Segregation in the Southern states (1896-1968)

1. Segregation in the Southern states (1896-1968)

2. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Can the state of Louisiana mandate separate railroadcars for Blacks and Whites?

3. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) "The object of the [Fourteenth] Amendment was undoubtedly to enforce the absolute equality of the two races before the law, but in the nature of things it could not have been intended to abolish distinctions based upon color, or to enforce social, as distinguished from political, equality, or a commingling of the two races upon terms unsatisfactory to either. . . “We consider the underlying fallacy of the plaintiff's argument to consist in the assumption that the enforced separation of the two races stamps the colored race with a badge of inferiority. If this be so, it is not by reason of any-thing found in the act, but solely because the colored race chooses to put that construction upon it." “In my opinion, the judgment this day rendered will, in time, prove to be quite as pernicious as the decision made by this tribunal in the Dred Scott case.” —Justice Harlan, dissenting

4. “Separate but equal . . .” • Schools • Churches • Restaurants • Movies • Hotels • Libraries • Housing • ...you name it

5. “Separate but equal . . .” No Social Interactions Allowed • Schools • Churches • Restaurants • Movies • Hotels • Libraries • Housing • ...you name it Especially no intermarriage

6. The one significant institution under the control of Blacks: Their churches.

7. Central relationship betweenWhites and Blacks: Dominance(tinged with paternalism) • Blacks restricted to menial jobs • Blacks supervised by whites, never the other way around • Whites control wealth and political institutions • Blacks denied even the right to vote

8. Frederickson’s Criteria for an Overtly Racist Regime Ideology: The differences between us and them are permanent and unbridgable. Intermarriage is forbidden by law. Segregation mandated by law, not merely by custom or private acts. Disenfranchisement of vote and public office-holding. Economic opportunities are so limitated that members of outgroup kept in poverty or deliberately impoverished.

9. Marcus Garvey (1887-1940) Back to Africa!

10. W. E. B. DuBois (1868-1963) • Sociologist • Journalist • Pan-Africanist • Socialist/Communist • Ghanian

12. The Civil Rights Movement 1954-1968

13. Three notable events near the beginning of the movement: • Brown v. Board of Education • The Murder of Emmitt Till • The Montgomery Bus Boycott

14. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) “We conclude that, in the field of public education, ‘separate but equal’ has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. “Any language in Plessy v. Ferguson contrary to this finding is rejected.”

15. The Murder of Emmitt Till (1955)

16. “Thar he.” Moses Wright, Sumner, Mississippi, September 22, 1955

17. Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955)

18. The Organizations NAACP National Association for the Advancement of Colored People SCLC Southern Christian Leadership Conference CORE Congress of Racial Equality The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters SNCC Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

19. The Objectives • Overthrow the Jim Crow Laws • Integrate Public Facilities • Eliminate Racial Discrimination Generally

20. The Method Nonviolent Civil Disobedience

21. M. K. Gandhi Satyagraha

22. Why nonviolence? • Ethical view: Pacifism • Violence does not work • Violence is incompatible with the appeal to conscience

23. Do ethical arguments make any difference? How moral argument might lead to social change: The people making the argument keep things stirred up, so that . . . The only way to settle things down--and keep society running peacefully--is to grant the point and make the required changes; and . . . The majority are willing to concede the ethical point, however, grudgingly. Then, The change is made.

24. Characteristics of Civil Disobedience • Nonviolent • Public • Aimed at specific laws, not at law itself • Willing to accept punishment • Addresses to conscience of the majority • Last resort

25. Tactics • Boycotts • Marches and Public Demonstrations • Sit-ins • Freedom Ride • Voter Registration Drives • Law Suits • Speeches, newspaper articles, publicity, publicity, publicity

26. Ronald Dworkin Were the civil rights demonstrators really breaking the law? Was “civil disobedience” really disobedience to the law?

27. The White Resistance Strom Thurmond Dixiecrat Candidate for President 1948

28. The White Resistance Jesse Helms Senator from North Carolina

29. The White Resistance • “Massive Resistance” • Refusal to obey court orders, citing doctine of States’ Rights • Integration of schools did not really become effective until 1960s • Notable battles over school integration in Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas

30. Odessa Woolfolk In 1963, Birmingham’s First High School Integration • Richard Walker • From Ullman to Ransom • Later graduated from UAB Medical School • Now a local physician

31. 1964 Civil Rights Act • Voting rights • Public accommodations • Equal opportunity in employment • Desegregation of public facilities • Nondiscrimination in federally funded programs • Establishes Civil Rights Commission • Affirmative action training programs

32. Lyndon Johnson’s argument: the analogy of the foot race The Original Arguments for Affirmative Action

33. The Original Arguments for Affirmative Action • Lyndon Johnson’s argument: the analogy of the foot race • Role models and the vicious circle • Necessary for combatting racism • Compensation

34. 1968: The Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

35. Three features of our current situation that resulted from the policy of massive resistance: • Multiple school systems • The private Christian Academies • Republicans as the conservative party

36. The Present 1968-2003

37. The Civil Rights Movement The Women’s Movement The Gay Rights Movement The Rights of the Handicapped The Animal Rights Movement

38. Where do we stand now on the question of race? • Jim Crow laws are gone • Public facilities and schools (mostly) integrated • Housing and social life (mostly) segregated • African-Americans hold many local political positions • The economy, wealth, and national political power still (mostly) in the hands of Whites • Affirmative action restricted and controversial

39. Median Income (Men), 1960-2000 WhitesAfr-AmerPercentage* 2000 29,696 21,662 73% 1990 27,182 16,522 61% 1980 26,519 15,936 60% 1970 27,088 16,069 59% 1960 21,294 11,202 53% *Income of African-American men expressed as a percentage of the income of White men

40. Two competing ideas: 1. The Color-Blind Society What ideal should we embrace?

41. What ideal should we embrace? Two competing ideas: The Color-Blind Society Black Pride and Heritage

42. What ideal should we embrace? Two competing ideas: The Color-Blind Society Black Pride and Heritage A model that might combine these two: The position of American Jews within the larger society

43. The End