Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2021/Spring/105i/Section 22/James Joseph Florian

Overview
James Joseph Florian was an African American male that worked as a janitor. He was born circa 1887 in Person Country, North Carolina and interviewed by the Federal Writers' Project in 1938.

Early Life
William Oscar Torian, more commonly known as James Joseph “Joe” Florian, was a Black man born in Person County, North Carolina. He grew up working on a small family farm with his mother, father, brother, Bob, and four sisters, Clara, Fanny, Jenny, and Sara. When Florian dropped out of school in seventh grade, his mother urged him to stay and continue working on the farm, but instead, Florian moved to the city of Greensboro in search of work.

Working and Family Life
Florian met his wife, Virginia, in church while he lived in Greensboro. As a Black male during the early 20th century, Florian encountered difficulty finding a decent-paying job, especially with the presence of “white businesses” and a “negro section of Greensboro.” Nonetheless, Florian found a job as a hall boy at a hotel. However, he quit and got a more lucrative job tending to a wealthy man’s garden. Soon after, Florian met his wife, Virginia, in church. After hearing about various job opportunities up North, Florian and his wife moved to Stamford, Connecticut where he became employed at a copper smelting plant. He eventually left his job at the factory and became a janitor at the Yale Lock Company Plant. Not long after, Florian was noticed by the president of the company and was promoted as the only janitor authorized to clean the offices of the top three ranked officials of the company. Soon after, he was promoted once more and became the supervisor of all the janitors working for the business.

When Virginia became pregnant, she faced health problems due to sinus issues and pre-existing conditions that worsened with Connecticut weather. Doctors told Mrs. Florian that the health of both her and her unborn child was compromised. However, “Little James” was born healthy in 1920. Not long after his birth, Virginia was hospitalized due to a heart attack, encouraging the family to move back to Greensboro. Upon moving back to Greensboro, Florian began working for a general building contractor. However, after being hit by a car and sustaining injuries, he was no longer able to do manual labor. He became a bellhop at the O’Henry Hotel where he was often encouraged to drink with wealthy clients. During this time, Mrs. Florian’s health improved and she was able to successfully give birth to her and Mr. Florian’s second child, Betsy. After Florian's wife expressed concern for his excessive drinking habits, Florian quit his job at the hotel and opened a lunch counter while occupying a few other odd jobs. In 1935, he sold the lunch counter and worked under a wallpaper contractor. When a storm hit Greensboro, a tornado cut through the town, forcing the Florian's to take shelter. It was during this time that Virginia suffered a fatal heart attack. After his wife’s death, Florian sent their children to live in Virginia with their aunt. He lost his job and once again turned to doing several odd jobs. In his interview with the Federal Writers’ Project, Florian mentioned nearly turning to alcohol again, but refrained when his son, James, returned home to him. Florian began working as janitor at a wholesale organization. In 1937, his daughter, Betsy, returned as well. When Betsy hinted at dropping out of school to pursue work, as her father did, Florian explained the numerous lost opportunities he had faced due to his lack of schooling. Therefore, he encouraged his daughter to continue receiving an education. Florian added that it was too late for him to return to school due to his lack of money during the Great Depression.

Unemployment Rates and Wage Gaps in African American Employment During the Great Depression
Following the stock market crash, unskilled jobs previously occupied predominantly by the Black community were taken over by white individuals. The Library of Congress reports that, "in some Northern cities, whites called for African Americans to be fired from any jobs as long as there were whites out of work." As the economy faced a steep decline, African Americans were the “last hired, first fired." Black individuals were “...1.5 times more likely to be unemployed." In fact, "by 1932, approximately half of African Americans were out of work." Unemployment rates amongst African Americans were worsened by workplace discrimination they faced, despite their qualifications. This was coupled by discrimination within the New Deal such as housing and employment projects. Additionally, due to the lower-paying jobs they previously occupied, Blacks faced severe economic hardship due to their lack of “a financial cushion to fall back on…” Due to the disproportionate opportunities for Black Americans at the time, occupational skill-level amongst the community was low. Through analysis, the rise in racial inequality during and after the Great Depression was found to be largely attributed to this disparity in skill as well as regional differences.

Alcohol Use and Abuse During Recessionary Periods
Those that lived and worked through the Great Depression, especially with Prohibition coming to an end, often turned to alcohol as a coping mechanism. Recent studies have shown that times of economic difficulty or depression are tied to “an almost 20% increase in alcoholism-related searches.” Internet search data seems to indicate a fairly strong correlation between economic recession and individuals seeking answers about, or expressing concern for their drinking habits. Through their research, Frijters, Johnston, Lordan, and Shield suggest that “a 5 percentage-point increase in the unemployment rate (as seen in the Great Recession) is associated with around a 14% increase in the problem-drinking index after 12 months.” The causes could be attributed to boredom, stress, loneliness etc., but Frijters notes that, "the health outcomes that can be impacted by changes in unemployment rates are likely to be those where stress triggers a quick manifestation. Examples of such outcomes include alcoholism and alcohol abuse." Additionally, an increase in frequent binge-drinking is seen during recessionary periods.

Educational Disparities
African American education disproportionately suffered during the Great Depression. While North Carolina was able to keep all public schools open, they were underfunded, especially those designated for Black students. Schools were segregated, allowed by the “separate, but equal” law in North Carolina’s state constitution. As this was not overturned until 1954, schools for African American children were not equal to those for White children.

Education in Black schools was of far lesser quality, likely due to lack of funding, the lack of standard curriculums, and an underpaid staff. North Carolina standards considered in teacher-pay included, “experience, whether they had a “full” class, and their education level.” Yet, salaries for White teachers in 1933 were $45-$90 per month, while salaries for Black teachers were $35-$70. Additionally, training facilities for African American educators were scarce.

Conditions in Black schools were below those of White schools. Davis stated that, “buildings, supplies, and books, nor the treatment of students and teachers” were not equal to that of their White counterpart. She proceeded to state that, “sometimes black students used the books discarded from white schools” and that “an early 1930s survey showed that school buildings for African Americans in the state were worth one-ninth the value of school facilities for white children.”

Organized Labor Unions During the Great Depression
Predominately Black labor unions were rare, as members were often targeted by Jim Crow laws, lynch mobs, and racist mainstream labor groups. The Roosevelt administration made little progress in narrowing the race-based unemployment and wage gaps. An effort to enact "nondiscriminatory hiring and an equal minimum wage for whites and Blacks," was unsuccessful, as they upheld the wage gaps and hired few people of color. Named the National Recovery Act by the Roosevelt administration, the Black community renamed it the Negro Removal Act. Though the potential for an inclusive industrial union movement was shown in the strike wave of 1934, the American Federation of Labor refused to challenge deep-rooted racism or risk the integration of unskilled workers, further isolating and oppressing the Black community. Progress occurred when the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO) “made organizing Blacks a priority." The CIO became 60% Black and was backed by the National Negro Congress, which introduced the integration of civil rights organizations with labor unions. However, by that point, African Americans were distrustful of labor unions, as they were often "excluded or forced to organize in separate unions" especially in the American Federation of Labor. This led to widespread hesitation in joining new unions. However, in time, "Blacks joined the CIO as a way to fight desperate poverty and racism," leading to a 500% increase of Blacks in unions. This progress was not sufficient in integrating African Americans into the workforce, as "the proportion of Blacks in manufacturing actually declined from 7.3 percent in 1930 to 5.5 percent in 1940."