The 1950s and ’60s were the height of the Civil Rights Movement, but it was preceded by decades of direct action and struggle. The end of the Civil War symbolized the determination to abolish slavery, yet discrimination continued. African Americans, along with support from many of their white colleagues, mobilized and began an unprecedented journey for equality, leveraging movements, boycotts, and marches to elevate their voices. Among these events, the Silent Parade, an anti-lynching protest, served as a significant part of the movement—all without words.
Organized by the NAACP, about 10,000 people gathered in New York City on July 28, 1917, to march in silence down Fifth Avenue to Madison Square.
The event was organized to protest violence directed at African Americans, such as lynchings that had taken place in Waco, Texas, and Memphis, Tenn. The parade was sparked by the East St. Louis riots in May and July of 1917. During this time, about 40 Black people (men, women, and children) were killed by white mobs. The violence, in part, was touched off by a labor dispute where blacks were used for strike breaking.
James Weldon Johnson, the NAACP’s field secretary and the author of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” also known as the Black (Negro) National Anthem, worked with a group of influential community leaders from St. Philip’s Church in New York City to brainstorm about protesting the riots. The idea of a silent protest had first been suggested by Oswald Garrison Villard during a 1916 NAACP conference.
Black women in New York had also participated in earlier silent parades with white women, such as the June 1917 parade in support of the Red Cross. Villard’s mother, Fanny Garrison Villard, had organized a silent march for suffragettes in New York in 1913. However, for this protest, organizers felt that it was important that only black people participate because they were the main victims of the recent violence.
Marching in the front were women and children clothed in white, which symbolized innocence in the midst of the country’s racism. In the back were men dressed in dark suits to represent mourning and their willpower to fight for their rights.
Protesters demanded that then-president Woodrow Wilson take action to protect the rights and livelihood of African Americans. They carried signs that read: Thou Shalt Not Kill, Your Hands Are Full of Blood; and Mothers, Do Lynchers Go to Heaven?
During the parade, whites stopped to listen to Blacks explain the reasons for the march; some white bystanders expressed support and sympathy. The parade marked the first, large Black-only protest parade in New York.
The New York Age described the event as a “mute but solemn protest against the atrocities and discrimination practiced against the race in various parts of the country.”
It was hoped that around 10,000 people would be able to participate, and that African Americans in other cities might hold their own parades. The New York City parade was announced ahead of time in other cities as well.
Tamara Shiloh
About Tamara Shiloh
Tamara Shiloh has published the first two books in her historical fiction chapter book series, Just Imagine…What If There Were No Black People in the World is about African American inventors, scientists and other notable Black people in history. The two books are Jaxon’s Magical Adventure with Black Inventors and Scientistsand Jaxon and Kevin’s Black History Trip Downtown. Tamara Shiloh has also written a book a picture book for Scholastic, Cameron Teaches Black History, that will be available in June, 2022.
Tamara Shiloh’s other writing experiences include: writing the Black History column for the Post Newspaper in the Bay area, Creator and Instruction of the black History Class for Educators a professional development class for teachers and her non-profit offers a free Black History literacy/STEM/Podcast class for kids 3d – 8th grade which also includes the Let’s Go Learn Reading and Essence and tutorial program. She is also the owner of the Multicultural Bookstore and Gifts, in Richmond, California,
Previously in her early life she was the /Editor-in-Chief of Desert Diamonds Magazine, highlighting the accomplishments of minority women in Nevada; assisting with the creation, design and writing of a Los Angeles-based, herbal magazine entitled Herbal Essence; editorial contribution to Homes of Color; Editor-in-Chief of Black Insight Magazine, the first digital, interactive magazine for African Americans; profile creations for sports figures on the now defunct PublicFigure.com; newsletters for various businesses and organizations; and her own Las Vegas community newsletter, Tween Time News, a monthly publication highlighting music entertainment in the various venues of Las Vegas.
She is a member of:
Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI)
Richmond Chamber of Commerce
Point Richmond Business Association
National Association of Professional Women (NAPW)
Independent Book Publishers Association (IPBA)
California Writers Club-Berkeley & Marin
Richmond CA Kiwanis
Richmond CA Rotary
Bay Area Girls Club
Tamara Shiloh, a native of Northern California, has two adult children, one grandson and four great-grand sons. She resides in Point Richmond, CA with her husband, Ernest.
