American Quarterly

Nance, Susan.
Respectability and Representation: The Moorish Science Temple, Morocco, and Black Public Culture in 1920s Chicago
American Quarterly - Volume 54, Number 4, December 2002, pp. 623-659

The Johns Hopkins University Press

Susan Nance - Respectability and Representation: The Moorish Science Temple, Morocco, and Black Public Culture in 1920s Chicago - American Quarterly 54:4 American Quarterly 54.4 (2002) 623-659 Respectability and Representation: The Moorish Science Temple, Morocco, and Black Public Culture in 1920s Chicago Susan NanceUniversity of California, Berkeley [Figures] Sometime in 1926 or early 1927, rumors began spreading around Chicago's South Side that a group of exotically-dressed men had begun initiating altercations with strangers in public. Critics claimed these men called themselves Moorish Americans and strode around the city daring startled whites to trample black rights by announcing, "I am a citizen of the USA!" Some also witnessed these "Sheiks" making agitating speeches at work and at the street universities at Washington Park and on State Street. Journalists later described their intimidating public presence: "They flaunted their fezzes on the street and treated the white man with undisguised contempt. Many of them affected formidable-looking beards." Soon the leader of these men stepped forward. He was Noble Drew Ali, a street-corner orator and southern migrant who espoused a transforming mystery religion and a proud patriotism that drew crowds of listeners. For many Chicagoans, the Moors' behavior was proof of the cynical local opinion that southern migrants were uppity and easily manipulated by alleged charlatans who advocated militant black...