African American
You are an African American woman. You were born to former slaves just after the end of the Civil War. Although you are free, you do not have the right to vote. You work six days a week as a domestic (raising children and performing all cooking, cleaning, and gardening duties) in a southern plantation mansion for a wealthy white family in Jackson, Mississippi. You walk over a mile from your poor African American part of town to get to work each day, and then to get home after working 10-12 hours.
Resources
African American Women and the 1893 Chicago World's Fair - This web page is meant to be a lesson plan for teachers, but it has several primary source pamphlets and speeches that provide excellent information from the perspective of the African American woman.
The Black Presence at "White City" - This is a scholarly article about the African American experience at the World's Fair. You might want to pay special attention to the information about Frederick Douglass.
World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 - Click on 'Dream City' on the left menu. Then click on 'Architecture'. Scroll down and look for the 'Womens' Building'. How are women protrayed? Do you feel that you are represented as an American woman?
The Black Presence at "White City" - This is a scholarly article about the African American experience at the World's Fair. You might want to pay special attention to the information about Frederick Douglass.
World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 - Click on 'Dream City' on the left menu. Then click on 'Architecture'. Scroll down and look for the 'Womens' Building'. How are women protrayed? Do you feel that you are represented as an American woman?