Final answer:
The arrival of African Americans to Northern cities was met with segregation and racial tensions, as they faced discrimination in housing and employment. Nonetheless, they built strong community centers like Harlem, which became culturally significant during the Harlem Renaissance.
Step-by-step explanation:
The reaction among people in cities to the arrival of African Americans from the South was complex and often negative, shaped by a blend of racial prejudices and economic competition. As African Americans moved to Northern cities in search of better opportunities and to escape Southern discrimination, they encountered new forms of segregation and discrimination. Racial tensions were exacerbated by the competition for jobs, housing, and public services. European immigrants and white urban residents alike often perceived African Americans as economic threats, leading to further discrimination and even violent confrontations such as race riots. The discrimination at the time included practices like redlining, racially restrictive covenants, and a general hesitancy from landlords to rent to African Americans, who were frequently funneled into overcrowded and inadequate housing conditions.
Despite these challenges, African Americans established vibrant communities and business districts within Northern cities. Notable examples include Harlem in New York City, which, by the 1920s, became a center of African American culture and the focal point of the Harlem Renaissance. Segregation, though illegal in the North, was nonetheless present in de facto forms – through socio-economic barriers rather than by law. The Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to the Northern cities fostered the creation of an urban African American culture that was rich in art, music, and political activism, but it also highlighted the pervasive issue of racism in all regions of the United States.