yes; George Pullman was one of the "Robber Barons" who got his name for a reason. ( )