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Title: Seeing color in black and white: New York defines its color line in Ridgway v. Cockburn in 1937
Citation Type: Dissertation/Thesis
Publication Year: 2016
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Abstract: This thesis examines the role Ridgway v. Cockburn played in exposing the “Negro race” as a subjective experience rather than a definitive label. Blacks in the 20th century were seen as undesirable. The NAACP fought for blacks’s rights to property and justice in the courts. Racially restrictive covenants became a popular method used by whites to keep blacks out of their neighborhoods. Arthur Garfield Hays, a white lawyer, defended the Cockburns as they moved into Edgemont Hills, a white elite neighborhood. Captain Cockburn held officer positions in numerous ships. Mrs. Cockburn was white in appearance, although she also possessed a small “colored” ancestry. In the United States, Captain Cockburn joined forces Marcus Garvey until their relationship soured. Then Captain Cockburn became a successful real estate agent. Mrs. Cockburn bought property in Edgemont Hills, upon which she and Captain Cockburn built a home in which to reside. Marion Ridgway took Mrs. Cockburn to court, invoking a racially restrictive covenant that forbade “Negroes” from residing on the property unless they were “colored servants.” Because New York had not defined “Negro,” Hays argued that the Cockburns could not be found to be Negro. Anthropologists . . .
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Authors: Soares, Nicholas A
Institution: University at Albany, State University of New York
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Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Other, Race and Ethnicity
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