How the Sears Catalog Outsmarted Jim Crow

Under Jim Crow, Pepsi did what others wouldn’t, hired a Black sales team and put Black folks in its ads. Sales soared but then came the internal backlash. How did a nickel soda become quiet powerhouse and who tried to kill it? This is why Pepsi became ‘the Black soda.Audio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2m

This book sold the same stove, suit, or pair of boots to anyone at the same printed price. When Rural Free Delivery brought it to the mailbox, the Sears, Roebuck catalog landed on Black families’ porches it turned shopping from a ritual of humiliation into something closer to dignity. Here’s how the Sears mail‑order catalog quietly beat Jim CrowAudio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/ Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSourceshttps://www.abhmuseum.org/back-when-sears-made-black-customers-a-priority/ https://fee.org/articles/when-sears-used-the-market-to-combat-jim-crow/ https://www.npr.org/2018/10/16/657923126/how-the-sears-catalog-was-revolutionary-in-the-jim-crow-era https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/19/18001734/sears-catalog-bankruptcy-jim-crow-racism-mail-order

This book sold the same stove, suit, or pair of boots to anyone at the same printed price. When Rural Free Delivery brought it to the mailbox, the Sears, Roebuck catalog landed on Black families’ porches it turned shopping from a ritual of humiliation into something closer to dignity. Here’s how the Sears mail‑order catalog quietly beat Jim CrowAudio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/ Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSourceshttps://www.abhmuseum.org/back-when-sears-made-black-customers-a-priority/ https://fee.org/articles/when-sears-used-the-market-to-combat-jim-crow/ https://www.npr.org/2018/10/16/657923126/how-the-sears-catalog-was-revolutionary-in-the-jim-crow-era https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/19/18001734/sears-catalog-bankruptcy-jim-crow-racism-mail-orderBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

In 1985, In a stand off with the Black organization MOVE. Philadelphia police dropped a bomb on a Black neighborhood, killing 11 people and leveling an entire city block.Audio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/ Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914 Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSources:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985_MOVE_bombingLet It Burn: by Michael BoyetteOn a Move: by Mike Africa Jr.https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/move-bombing-philadelphia-reflection-day-city-council/Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

In 1866, Congress decided to form the first all-Black Army regiments in peacetime: the 9th and 10th Cavalry, and the 24th and 25th Infantry. For many Black men, especially those just freed from slavery or who’d worn Union blue during the war, the military offered something rare: steady work, a chance for education, and maybe a little dignity in the era of Jim Crow.Audio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSourceshttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Soldierhttps://www.chron.com/culture/article/beyonce-buffalo-soldier-20389446.php https://www.nps.gov/yose/learn/historyculture/buffalo-soldiers.htm https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/buffalo-soldiersThe forgotten heroes _ the story of the Buffalo Soldiers by Clinton Cox A Narrative of the Negro Cavalry in the West by William H. LeckieBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

Imagine calling an ambulance because someone you love is dying. You need urgent medical help—but instead of paramedics, The police shows up at your door. No medical training, no emergency equipment just the police vehicle. Hard to imagine, but this was real life for Black communities throughout America just 60 years ago.This is the true story of everyday people from Pittsburgh’s historic Hill District ended up inventing emergency medical care as we know it.Audio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSourceshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_House_Ambulance_Service https://www.pbs.org/show/freedom-house-ambulance-the-first-responders/American Sirens by Kevin Hazzardhttps://teamrubiconusa.org/news-and-stories/freedom-house-ambulance-service-a-legacy-of-life-saving-care/Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, Fourth of July celebrations took on deep new meanings. While Confederate sympathizers hid away in bitterness, African Americans across the South embraced the day with joy, commemorating their newfound freedom with fireworks, speeches, and readings of the Emancipation Proclamation.Audio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyFollow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OnemichistoryPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSources:https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/07/fourth-of-july-black-holiday/564320/ https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/nations-story-what-slave-fourth-july https://www.ccpl.org/charleston-time-machine/too-la-loo-fourth-julyBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

For over a century, Black bodies were used—examined, experimented on, and exploited in the name of science. From plantation doctors perfecting procedures on enslaved women without anesthesia, to the government letting Black men die slow deaths in Tuskegee, to the stolen cells of a unsuspecting Black women changing medical history.This isn’t ancient history. It’s a pattern. And it shaped the way Black communities view medicine, hospitals, and doctors.So join us today for the dark history of the Medical ApartheidAudio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Substack: https://onemicblackhistorypodcast.substack.com/Follow me on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_historyPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSources:Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans by Harriet A. Washingtonhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lackshttps://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/henrietta-lacks https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_Syphilis_Studyhttps://www.history.com/articles/the-infamous-40-year-tuskegee-study https://www.history.com/articles/the-father-of-modern-gynecology-performed-shocking-experiments-on-slavesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

Imagine waking to helicopters overhead and soldiers marching down your street—not due to war or disaster, but because your own government decided your voice had become too powerful. In 2025, this became reality in Los Angeles.President Trump deployed 2,000 federal troops into California, branding immigration protests as an "insurrection." But ask Black activists, educators, and community leaders there—it felt all-too familiar: another chapter in a long story of government muscle flexing against its own people.From Little Rock's schoolhouse steps to Selma’s bloodied streets, history reminds us federal troops haven’t always stood on the right side of justice. Sometimes they protected rights, other times—they silenced them.Join us while we discuss the History the National Guard in your Neighborhood. #blackhistory #losangelesprotests Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967_Detroit_riot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_Los_Angeles_riots https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Rock_Nine https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-little-rock-nine.htm https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/march-20/lbj-sends-federal-troops-to-alabama-to-protect-a-civil-rights-march https://www.npr.org/2025/06/09/5428107/what-happened-when-lyndon-johnson-federalized-the-national-guard https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/california-attorney-general-sues-trump-over-unlawful-national-guard-n1347674Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

Imagine an American city street around 1900, the sidewalks spill over as children play tag in the roadway, vendors call out to neighbors, and people wander wherever they please. The street is alive—a true communal space, owned by everyone. No crosswalks, no traffic lights—just freedom and connection.But this all changed almost overnight. What replaced those vibrant streets? Automobiles, Laws, and, most shockingly, a tool to control and discriminate against Black communities. Join Us as we uncover the The forgotten History of Jaywalking#history #blackhistorymatters #jaywalkingAudio Onemichistory.comFollow me on Instagram: @onemic_historyFollow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/onemichistoryFollow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OnemichistoryPlease support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2mSources:https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jaywalking&oldid=1290502104 https://www.vox.com/2015/1/15/7551873/jaywalking-historyhttps://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/why-is-it-called-jaywalking https://www.denver7.com/news/national/two-americas/how-jaywalking-has-exposed-racial-biasBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.