The Civil Rights Movement

Mr. WilliamsonSomerville High School

IdentifyAfter WWII, African-Americans increasingly dissatisfied

with second-class status

South – Jim Crow laws enforced segregationSegregation imposed by law is de jure segregation1896 – Plessy v. Fergusson, Supreme Ct. ruled facilities for

black and whites can be “separate but equal”Extended to schools, hospitals, transportation, restaurants

North – African-Americans faced similar segregation & discriminationNo explicit laws, known as de facto segregationSegregation by unwritten custom/tradition

IdentifyImpact of segregation

Many denied housing in specific neighborhoodsDiscrimination in priority jobs/only could get low-paying

jobsHigher rates of illiteracy/povertyLower rates of home ownership/life expectancy Inability to vote, specifically in the South

Literacy tests/poll taxes, etc.

WWII sets stage for Civil Rights Movement1941-FDR bans discrimination in defense industries1944 – Gunnar Myrdal’s publication An American Dilemma,

brought issue of prejudice to public’s attentionReturning Vets who defended freedom abroad, unwilling to

accept status quo

Identify1940s – Movement Grows

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) – founded by James Farmer, believed in non-violent methods of protest for Civil RightsInfluenced by Henry David Thoreau/Gandhi

1947 – Jackie RobinsonJoined Brooklyn Dodgers becoming first African-American to

play major league baseball

1948 – President Truman used executive power to desegregate the armed forces

“42” ScenesAnswer the following on the index card provided.

We will share as a class:

Of the 4-5 Scenes/Clips shown:Which one best demonstrates Robinson’s ability

to hold back and not fight back?

What individual do you think helped him the most during his time as a professional athlete? Explain your decisionWife (Rachel), Teammates (Pee Wee), General

Manager (Branch Rickey)What do you think was his biggest challenge he

faced as a prominent athlete? Can be anything, think about the COUNTLESS issues he encountered.

The woman on the right is Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Little Rock 9. The woman on the left is Hazel Bryan. Ms. Bryan came to regret her actions, called Eckford to apologize and since has devoted her time to fighting racism.1. Why do you think Ms. Bryan changed her opinion? Do you think the picture

had anything to do with her new perspective?2. Compose a small script on what may have been said during the

reconciliation phone call between Bryan/Eckford.

IdentifyRosa Parks – 12/1/55, refused to give up her seat on a

Montgomery, Alabama bus

Montgomery Bus Boycott – Began 4 days laterOrganized by the Montgomery Improvement Association

(MIA)Lasted for over a year, used elaborate carpool systems,

walked to both work/school

MLK Jr. – led the boycott, pastor of the Dexter Ave. Baptist church.

SCLCSouthern Christian Leadership Conference, formed

in 1957 led by MLK Jr. with Ralph Abernathy and Bayard Ruskin

Goal – to pursue justice in Civil Rights

Tactic – Nonviolent resistance, peaceful protest or noncooperation with authorities to achieve its goals

Central High School (CHS)1957 – Federal judge ordered public schools to

desegregate

District started at CHS with 9 black students (Little Rock 9). State governor vowed he would not support desegregation and called in the State Guard to prevent students from entering.

President Eisenhower sent federal troops to protect the Little Rock 9, governor closed schools to prevent integration

Sit-In/SNCCA protest technique used by students that challenged

segregation by sitting at “whites only” facilities and refused to moveFirst staged in Greensboro, NC then to Nashville, TN

Also used wade-ins at public beaches, read-ins at libraries that were segregated

Sparks new waves of demonstrations, specifically from young African-Americans

Acronym – SNCC, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

Led by Ella Baker

Freedom RidersSpring 1961 – CORE (Congress of Racial Equality)

organized direct action to ensure the desegregation of interstate buses

Riders board 2 buses from DC to New OrleansDefied segregationist codes: sit @ front of bus/”white”

restrooms at bus stationsResults: 1 bus firebombed, 2nd attacked by white mob both

in Alabama

Att. General Robert Kennedy sent federal marshals to protect buses.

1962 – Interstate Commerce Commission ruled buses and terminals to be integrated.

President Kennedy-James Meredith

John F. Kennedy elected president in 1960, becomes involved with movementAids in MLK release from Georgia prisonAssists with protection of Freedom Riders

James Meredith, African-American Korean War veteran applied to the Univ. of MississippiRejected because of his color

NAACP fights in federal court, university ordered to desegregate

JFK sends federal marshals to protect Meredith; he enrolled and graduated in 1963

Birmingham AlabamaMLK – “America’s most segregated city”

1956-1963 – 18 unsolved bombings in black neighborhoods

Sit-Ins and protests were used and protesters were arrested (MLK Jr. himself).

MLK Jr. wrote his famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” describing life for African Americans in Birmingham, Alabama

The Public’s ViewSaw how protesters were treated; shocked and

sympathized with them

City was forced to desegregate all public facilities

KKK later held a rally and bombed motel where black leaders were staying

16th St. Baptist Church9/15/1963 – Bomb exploded during Church services – 4

young girls were killed

March on WashingtonAugust 28, 1963 – more than 250k gathered in front of

the Lincoln Memorial

MLK Jr.’s famous “I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH”

Of the 250k, 60k were white

Remaining IssuesNew laws did not affect the right to vote

Use of poll tax, literacy tests, intimidation still occurring

RESPONSE: Freedom Summer – CORE/SNCC organized a campaign to register black voters in MississippiWould also form the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party

(MFDP), the alternative to the state’s all-white Democratic Party

MLK’s March on Selma1965 – new campaign to enact voting rights legislationMarch from Selma to Montgomery (state capital)On the Edmund Pettus Bridge, confrontation took place

resulting in significant violence

IdentifyResponse to Selma: Pres. Johnson calls for strong

federal voting rights law

Voting Rights Act – passed in 1965 that outlawed literacy testsFederal government could supervise voter registration

Passage of the 24th AmendmentBanned poll tax

Impact: African-American voter participation skyrockets

The ResponseDespite passage, many African-Americans felt little had

changed1965 – Los Angeles, section called Watts. Lasted for 6 days1967 – Detroit/Newark

Kerner Commission – President Johnson orders research on race issues in the USConcluded racial discrimination the single most important

cause of violenceCalled for expanding federal programs in inner cities

The ResponseStokely Carmichael – SNCC leader, developed the idea

of “black power”Grew frustrated with Dr. King and nonviolence

Bobby Seale, with Huey Newton founded the Black Panther PartyOrganized armed patrols of urban areas to protect from

police abuseThey provided services to blacks in their communities

Free breakfast for students, medical clinicsViewed as dangerous because they carried weapons,

frequent confrontations with police

Malcolm XBorn Malcolm Little, endured a difficult childhood,

imprisoned at 21 for armed robbery in NYC In prison, encountered the teachings of Nation of Islam

leader Elijah MohammedAppealed to him with rich black history/culture, rejecting

white society/values

Travels to Mecca, holy city of IslamSaw individuals of all colors/languages praying together,

reconsiders his position against whitesBreaks ties with Mohammed, creates his own organization

Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU)

He’s assassinated in NYC, 1965, 3 members of the Nation of Islam are convicted

TermsBlack Nationalism – called for complete separation from

white society. Black Muslims would set up their own businesses, schools, etc. Rejected nonviolence

Black power – introduced in 1966, meant many things: political power, economic power, pride in being African American.

Political Gains# of Southern blacks registered to vote spiked from 1

mil to 3.1 mil

Black candidates were successful1966 – Edward Brooke – Massachusetts Senator1968 – Shirley Chisholm – first black congresswoman, from

NYThurgood Marshall – now a US Supreme Court Justice

Afro centrismA focus on African history, culture, achievements of the

African People and their descendants

Balanced Euro centrism

Example, “Roots”

Afr. Amer. Cultural Achievements

College courses – African-American studies

Museums – African-American history, art

Black writers – Nikki Giovanni, Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison

April 4, 1968MLK Jr. in Memphis, TN to support a sanitation worker

strike

Assassinated from a rooftop by James Earl Ray who was caught, tried, found guilty and later died in jail

As a result, riots erupted in more than 100 cities

Civil Rights Act of 1968Added to the original act of 1964

Included a clause on fair housing

Banned discrimination in housing sales & rentals

School Integration1964 Civil Rights Law aimed to speed things up in

schools

If not, the US government threatened to cut off federal funds that were not integrated

Racial BalanceFederal judge ordered school districts to bus students

to schools outside their neighborhoods to achieve integration

Controversy – parents weren’t happy. Long bus rides, safety

Affirmative ActionPolicy created to hire minorities in jobs in order to

create a more diverse workforce

This policy favored minorities to counteract past discrimination

DefinePreferential treatment – affirmative action gave

preference to minorities because of their ethnicity or gender

Reverse discrimination – affirmative action was discriminatory against white males

UCAL vs. BakkeAllan Bakke sued UCAL because he was rejected 2X for

admission to its medical school.

Minority candidates with lower scores and grades were admitted.

1977 – Court upheld affirmative action – but race couldn’t be admission’s only criterion. Bakke was later admitted.