The Green Book, “Traveling while Black.”
During the 1930s and onward, people would spend their summers traveling by car to visit their families or maybe taking a trip to the beach. Black people didn’t have the freedom to travel just anywhere because Jim Crow laws and segregation prevented this.
So, in 1936 Victor Hugo Green wrote “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” or simply, “The Green Book.” It was a travel guide for Black people. It promised “vacation without aggravation.” Mr. Green published lodging, restaurants, and gas stations that did business with black people. This book kept them informed and safe from 1936 – 1966.
