This passage was adapted from an article written by three economists.
Topic
The causes and momentum of the Great Migration of African Americans from the South to the North between 1915 and 1960.
Framework
Answer / Explain
Main Point
The Great Migration started due to increased income opportunities in the North compared to the South, but the migration continued and even accelerated because earlier migrants made it much easier and less costly for others to follow. *Most Valuable Sentence:* (Start of P3)
P1: Causes of the Great Migration
Three main factors sparked the Great Migration: World War I pushed up demand for northern industrial labor, halted European immigration forced factories to recruit Black Southerners, and the boll weevil devastated Southern cotton crops, making local jobs scarce.
P2: Initial vs. Continuing Migration
Migration began in 1915 mainly due to the large pay gap, but it’s puzzling why migration didn’t slow down—even as the North-South income gap shrank, migration rates kept increasing.
P3: Explaining Ongoing Migration (Momentum Hypothesis)
The passage proposes that migration gained "momentum": once some people migrated, they made it easier and cheaper for future migrants by reducing uncertainty, costs of moving, and the challenges of settling into a new place.