What happened during the Jim Crow Era?

The name of the Jim Crow Era came from a form of entertainment called Minstrel shows, which were white people that painted their faces black degrading slaves during this time. It all started with a struggling actor named Thomas Dartmouth who came across an African American man singing, who was claimed to be an old slave hobbling the streets. This gave Thomas the inspiration to go on stage, dressed in black makeup, making a comedy show about the poor black man. Jim Crow ended up becoming the name referring to African Americans.

Now that you know where the name Jim Crow came from, here are some key events that happened during this era.

"Don't let the sun go down on you" was a famous saying that referred to sundown towns. Sundown towns were all white municipalities or neighborhoods in the United States that practice a form of segregation by enforcing restrictions that exclude people of non- right races using a combination of discriminatory local laws, intimidation and a lot of violence. The towns were a hidden part of America's past for a long time between Maine to California. They started on 1890 and ended 1945, but there has been evidence that there are still some sundown towns in action.

Poll taxes and literacy tests were two unfair disadvantages for African Americans. In 1980 poll taxes were a fee for voting which disabled African Americans to be able to vote because they didn't have the money to pay the taxes. Literacy tests were 68 question exams used on people of color to determine if you could vote or not. They were created for people to fail because blacks lacked the ability to read or write. Overall, these events had a big affect on African Americans and it shaped the Jim Crow Era.