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Of The Black Belt
© W. Owen Brown
Oct 30, 2001
I am black but comely,
O ye daughters of Jerusalem,
As the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
Look not upon me, because I am black, Because the Sun hath looked upon me: My mother’s children were angry With me; They made me the
keeper of the vineyards; But mine own vineyard have I not kept
The Song of Solomon.
W.E.B. Du Bois takes us on a historical journey thru the Deep South in Of The Black Belt. He looks into the history of an area in Georgia known as the "Black Belt". Du Bois takes brief glimpses at the history of certain areas. A little past Atlanta, to the southwest, is the land of the Cherokees, and not far from there Sam Hose was crucified, a well-known slave in those parts.
You may be standing on the spot which was the center of the Negro problem. The center of those nine million men who are America's dark heritage from slavery and the slave-trade. Not only is Georgia thus the geographical focus of our Negro population, but in many other respects, both now and yesterday, the Negro problems have seemed to be centered in this State.
No other State in the Union can count a million Negroes among its citizens; a population as large as the slave population of the whole Union in 1800. No other State fought so long and strenuously to gather this host of Africans. Du Bois tells of his journey to the land of the Creek Indians that is near Macon. Where the world grows darker, and the journey leads one to the "Black Belt."
The strange land of shadows, at which even slaves paled in the past and whence come now only faint and half-intelligible murmurs to the world beyond. All the way to Albany. At Albany, in the heart of the "Black Belt" two hundred miles south of Atlanta, two hundred miles west of the Atlantic, and one hundred miles north of the Great Gulf lay Dougherty County.
This county with ten thousand Negroes and two thousand whites where the Flint River winds down from Andersonville, and turning suddenly at Albany. The county seat hurries on to join the Chattahoochee and the sea. Andrew Jackson knew the Flint well and marched across it once to avenge the Indian Massacre at Fort Mims. That was in 1814, not long before the battle of New Orleans and by the Creek treaty that followed this campaign.
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The copyright of the article Of The Black Belt in Writing from Harlem is owned by W. Owen Brown. Permission to republish Of The Black Belt in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
In response to message posted by Renie_Burghardt:
Hi Renie! I'm pleased that you enjoyed this review - I did too :) I am ...
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Hi Nichel, Mr. Brown does such a super job on these reviews! I'm compelled to read the piece, after reading his review. Thank you, Mr. Brown.Hey Nichel, how are ya? Hope all is well with you. ...
-- posted by Renie_Burghardt
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In response to message posted by Sunbear:
Hi Tom, Thank you for stopping by and checking out the latest review by Mr. Bro ...
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Hi Nichel,Interesting commentary on DuBois' essays. This makes me want to read more both authors. I've read some of DuBois though; he is so powerful. Thanks for sharing, Nichel.
Take care,
...
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