Civil Rights

1. Civil Rights Post World War Changes in the US

2. The Civil Rights movement became very big after WW2 • Four factors led to the rise of the Civil Rights movement • 1.)African-American migration to the North • 2.)The New Deal • 3.)World War II • 4.)NAACP

3. African-American migration • From 1910 to 1940, the African-American population in New York City went from 60,000 to 450,000 • As the population increased, African-Americans in the North began gaining political influence

4. New Deal • New Deal: Economic program to help the economy during the Great Depression • The New Deal helped African-Americans because FDR and the Democratic actively courted the African-American community for their votes

5. World War II • African-Americans went to war for the US, just like everyone else • How can the US be outraged at the Nazis and then come home to a segregated society? • Also, many African-Americans moved to the North during WW2 to work for the war effort

6. NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) • The NAACP was a Northern based organization that raised money to help African-Americans • The NAACP routinely raised money to fight unjust laws in court

7. The NAACP specifically targeted the Plessey v. Ferguson case • In Plessey v. Ferguson, the US Supreme Court ruled that segregation was legal (separate but equal) • The leader of the NAACP legal defense fund was Thurgood Marshall

8. Brown v. Board of Education • In 1951, Oliver Brown sued the school board of Topeka, Kansas because his 8-year old daughter could not attend the school closest to her home because it was a “whites only” school • Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP agreed to take the case

9. In 1954, the US Supreme Court ruled: • The “separate but equal” portion of the Plessey v. Ferguson case was unconstitutional • All public schools in the US had to be desegregated with “all deliberate speed”

10. Reaction to Brown vs. Board of Ed. was mixed throughout the US • Obviously, the African-Americans were very happy • Georgia Governor Herman Talmadge stated that he “would not tolerate the mixing of races in public schools or any other tax supported institution” • The KKK became more visible in the South again

11. More than 90 Congressional member signed the “Southern Manifesto” • The Brown v. Board of Ed. decision violated the 10th Amendment, which meant the Supreme Court overstepped its boundaries • The Congressional members who signed the “Southern Manifesto” promised not to obey the Brown vs. Board of Ed decision

12. The next major step in Civil Rights reform was the Montgomery Bus Boycott • Rosa Parks, an NAACP member, refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a crowded bus • Rosa Parks was arrested for violating segregation laws

13. Jo Ann Robinson of the Women’s Political Council suggested a bus boycott • The plan was for all African-Americans to avoid riding the public bus system in Montgomery, Alabama until the rules were changed • Jo Ann Robinson asked Martin Luther King to become the spokesman of the boycott

14. The bus boycott lasted for over one year • Some whites participated in the boycott by driving blacks to where they had to go • In 1956, the US Supreme Court ruled that public buses could not be segregated

15. As schools became desegregated, problems arose in Little Rock, Arkansas • Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus sent the National Guard to stop the “Little Rock None” (African-American students who volunteered to desegregate Central High School) • Governor Faubus refused to allow integration (the bringing together of different races)

16. Knowing that there was going to be problems, the NAACP in Little Rock called the students to tell them not to come to school on the first day • One student, Elizabeth Eckford, did not have a phone • Elizabeth Eckford was heckled and confronted as she entered Central HS • As a result, President Eisenhower placed the Arkansas National Guard under Federal control

17. Civil Rights organizations grew as the movement became more popular • One of the oldest Civil Rights organizations was the NAACP • The founder of the NAACP was WEB Du Bois • Du Bois wanted all African-Americans to participate in the democracy of modern culture and to prevent an obstacles that would prevent that participation

18. NAACP always worked to change unjust laws • NAACP worked to keep anti-lynching laws alive in the South • Some people criticized the NAACP because it it was based in the North and appealed to educated blacks, as well as wealthy liberal whites

19. National Urban League • Sought to assist African-Americans moving from the South to major Northern cities • Helped out with housing, jobs, and equal treatment at work

20. CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) • Wanted to bring about change through peaceful resistance • CORE organized peaceful demonstrations against segregations in cities, such as Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, and Detroit

21. Another major Civil Rights group was the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) • SCLC was founded by MLK • The SCLC pledged to use nonviolent protest • The SCLC moved the focus of Civil Rights to the South, especially in the churches

22. The Montgomery Bus Boycott made Martin Luther King a household name in the US • MLK was appealing because he wanted protesters to practice nonviolent resistance • MLK’s influence: • 1.)Jesus (love your enemies) • 2.)Henry David Thoreau (civil disobedience: the refusal to obey an unjust law) • 3.)A. Philip Randolph (how to organize a demonstration) • 4.)Ghandi (do not use violence)

23. Another major civil rights group was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) • SNCC was founded by Ella Baker, who wanted more college students involved in the Civil Rights • Many college students were upset because colleges in the South were slow to integrate • At first, SNCC was an interracial organization

24. Another major incident in the Civil Rights movement was the freedom rides • The freedom riders took two public buses throughout the South to make sure that the laws regarding desegregated buses were being followed • CORE and SNCC teamed up to pack the buses with Civil Rights activists

25. In Alabama, white racists beat up African-Americans on the first bus • Some of the riders were beat with chains and others were pistol whipped

26. The second bus saw much more violence • In Anniston, Alabama, 200 whites attacked the bus • The mob smashed the windows and threw a fire bomb in the bus • No one died, but many people were outraged

27. The Greyhound bus company refused to continue driving the bus • US Attorney General Robert Kennedy ordered the bus company and driver to continue the trip • Violence kept follow the bus throughout Alabama • Eventually, JFK sent federal marshals to protect the bus until the trip ended in Jackson, Mississippi

28. As schools were desegregating in Mississippi, James Meredith attempted to enroll at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) • James Meredith was an Air Force veteran who won a Federal court case to integrate the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) • Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett personally blocked Meredith from registering

29. When James Meredith faced difficulty, the Federal government became involved • JFK ordered Federal marshals to escort Meredith to class • When riots broke out on campus, two people died • Meredith, however, stayed at Ole Miss

30. Birmingham, Alabama continued to be a problem with people who wanted Civil Rights • Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth (SCLC member) invited MLK to Birmingham to protest with the African-American community • Shuttlesworth, MLK, and the SCLC protested for a week

31. MLK was eventually arrested on Good Friday • While in jail, MLK wrote a letter to white religious leader who thought he was working too fast • “When you have to concoct an answer for a five year old who asks “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?...then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait

32. When MLK posted bail, he planned more demonstrations in Birmingham • Birmingham Police Commissioner Bull Connor tried to stop the demonstrations • The police in Birmingham met the demonstrators with fire hoses and attack dogs • The rest of the country was shocked when they saw this on TV

33. Politically, Civil Rights was a complex issue • During the 1960 Presidential Election, JFK promised to work on Civil Rights laws • Once in office, JFK moved slow on supporting Civil Rights • JFK was a bit out of touch because he was from Massachusetts

34. JFK tried to play both sides of the Civil Rights argument • JFK nominated Thurgood Marshall to the US Supreme Court • Yet, JFK nominated known segregationists to Federal courts

35. As the Civil Rights movement grew, JFK had to become involved • JFK was upset with the violence in the South • JFK was embarrassed when Medgar Evers, an NAACP field officer from Mississippi, was murdered just hours after a JFK Civil Rights speech • Eventually, JFK supported a stronger Civil Rights Bill

36. To put pressure on Congress, Civil Rights leaders wanted to have a March on Washington • JFK was against a Civil Rights March because he was afraid of potential violence, which may cause Congress to shy away from a Civil Rights Bill

37. The March on Washington took place in August 1963 • About 200,000 people attended • The March was directed by labor leader A. Philip Randolph • Many famous people attended, such as, Sammie Davis, Jr., Jackie Robinson, and Bob Dylan

38. The most famous part of the March was MLK’s “I have a Dream” speech • “I Have a Dream” spoke of a truly united America • MLK wants a country that judges people on the “content of their character and not the color of their skin”

39. When JFK was killed in November 1963, the Civil Rights Bill was still not close to passing • The new President, Lyndon Johnson, was able to push along the Civil Rights legislation • Pres. Johnson used JFK’s memory as a way to gain support • Pres. Johnson told Congress he would not compromise over the bill

40. The House easily passed the bill • The Senate stopped the bill through a filibuster (a tactic where Senators prevent a vote on a measure by taking the floor and refusing to stop talking) • The Republicans in Congress were able to negotiate a cloture (to end debate and call for a vote in Congress)

41. In June 1964, the Civil Rights Bill was passed • Banned discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, or gender • In the bill, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was established to investigate charges of job discrimination

42. Even with the Civil Rights Bill, many people believed there was still more work to do • Many Civil Rights leaders focused on Mississippi in 1964 • Freedom Summer: an organized voter registration drive in Mississippi during the Summer of 1964 • Many of the Civil Rights volunteers were white college students from the North

43. The KKK tried to intimidate the white Civil Rights volunteers • In fact, the KKK killed three volunteers • Throughout the summer, 80 mob attacks done by the KKK were reported • Many African-American homes and churches were burned

44. As the Freedom Summer was unfolding, another battle broke out at the Democratic National Convention • The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party wanted to become delegates at the convention • The MFDP believed the Mississippi delegates at the convention were not legitimate because they were all white • The leader of the MFDP was Fannie Lou Hamer

45. At the convention, Fannie Lou Hamer gave a famous speech • In that speech, Fannie talked about being arrested as she tried to register to vote • In jail, she was beaten by the police and other inmates • “If the MFDP is not seated now, I question America”

46. President Johnson offered two seats at the convention to the MFDP • Fannie Lou and the MFDP said NO and believed that the compromise was not good enough • President Johnson did not offer more because he was afraid of losing votes in the South

47. Later, in 1965, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 • With this law, Federal officials could register voters in places where local officials were blocking registration by African Americans • By 1966, 400,000 news African-Americans had registered to vote in the South

48. As the Civil Rights movement wore on, more radical and militant leaders emerged • The most famous radical leader was Malcolm X (real name is Malcolm Little) • As a child, Malcolm X spent time in jail • While in jail, Malcolm X joined the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims)

49. The Nation of Islam viewed white society as oppressive • The leader of the Nation of Islam was Elijah Muhammad • Elijah Muhammad believed that Allah would create a “Black Nation” of nonwhite people • Malcolm X worked with the Nation of Islam to spread the word of black nationalism (a belief the separate identity and racial unity of African Americans)

50. Malcolm X did not support MLK • Malcolm X called the March on Washington the “Farce on Washington” • Malcolm X believed the non violent Civil Rights movement was merely “begging the white man” • Malcolm X did not think anyone really wanted integration