The Promised Land

Nicholas Lemann is the author of “The Promised Land: The Great Black Migration and How it Changed America”, a book that takes place between 1940 and 1970. What sets this bestseller apart from those written about the same time period is the way Lemann gives the Black Migration and Civil Rights Movement faces and voices. He uses interviews and observation to tell the stories of each man and women passionate about making a change during this time. This includes politicians, bureaucrats, civil rights organizations, etc. The book breaks apart this time into three cities: Clarksdale, Washington, and Chicago. The book changes between these three cities to show what was happening in each place simultaneously. Each chapter represents a city and they cut into each other multiple times. The focus of this paper, however; will be Washington and how it interacted with Chicago to aid blacks throughout the Civil Rights Movement.
Washington, regardless of its importance in the literal sense, is used in a figurative sense throughout Lemann’s book as a metaphor for the federal government. The Promised Land, in fact, is a metaphor for blacks making it into a world without segregation; a world of equality for all.
The Washington section starts off with John and, his brother, Robert Kennedy. John is running for presidency, however, he still needs a nomination at this time. Robert is leading his campaign. To ensure a nomination and election, it’s important to get the white vote, of course, but a black vote is necessary as well. These two votes have to be gained while straying away from the topic of Civil Rights to avoid controversy. If word gets out that John is a Civil Rights Activist, especially as a democrat, he will lose the majority of the southern white votes. Nevertheless, if he talks down about Civil Rights he could lose the majority of the black vote as well. This election must be strategically played to win over both sides. Robert Kennedy sees this and carries out the