In 1927 the '' ' Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 ' '' devastated the Delta . With the Mississippi flood waters covering the entire Delta , the Greenville , Mississippi levee was the only high , safe place for thousands of refugees . The vast majority of the people stranded on the levee were African Americans , and they were desperate for food , potable drinking water and shelter . Instead of evacuating them , African Americans were virtually imprisoned on the levee and forced to work at gunpoint . The conditions in the Greenville camp were the worst of any refugee site
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
Robert Russa Moton