Introduction

In October 1925, Ossian Sweet, a prominent medical doctor, and 10 other defendants sat before a judge in a Detroit courtroom, on trial for first-degree murder.

Sweet had moved to Detroit with his wife and infant daughter during a period of American history known as the Great Migration. He had come looking for an opportunity to purchase a home and to achieve a piece of the American dream. However, on the night of September 9, 1925, Sweet and his family were threatened by a racist mob who were angry that a Black family had moved into this previously all-white neighborhood. A series of shots rang out from Sweet’s home, killing one member of the mob.

In this lesson, you will learn how Dr. Sweet’s story demonstrates the obstacles faced by Black migrants who were trying to achieve the American dream of homeownership in the North during the Great Migration. His story will help you answer the essential question.