Source?

I don't have one handy. Doesn't mean I'm wrong. And I'm not interested in pursuing this further beyond this comment. Sorry, I'm just not.

There is a terrible history of the KKK centered in Ohio and spread around the North, though this was more after the War Of Northern Aggression. Being a living slave may have been worse than getting killed. Maybe not. I guess it depends on a case by case basis. Granted not everyone was killed or enslaved. But there's a difference between being a free target and a property slave - the latter has "value" and would be protected and fed.

Before, during, and after the Civil War a LOT of Black folks came to Southern Ontario. They even had a whole town near the small city of Chatham. Even though Windsor has the mildest winters in Canada, I can tell you it still gets cold. And back then no one wanted to feed, house, or deal with the Black folks, much less even give them jobs. So they were stuck between a rock and a hard cold hungry place. Many were sold a story of freedom. They weren't told about the rejection, starvation, weather, and other problems, including violence.

I don't know which is worse overall. If you keep your head down, shut up and do your work, maybe your life isn't as bad as a slave. Maybe not. I suspect every case is as different as every master. I also suspect there were greater trends too.

I've been working on several projects for years. Two of them, plus their development management, I recently started as restricted subs here - plus one sub to discuss the content published in those three. These are huge and I want to focus all my efforts on them as I think they're more important to society than my several other screenplays and projects, though they also have their lessons.

One of these other projects is called "The Rendezvous". It was an old roadhouse that I lived down the road from, here in Windsor, Ontario, across the lake from Detroit. It has a deep rich history surrounding it. My completely fictional screenplay focuses on 3 generations of a Black family that worked in and around The Rendezvous. I'm also borrowing and embedding a lot of real history from the region, its history, and similar establishments. My story covers rum-running, the Purple Gang, the Detroit Riot of 1943, MoTown, and the Riot of 1967. I've also created back histories that covers some of what I mentioned above, though they may only come up in passing or in the background (ie. set decoration, or character context).

In many ways I should follow this one up sooner because all the boomers and older are kicking the bucket and their views will be lost forever soon. But while this story has some good stuff in it, I don't think it's as important as my these ones. Nor is it hard history, so I'm not critically worried about the details so much as the characters and the different way of life back then.

Further, I have it outlined, but I need to do more historical research into the 1943 riot to better integrate it. It is suppressed history. WWII had lots of white guys facing hell in Europe. Meanwhile the Black folks at home were facing hell in the factories. Massive exploitation, abuses, and repression lead to the unrest and lives lost.

The TV series Boardwalk Empire came on the scene it kinda inspired me and took away my thunder in many ways. My story is not focused on the gangsters as most movies are. The fact is it was just a part of a very life and time for everyone in this area 100 years ago, mostly forgotten.