Jump to navigation

Picture This:
California Perspectives on American History
  • Home
  • Browse Pictures
  • Picture Map
  • Log In
  • Activities
  • Teaching Resources
  • About the Website

Search form

Depression Era: 1930s: Racial Status Quo, Mostly

Click image to zoom in.
Or view larger version.
An integrated parade of black and white men in Oakland, California. 1935. Moses L. Cohen, photographer. Gelatin silver print. Collection of Oakland Museum of California. The Oakland Tribune Collection. Gift of Alameda Newspaper Group.

The purpose of this parade that progresses down an Oakland street is not made clear in this photograph of white-uniformed men. What is clear is that the group is integrated, with black and white men marching together. Such integration might be the expected result of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's progressive New Deal policies, but in reality Oakland may well have been one of the few cities in the United States where such a sight would be readily accepted.

  • More information about this Topic

Picture Location

Browse the Picture Map »

Timeline: Depression Era: 1930s
« previous picture
next picture »

Browse By Timeline

  • Early California: pre-1769–1840s
  • Gold Rush: 1848–1860
  • Early Statehood: 1850 – 1880s
  • Progressive Era: 1890–1920s
  • Depression Era: 1930s
  • World War II Homefront Era: 1940s
  • Homogenization, Protests & Outright Rebellion: 1950s
  • Unforgettable Change: 1960s
  • Cultural Realignment & Economic Recession: 1970s
  • The Reagan Years: 1980s
  • 1990s to Present

Also, browse by Theme or by Most Useful

California.  Many Voices.  Many Stories.  Oakland Museum of California
Picture This is a project of the Oakland Museum of California