civil rights movement struggle for african americans to get equal rights led to later efforts by...
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Civil Rights Movement
Civil Rights Movement
Struggle for African Americans to get equal rights
Led to later efforts by women, other ethnic minorities, the disabled, the young, and the old to obtain equal rights
Civil Rights Movement
History of Civil Rights 19th century
Abolitionists, Civil War, Emancipation, Reconstruction, resistance to the rise of the Ku Klux Klan
20th century W.E.B. DuBois economic
efforts, birth of NAACP, desegregation of Armed Forces
Important amendments 13th amendment (1865) – no
slavery in US 14th amendment (1868) – all
people born in the US (except Native Americans) are US citizens and are entitled equal rights. Rights are protected by due process of the law
15th amendment (1870) – Passed during Reconstruction; gave black men the right to vote
17th amendment (1920) – gave women the right to vote
Civil Rights Movement
Political Reform organizations: African American
NAACP, Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Congress on Racial Equality (CORE)
Chicano League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC), United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC), La Raza Unida (Mexican-Amercans United)
American Indian American Indian
Movement (AIM) Women’s civil rights
movements National
Organization for Women (NOW)
Civil Rights Movement
Origins After Civil War,
promise of equality to all but promise cut by Reconstruction
1947 – Jackie Robinson first African-American baseball player to join the major leagues
Civil Rights Movement
Origins – Truman Years Truman administration
issued To Secure These Rights calling for civil rights laws
Laws proposed by Truman not pass Congress
Re-election demanded inauguration be integrated
1948 – executive orders to desegregate armed forces
End discriminatory hiring practices in federal government
Civil Rights Movement
Brown v. Board of Education 1954 After Reconstruction,
Southern States passed laws requiring segregation
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) – separate but equal NAACP started
challenging in the 1930s
Civil Rights Movement
Brown v. Board of Education 1954 Sweatt v. Painter (1950)
Sweatt allowed to attend Law School at UT at Austin
1953 – NAACP lawyers appealed Kansas court ruling to Supreme Court
Segregated public schools denied equal protection to African American students
Civil Rights Movement
Brown v. Board of Education 1954 Thurgood Marshall argued
case or NAACP May 1954 Earl Warren
wrote unanimous decision for Supreme Court
“Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal”
Brown overturned Plessy and marked end of legal separation in schools
Civil Rights Movement
Brown v. Board of Education 1954 Court said
desegregation should happen with “all deliberate speed”
Enforcement left up to lower courts
Vague terming allowed years before fully implemented
Civil Rights Movement
Supreme Court stopped segregation in schools, but Jim Crow laws allowed it to continue in other public areas
Civil Rights Movement
Montgomery Bus Boycott 1955-1956 Dec 1955, Rosa Parks
(seamstress and local NAACP member) refused to surrender bus sea to white passenger Parks was arrested
Local African American leaders started boycott of public buses
Civil Rights Movement
Montgomery Bus Boycott Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a
pastor in Montgomery, was leader of the boycott
Lasted 13 months and brought cause attention of the world
King rallied boycotters at his church
Carpooled to take each other to work
King arrested and home bombed
Boycotted lasted and brought to federal court
Court ruled segregation on buses violated 14th amendment
Civil Rights Movement
Civil Rights Act of1957 Eisenhower passed to
increase African American voting in the South
Created Civil Rights Commission and established Civil Rights Division in US Justice Department
Gave federal courts the power to register African American voters
Registration procedures so complex the act prove ineffective but set pattern for later legislation
Civil Rights Movement
Little Rock, Arkansas, 1957 Governor Orval Faubus of
Arkansas favored segregation Ordered Arkansas National
Guard to surround all-white Little Rock High School to prevent nine African American students from entering
Faubus refused to protect Little Rock Nine who were being threatened by angry mobs
Eisenhower ordered federal troops so they could attend school
Civil Rights Movement
Little Rock, Arkansas, 1957 Faubus closed
school down and asked for postponement of integration plan
Supreme Court forced reopening of school
Civil Rights Movement
Faubus one of many resisting desegregation
1964 – restaurant owner Lester Maddox wielded axe handle at African American trying to enter “whites only” restaurant
Maddox sold restaurant instead of allowing African Americans
Maddox ran for governor of Georgia and won
Civil Rights Movement
1963 – Alabama Governor George Wallace stood at the door at the University of Alabama to prevent two African-American students from enrolling Claimed constitutional
rights of states to operate schools
Forced to step down
Civil Rights Movement
Congressional Bloc of Southern Democrats Southern Democrats
banded in Congress to stop civil rights legislation
Many held important committee chairs Power to prevent
legislation coming to floor for a vote
Civil Rights Movement
Sit-Ins and Freedom Rides in the South – 1960-1961 1960: African American
students held sit-in at “whites only” lunch counter in N. Carolina
Soon copied throughout the South
1961 – Freedom Rides Interracial groups rode busses. Downtown stores agreed to
desegregate lunch counters Created confrontations federal
government had to intervene Riders faced risk of death and
violence
Civil Rights Movement
King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963 King believed in non-violence Used civil disobedience against
unjust laws Led march in Birmingham,
Alabama and arrested Wrote letter explaining why
African Americans could no longer patiently wait for constitutional rights
Critics felt fight for rights in courts, not the streets
King argued civil disobedience was justified because “everyone has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws”
Civil Rights Movement
March on Washington, 1963 Dr. King and other Civil Rights
leaders marched on Washington to encourage Congress to pass new civil rights bill
Largest demonstration for human rights in US history
King gave “I Have A Dream” speech
Dr. King and others met with President Kennedy at the Whitehouse
Kennedy assassinated few months later and Congress more willing to pass legislation proposed before his death afterward
Civil Rights Movement
Civil Rights Act of 1964 Prohibited discrimination
based on race, color, religion, or ethnic origins in hotels, restaurants, and all places of employment doing business with the federal government or in interstate commerce.
Cut off aid to segregated schools
Gave federal government power to register voters
Established Equal Employment Opportunities Commission to enforce all of it
Civil Rights Movement
Voting Rights 24th amendment
No more poll taxes in federal elections
Selma Marches 1965 – Dr. King in
Selma, Alabama to organize march demanding vote
Demonstrators attacked, President Jonson introducing voting rights bill
Civil Rights Movement
Voting Rights Voting Rights Act of
1965 Ended poll taxes,
suspended literacy tests used to prevent African Americans from voting, and led to large increase in African American voting
Civil Rights Movement
Affirmative Action 1965 Executive Order requiring
employers with federal contracts to take steps to raise the number of minority employees to correct past imbalances
Women later added Companies and
institutions must actively recruit minority candidates
Civil Rights Movement
Affirmative Action 1965 Increased minority
representation in colleges, professions, and many businesses
Critics challenged it was a reverse form of discrimination
Regents of University of California v. Bakke SC says affirmative action
OK, racial quotas are not Many affirmative action
programs phased out over time
Civil Rights Movement
Billy Graham – Christian preacher and major civil rights supporter Spiritual advisor to many
presidents Anti-Communist Paid to bail out Dr. King
from jail Advised Eisenhower to send
troops for Little Rock Nine One of first preachers to
address large crowds behind the Iron Curtain and call for world peace
Civil Rights Under Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson became president when Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas November 22, 1963
Johnson proposed a far-ranging social program similar to the New Deal called the Great Society Improve quality and
opportunity for all Americans
The Great Society
Civil Rights Civil Rights Act (1964) Voting Rights Act (1965) Affirmative Action
War on Poverty Economic Opportunity Act
(1964) Created new government
office to administer programs
Job Corps – train underprivileged youths and domestic “Peace Corps” to help in depressed areas
Medicare Act of 1965 Social Security expanded
to provide medical care, hospital insurance, and post-hospital nursing for people over 65
Aid to cities New cabinet post added to
help cities Money provided for urban
planning, slum clearance, rental assistance for the poor, reconstruction of buildings
Civil Rights Under Johnson
Changes to immigration McCarren-Walter Act
(1952) – kept immigration quotas at 1920s levels
Immigration Act of 1965 was less biased Each country given
identical quota Preference given to those
with family already here or with valuable skills
Restricted Latin American immigration for first time
Civil Rights Under Johnson
Johnson beat Barry Goldwater in 1964 election in a landslide
Goldwater wanted to revive conservatism
Many feared he was too extreme
Despite Great Society, many Americans stayed in poverty
Vietnam War caused Johnson to withdraw funding
Johnson did not seek another term in 1968
Women’s Liberation Movement
1960s – Women’s Liberation (or feminist) Movement
Women were expected to stay at home and be wives and mothers
Women’s Liberation focused on greater economic and social equality
Women’s Liberation Movement Reasons
Dissatisfaction Many women dissatisfied as
housewives and sought freedom to express themselves in careers
Influence of Civil Rights Many women leaders in
movement Adopt same techniques for
women’s liberation – lobbying, sit-ins, demonstrations, boycotts, and strikes
Dynamic Leadership Highly educated and talented
women in leadership Betty Friedman, Gloria Steinem
Steinem created Ms. Magazine for women’s concerns and viewpoints
“Sexual Revolution” Sex education began to be
taught in school Birth control pills protected
women from pregnancy Women are not “sex
objects”; they are human beings
Impact of Social Science Margaret Mead and other
social scientists began to see women’s low status in Western society as creation of men not biological
Women’s Liberation Movement
1963 – Betty Friedan wrote The Feminine Mystique Galvanized middle class
women Challenged belief that
education suburban housewives were happy being at home
Women were as capable as men and should be permitted to compete for same jobs
1966 – Friedan helped form National Organization of Women (NOW)
Achievements of Women’s Liberation
Education Affirmative action –
universities no longer able to discriminate based on sex for admissions
Women professors hired
Greater equality in admissions to military academies, law schools, and medical schools
Employment End discrimination in hiring 1963 – Equal Pay Act
Companies had to pay women the same wages as men for same work
New attitude Replace Miss and Mrs with Ms Opposed sexist language No women as sex objects in
advertising Opposed sexual discrimination
in textbooks Lobbied for more funds to
research women’s diseases like breast cancer
Achievements in Women’s Liberation
Roe v. Wade (1973) Many states prohibited
abortion Feminists felt women had a
right to choose Pro-choice Supreme Court held that a
women has a constitutional right to privacy
A woman had a right to end her pregnancy in the first 3 months if she wanted
Overturned all state laws prohibiting abortion in first three months
Title IX Part of Educational Amendments Act
(1972) Banned sex discrimination in
educational institutions Guaranteed girls had same
opportunities as boys Enforcement of act linked to federal
funding Major impact on American society
1in 27 girls played varsity sports in high school before Title IX
2001 – 1 in 2.5 Helped women pursue higher
degrees, compete in sports, enter jobs and educational fields dominated by men
Before – less women in college. Today, more women than men in college
Civil Rights Movement
Increasing African American Militancy Demand for change
strong among young African Americans
Civil rights had not ended private bias or provide equal opportunities
Many African Americans felt Dr. King’s methods of non-violence were not powerful enough
Civil Rights Movement
Militants believed in Black Power – African Americans should use their votes to win concessions from government and they should control their own communities and patronize their own businesses to free themselves from whites
Civil Rights Movement
Non-Violent Militant
Those who participated in sit-ins, by provoking segregationists into angry responses, succeeded in winning sympathy from others.
Willingness to use violence
Best known for sit-ins and marches Known for being openly armed inuniforms of black berets and leatherjackets
Men, women, and children participated in peaceful protests.
Predominately males
Groups – SCLC, NAACP, SNCC, and CORE
Group(s) – Black Panthers
Leader – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Black Power Movement
Search for New Identity Late 1960s – African
Americans began to search for cultural identity
Rejected imitating whites o being absorbed in American culture
Proud of themselves and “Black is Beautiful”
Developed distinctive styles like Afro haircuts
New Groups Emerge New groups to challenge
non-violent NAACP Militant Student Non-Violent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC) barred white participation
Black Muslims believed Islam should be religion of African Americans and create own black state
Black Panthers demanded reparations be given to the black community for centuries of oppression
Black Power Movement
Malcolm X Leading black Muslim Questioned King’s non-
violent resistance Believed African Americans
should meet violence with violence and should not depend on white people
Urged African Americans to obtain control of businesses and communities
Assassinated by rival Black Muslims in 1965
Civil Rights Movement
Black Panthers African-American activists in
Oakland, California Had own newspaper and
claimed right to carry weapons to protect black neighborhoods from police
Ran free breakfast for African American children
10 point program demanded greater opportunities and benefits for African Americans Full employment, decent
housing, education, and freedom to determine destiny
Civil Rights Movement
Ghettos Erupt – 1968 In North, African Americans
faced segregation based on living patterns
Many African Americans confined to ghettos
April 1968 Dr. King was assassinated
Death sparked race riots across the nation that cost dozens of lives and destroyed property
Commission found lack of job opportunities, urban poverty, and white racism was what was behind the riots
Chicano Movement
Mexican Americans, known as Chicanos, often faced discrimination, exploitation, and racism in US
Chicano Movement focused on farm workers’ voting and political rights
Chicano Movement
Early leader was Hector Perez Garcia, a surgeon and WWII veteran Noticed Mexican Americans
barred from entering restaurants, etc
1949 – Garcia learned local Texas funeral home refused to allow Mexican-American soldier’s family to its chapel
Garcia arranged for burial in Arlington National Cemetery
Became first Mexican American to serve on US Commission on Civil Rights
Chicano Movement
Cesar Chavez Organizer of farm workers in
California Chavez started group to
support farm worker’s rights, demand increased wages, and better working conditions
Chavez focused on non-violent means
Organized nation-wide boycotts and took part in hunger strikes
State legislators passed laws to improve lives of farm workers
Chicano Movement
Dolores Huerta Mexican-American labor
leader closely associated with Cesar Chavez
1960s – helped Chavez to form National Farm Workers Association which became Unite Farm Workers
Spent life working for legislation to extend air to families of farm workers
1980s- expanded to include women’s rights, environmental protection, and immigration policy
Chicano Movement
Chicano Mural Movement Mexican Americans
expressed greater appreciation of own culture
Began painting murals in barrios (ethnic neighborhoods) through Southwest in 1960s
Wall murals gave public presence in public life
In El Paso, more than 100 Chicano wall murals
American Indian Movement (AIM)
Americans Indians also got restless during the 1960s.
1953 – government transferred responsibility of Native Americans living on reservations to the state governments
Many state didn’t have the funds to give the same level of services
1963 – federal government reversed its policy and began encouraging tribal life on reservations
American Indian Movement (AIM)
Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination against Native Americans
1970 – President Nixon announced federal govt would honor treaty obligations
Many Native Americans felt they were being mistreated.
Slogan – “Red Power”; formed American Indian Movement to get public opinion in their favor
Sought greater respect for heritage Introduced term “Native
American” and protested media with anti-Indian bias
Civil Rights Movements – Court
Cases Legislation (passage of new
laws) and litigation (disputes settled in courts) greatly expanded people’s rights
Go to a federal district court, listens and applies to the facts of the law
Don’t like the decision? Appeal it at US Court of Appeals
Supreme Court only hears about 100 cases a year from the 10,000 cases appealed
Mendez v. Westminster School District (1947)
Some places in California sent Mexican-American children to separate public schools
District court ruled this practice violated the 14th amendment
Westminster appealed Ruled it was not a constitutional issue
California law required segregation of Chinese and Japanese children.
Court upheld separation within a race was not permitted if not by a specific state law.
Later that year, California repealed its school segregation laws
Civil Rights Court Cases
Delgado v. Bastrop ISD (1948)
Based on Mendez v. Westminster, Texas Attorney General decided that segregation of Mexican-American children was illegal
Delgado and others sued Bastrop ISD claiming the separation of Mexican-American children without a state law was a violation
US District Court agreed
Civil Rights Court Cases
Hernandez v. Texas (1954)
Hernandez convicted of murder in a Texas court with an all white jury No Mexican Americans had served on a jury in that country for
more than 25 years Hernandez appealed to US Supreme Court claiming 14th
amendment and equal protection of the law had been violated Texas argued that Mexican Americans were not entitled to
special protections Supreme Court ruled Mexican Americans formed a separate
class that was entitled to protection “The right to be tried by jurors from which members of his class
are not excluded
Civil Rights Court Cases
Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) The U.S. Supreme Court decided Amish
children could not be placed in compulsory schools past 8th grade because it violated the parents’ rights to freedom of religion (Free Exercise Clause) Example of Effects (Prohibited all states from claiming absolute right to compulsive education and intrude in how families raise their children
Civil Rights Court Cases
White v. Regester (1973)
State legislators periodically change district boundaries for changes in population
1970 – Texas changed district boundaries; Bexar and Dallas counties became districts with several members
Way it was drawn out, Mexican Americans and African Americans in these two districts would have no chance of getting elected
US Supreme Court upheld lower court ruling that Texas had to make these into smaller one-member districts, giving Mexican American barrios the chance to elect their own candidates
Texas could not discriminate by setting up multi-member districts
Civil Rights Court Cases
Edgewood ISD v. Kirby (1984)
1971 – US Supreme Court ruled children do not have a fundamental right under the Constitution to an education
Civil rights activists filed lawsuits in various state courts based on provisions of state constitutions
Mexican American legal group MALDEF) filed a suit against Kirby, the Texas Education Commissioner, on behalf of Edgewood ISED
District claimed the state method for funding education resulted in differences in rich and poor districts
Violated Texas Constitution which promised a “fair and efficient” public school system
Texas Supreme Court agreed and ordered a more equal system of public school finance.
Civil Rights Court Cases
Civil Rights Today
Election of first African American President – Barack Obama
First Hispanic women appointed to Supreme Court – Sonia Sotomayor