Reaching for Equality

Reaching for Equality. Midcity at the Crossroads. , For much of the 1900s, inexpensive entertainments lined Seventh and Ninth streets, from D to U Streets. Vaudeville houses, pool halls, record shops, and taverns made for a busy night life. And everyone went to the movies. Two small theaters once operated on this block, the Alamo at 1203 and the Mid-City (1223). Seventh Street also boasted the Happyland (1020), Gem (1131), and Broadway (1515), with the Raphael nearby at 1409 Ninth., Until 1953 Washington's movie houses were restricted to one race or segregated by seating. By 1927, 5 of the city's 13 "colored" theaters were found near here. Some were White-owned. Others were not, such as the Mid City, owned by African American vaudeville star Sherman H. Dudley., The Washington Bee newspaper, a booster of Black-owned businesses, encouraged readers to boycott White-owned theaters. In 1910, the Bee targeted the Happyland, which divided its auditorium with a low partition. Theater historian Robert Headley notes that children often hurled hard candy at each other over the wall. As late as 1937 the Gem still had its partition., In summer 1919, when racial disturbances were sweeping U.S. cities, a race riot included this area. Heroic Black veterans of World War I's battles for freedom had come home demanding new respect, better jobs, and civil rights. Their actions threatened some White DC residents. In July an incident in Southwest sparked White mobs that rampaged through Black neighborhoods. In turn armed Black men defended their communities. Over five days, more than 30 White and Black residents were killed, and hundreds were injured.