''Mrs. LeGree' Hires Only on the Street, Always 'Nice Girls'' - Marvel Cooke - New York Compass

Part four in Marvel Cooke's five-part series for the New York Compass in 1950 on the Bronx "slave mart," where women domestics went to find jobs as day laborers.

Byline: Marvel Cooke; 1950-01-11; New York Compass; pages 4, 21

Report: "I Was Part of the Bronx Slave Market" - Marvel Cooke - New York Compass Marvel Cooke

Tags: day-labor, domestic, Ella Baker, maid, Marvel Cooke, posed as, worked as

"As I stood there waiting to be bought, I lived through a century of indignity. . . ." " 'I've always picked nice girls,' she said. 'I knew you were nice the minute I laid eyes on you.' " "That pat on the back was worse in a way than a kick in the teeth."

Description:Part four of Marvel Cooke's five-part series for the New York Compass on the "Bronx slave mart," where women unable to find full-time employment sought day labor as domestics. The series reprised the ruse Cooke and Ella Baker perpetrated for The Crisis, published in its November 1935 issue.

Rights: public domain

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Image of Marvel Cooke.

Additional Media

New York Compass article titled, "'Mrs. LeGree' Hires Only on the Street, Always 'Nice Girls.'" Written by Marvel Cooke.