Race, Jobs & Poverty in Twentieth-Century Long Island
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 6-2016 Suburbs in Black and White: Race, Jobs & Poverty in Twentieth- Century Long Island Tim Keogh Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1254 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] SUBURBS IN BLACK AND WHITE: RACE, JOBS & POVERTY IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY LONG ISLAND By Tim Keogh A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2016 ii © 2016 TIM KEOGH All Rights Reserved iii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in History in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Judith Stein, Ph.D. _______________________ _______________________________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee Professor Helena Rosenblatt, Ph.D. _______________________ _______________________________________________ Date Executive Officer Thomas Kessner, Ph.D. Clarence Taylor, Ph.D. Joshua Freeman, Ph.D. Guian McKee, Ph.D. Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iv Abstract SUBURBS IN BLACK AND WHITE: RACE, JOBS & POVERTY IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY LONG ISLAND By Tim Keogh Advisor: Professor Judith Stein “Suburbs in Black and White” examines how economic development shaped African American suburbanization on Long Island, New York from 1920 through 1980. After 1940, the fortunes of Long Island’s growing black population shifted from widespread poverty to upward social mobility, though by the 1960s, a divide emerged between the rising black middle class and black working poor, and distinctly ‘black’ suburbs emerged with problems familiar to postwar inner cities. While urban racial inequality is often framed in terms of housing segregation and the city/suburb divide, census and labor market data reveal that structural economic change across the New York metropolitan region produced the racial gap and intra-racial class divide, regardless of urban or suburban residence. Long Island’s economy experienced the national labor market ‘twist’ after World War II, as job opportunities expanded for skilled workers and contracted for the unskilled. By the 1970s, deindustrialization reached the suburbs, leading to further job loss and strained suburban tax systems. African Americans disproportionately suffered from the transition, and their economic plight shaped the outcomes of local housing segregation. Nonetheless, the ideology of suburban ‘affluence’ and the dualism of black city versus white suburb dominated public policy in the 1960s and 1970s, obscuring the shared plight of postwar African American urban and suburban residents. By viewing the postwar suburbs from the perspective of the suburban labor market, this dissertation integrates the urban fringe and its minority residents into the broader history of late twentieth century racial and class inequality. v Acknowledgements While writing a dissertation can feel like a solitary (and sometimes lonely) endeavor, it is a collective effort, and the project was completed with help from archivists who provided necessary evidence, Graduate Center faculty who honed my arguments and writing, and friends and family who offered support and relief. I was never alone, and the pages that follow are thanks to nearly everyone I’ve met over the past few years. Writing history is impossible without sources, and dozens of archivists helped me locate the research used in this book. I wish to thank the staff of the National Archives branches in College Park and New York, the Library of Congress, and the Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Columbia University for assistance with their massive repositories. The archivists of the New York State Archives were especially supportive. Not only did they award me the Larry J. Hackman Research Residency Program, but Jim Folts directed me toward several records lacking finding aids. Last, but not least, I want to thank Kristen Nyitray and Lynn Toscano of Stony Brook University’s Special Collections and University Archives. They were not only attentive to my research needs, pulling out sources unknown to me and retrieving boxes for my next visit, but they were always welcoming and friendly. I looked forward to my long weekly train rides out to Stony Brook. One of the unexpected pleasures of this dissertation were the small archives and local historical societies, staffed by librarians and volunteer preservationists truly devoted to their rare sources. Elly Shodell of the Port Washington Public Library Local History Center, Mary Cascone of the Town of Babylon Historian’s Office, Edward Smith of the Suffolk County Historical Society, and the staff of the Historical Society of the Westburys and Cradle of vi Aviation Museum all made researching Long Island’s local history possible. I particularly enjoyed my time with Lawrence Feliu and other fellow ex-Grummanites at the Northrup- Grumman History Center. Lawrence pulled all sorts of interesting folders out of the center’s basement, and wading through corporate documents surrounded by space suits, airplane parts, and intricate models of spacecraft was a rare treat. Debra Willett also deserves a special bit of gratitude, as does the entire staff of the Long Island Studies Institute, who put up with my countless requests for microfilms, newspaper clippings, and even videocassettes, all with a smile. The actual writing of this dissertation was made possible by the dedicated faculty of the Graduate Center History Department. Andrew Robertson read the earliest draft of this project during a graduate seminar. Clarence Taylor and Joshua Freeman read my dissertation proposal and helped me reframe the project. I also benefitted from the insights of Columbia University’s Kenneth Jackson, who offered useful criticisms on another paper that influenced my dissertation. Professor Thomas Kessner’s influence can be found throughout this project. When I first entered his dissertation seminar, I had nothing but scattered notes and research. My first submission was a mess of twenty pages, and Professor Kessner meticulously showed me what was valuable, what could be reframed, and what should be discarded. The dissertation flowed easily afterward, and I did not hesitate to send Professor Kessner any draft I struggled with. He put the same care into every reading. Few professors take graduate scholarship more seriously than Professor Kessner – he is a dedicated, caring, and attentive mentor. Those qualities are the reason I was able to begin writing and ultimately, complete this project. No single person has had a greater influence on this project or my broad historical outlook than my advisor, Judith Stein. I took Professor Stein’s political economy graduate course on a whim, ignorant of the subject and unaware she was one of the leading practitioners in vii the field. By the end of the course, I was converted, and after working with Professor Stein over the past few years, I understand why she is such an influential scholar. She never settled for generic arguments, demanded I question conventional interpretations, combed each sentence in every draft for assertions without evidence, and motivated me to probe deeper into the sources. She is intensely demanding, but her rigor is matched by exceptional encouragement, and her enthusiasm for history is infectious. If I doubted my ideas, she pushed me toward useful scholarship or into the archives, where I could confirm of my thesis or develop a new argument. She is everything one could hope for in an advisor, and I am fortunate to have written my first historical monograph with her guidance. Support outside academia kept me sane. The friendships I cultivated at the Graduate Center, including Joseph Murphy, Michael Brenes, and Vanessa Burrows, provided much needed encouragement and camaraderie throughout my graduate career. Brendan Cooper helped me work through many of my ideas, and he offered some of the most useful comments on my drafts. I hope I can repay him for the hours he devoted to my dissertation. Peter-Christian Aigner likewise read drafts, listened to drone on about my thesis for hours, and even line-edited my introduction! But most importantly, he was a key source of mental support and motivation, and we grew closer as we jointly worked toward completion, a friendship I cherish. Friends outside the Grad Center helped too; Mike and Katherine Mulligan offered their comfy couch in Northern Virginia for my numerous trips to DC archives, and Mike provided much needed burgers and video games when I could use a break. Dan Ceriano made his spare bed available when I presented in Los Angeles, and I thoroughly enjoyed his little slice of paradise along the California coast. Lastly, I must thank my family. My mom, dad, and brother put up with me living at home long after I should have, and I could always count on a meal, babysitting, or a ride viii to the train station. These were but a few of the ways they pitched in. Most importantly, home was a welcome respite from all the teaching, researching, and seminars. I got married two months after submitting my dissertation proposal, so in a sense, my wife married both me and my dissertation. In all the time since, she was an ardent supporter and has made innumerable sacrifices so this project could be completed. When I doubted my conclusions, she offered encouragement. When I needed to eat, couldn’t do basic arithmetic, or forgot to email myself a chapter, she was there. And when I just needed to stop thinking about the project, she reminded me of what was most important: love and family. This was all the more essential when my wife gave birth to the cutest most wonderful little baby in the whole world.