How It All Goes Down
A Plantation by the Sea
- This business boom wouldn't be possible without the scores of black workers that make up the bulk of the hotel workforce. Many of these workers used to be enslaved, having recently moved up North after the Civil War. Sadly, conditions up North aren't much better.
- In 1893, black hotel workers try to unionize against unfair working conditions, but their efforts are squashed immediately. This problem won't go away, however—by 1915, African-Americans "comprised 95 percent of the hotel workforce" (3.6). The big irony is that many of these workers were once highly skilled tradesmen, but were denied employment due to their race. Now these craftsmen and artisans are working below their pay grade as domestic servants. Ugh.
- That being said, black workers do have a better life in Atlantic City than in other Northern cities. This leads to an even greater number of black people moving here for work. The more black people arrive, however, the more white residents start to freak out.
- Although "Blacks were integrated throughout the city" (3.35) at first, this influx of workers leads to de-facto segregation, with black families forced to live in an undeveloped neighborhood called the Northside. Despite this terrible treatment, the black community fights to create more opportunities for themselves. The church plays a big role in fostering social connections and helping those in need.
- Later, black business leaders create social agencies to support the community. The first of these is The Old Folks Home and Sanitarium, later joined by the YMCA. But while the Northside community becomes self-sufficient in many ways, it still fails to receive adequate "education and healthcare" (3.55). The once-integrated schools are segregated after a black teacher is hired—when white parents complain about their kids being taught by an African American person, the school board rules that students must be taught by members of their own race.
- Similarly, black residents are barred treatment from white doctors. Given the rampant discrimination faced by prospective black doctors, this leaves black residents without access to good medical care.