A Dark Past…

Civil Rights Movement

A history of slavery

Slavery has been recorded as far back as historical records exist; across all cultures

Columbian Exchange 1492 Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Slavery a part of our founding Thomas Jefferson – owned slaves▪ “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all

men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. “

Amistad (1997) HD trailer [www.keepvid.com].mp4

Racism > Laws

13th Amendment - abolished slavery (1865)

14th Amendment – citizenship & equal protection(1868)

15th Amendment – black men vote (1869)

Minor v. Happersett (1875) – states choice Jim Crow laws▪ Poll Taxes, Literacy tests

“separate but equal”…

1875 Congress passed Civil Rights Act outlawing segregation in public facilities

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) ▪ Supreme court upheld “equal but separate accommodations” for different racial groups on railroads▪More Jim Crow Laws followed Separate schools, waiting rooms, public facilities

“De Jure” – Legal discrimination

Civil Rights Movement didn’t start with Rosa Parks

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909

A history of failed attempts…

700,000 blacks served in segregated military in WWII

African American soldiers influenced Roosevelt – ban on racial discrimination in defense industries (1941) Fighting for freedom?

Truman – desegregated armed forces (1948)