Roughly 10,000 Black New Yorkers march down Fifth Avenue in silence to protest lynchings and the East St. Louis massacre.
At a Glance
- Date
- 28 July 1917
- Location
- New York, New York
- Key people
- W.E.B. Du Bois, James Weldon Johnson
- Category
- Civil Rights Movement
- Source
- NAACP records (1917) · NAACP
What It Meant Then
It was one of the first mass civil rights demonstrations in U.S. history.
What It Means Now
The Silent Parade is recognized as a precursor to 20th-century protest marches.
Cite this page
- MLA
- “The Silent Parade.” Black-History.com, 30 Sept. 2026, https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-silent-parade/.
- APA
- Black-History.com Editors. (2026, September 30). The Silent Parade. Black-History.com. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-silent-parade/
- Chicago
- Black-History.com Editors. “The Silent Parade.” Black-History.com. September 30, 2026. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-silent-parade/.
Editorial Note
By the Black-History.com editors. Last reviewed 30 September 2026. To suggest a primary source or a correction, write to editors@black-history.com or use our corrections form.