The Civil Rights Movement 1954-1968
Chapter 14
The Segregation System Plessy v Ferguson Supreme court case
that the separate but equal is legal
What did this case lead to in many states?
Answer-Led to the establishment of Jim Crow Laws (segregation)
Segregation Continues into the 20th Century After the Civil War,
many African Americans moved north
Tried to escape segregation
Still encountered racism and segregation
Eisenhower believed people had to allow racism and segregation to end gradually
A Developing Civil Rights Movement WWII set the stage
for Civil Rights 3 Reasons
1 provided job opportunities for blacks
2. Many blacks fought for other people’s freedom
3. Civil Rights organizations won rights during the war
Challenging Segregation in Court Campaign led largely
by NAACP The NAACP Legal
Strategy Charles Hamilton
focused on inequality in schools
Placed his best students under Thurgood Marshall
Began arguing and winning many cases
Brown v Board of Education 1954 Linda Brown and Board of
Education of Topeka Kansas
Thurgood Marshall argued and won the case
What was the importance?
Answer-The Supreme court unanimously struck down segregation
Thurgood Marshall first African American appointed to the supreme Court
Brown v. Board of Education- 1954 State officials had
a variety of responses No problem Take some time Never
Resistance to School Desegregation Within a year 500
school districts desegregated
What was the importance of the Brown II ruling in 1955
Answer-The Supreme Court ordered schools to desegregate faster
Crisis in Little Rock Governor Oval
Faubus publicly showed support for segregation
Who were the Little Rock 9?
Answer- 9 black students who volunteered to integrate Central High School
Crisis in Little Rock President
Eisenhower sent in troops
First time since the Civil War
Protect the students in school
Faubus eventually shut down the school Did this to prevent
integration
Montgomery Bus Boycott December 1, 1955
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat for a white passenger
Parks arrested Montgomery
Improvement Association organizes a bus boycott
Montgomery Bus Boycott Martin Luther King
chosen as their leader Reason- King’s
speaking ability How Long did the
boycott last and was it successful?
Answer-It lasted 381 days and it was successful (Supreme Court ruled in favor of the boycott)
Martin Luther King and the SCLC Montgomery bus
Boycott proved that African Americans could unite and organize.
Proved to the world a successful protest movement
Changing the World with Soul Force King based his
ideas on Ghandi Pushed for non-
violence called “soul force”
Identify Emmit Till Answer-young boy
killed for talking to a white woman
From the Grassroots Up- Identify and Describe the following
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Answer-Organization of Christians ministers used non-violent protests against racial injustice
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
Answer-Organization of college studetns organized to fight for civil rights
The Movement Spreads- Demonstrating for Freedom Sit ins
Organized by CORE (Congress on Racial Equality)
African Americans sat at segregated lunch counters
Refused to give up their seats Most famous was in
Greensboro, North Carolina-Greensboro 4
What was the significance of this action
Answer-This non-violent act was covered by TV and began to spread all over the south
The Triumphs of a Crusade
Riding for Freedom Freedom Riders ride
buses across the South
Testing Supreme Court on segregating buses
What Happened? Answer-Black and
white college students volunteered to test ruling of riding buses across the south
Arrival of Federal Marshals Riders reach
Alabama Angry white mob
attacks and beats them
This is exactly what the riders wanted-why?
Answer-The violence brought attention and sympathy for the movement
Civil Rights Workers Encounter Opposition and Violence Integrating Ole Miss-
September 1962 James Meredith won a
federal case Allowed him to enroll
in all-white University of Mississippi
JFK ordered Federal Marshalls to escort Meredith when he registered
What was the result of this action?
Answer-Riots broke out on campus to protest Meredith but he did attend and graduate
Heading into Birmingham Considered the most
segregated city in the US
MLK went there to protest and was arrested
How did the police, led by Bull Connor, deal with protestors?
Answer-Police used fire hoses and attack dogs to stop the protest march
Kennedy takes a Stand JFK sends troops to
Alabama Force George Wallace
to honor court orders to segregate University
JFK called Congress to pass Civil Rights bill
Identify Medger Evers Answer-NAACP field
agent who was killed in the driveway of his home
Marching on Washington
Planned march on Washing to support Civil Rights bill
August 23, 1963- 250,000 people converge on capitol
MLK gives famous “I have a dream speech”
More Violence 2 weeks after King’s speech
4 young girls killed in Birmingham
Church bombed JFK was assassinated Lyndon Johnson successor
passed the Civil Rights Bill What were the key
provision of this bill? Answer-
Prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, national origin and gender.
Gave all citizens equal; access to all public accommodations
Fighting for Voting Rights The next big step Freedom Summer
Name of project led by college students
1964 get African-Americans registered to vote
3 workers killed by local KKK
The Selma Campaign
Voter Registration drive
Jimmy Lee Jackson was killed
MLK announced a 50 mile protest
March from Selma to Montgomery
Marchers met by violence
Voting Rights Act of 1965 Ten weeks after Selma
march Major piece of
legislation passed What were the
provisions of this bill? Answer-No more
literacy tests to vote and gave Federal government more power to enforce election laws
Challenges and Changes in the Movement
By 1965 Civil Rights leaders were taking movement to new areas.
African Americans Seek Greater Equality Northern
Segregation De facto
segregation- this exists by practice or custom
How is du jure segregation different?
Answer- Du jure is segregation by law
Northern Segregation Activists wanted to
share economic and social power (more difficult
Besides equal access to lunch counters and busses
De facto segregation was the result of white flight syndrome
Urban Violence Erupts 1960’s clashes
between white authority and black civilians spreads
Discuss the riots in Harlem and Watts
Answer- Clashes between police and blacks led to some of the worst rioting in US history
New Leaders Voice Discontent Several African
American leaders wanted followers to take complete control of their
communities Livelihoods Culture Ex. Malcolm X
African American Solidarity Malcolm X was a
member of the Nation of Islam (black Muslims)
What was his message to other blacks?
Answer- Blacks should separate from white society and also that blacks should arm and defend themselves
Thought the X was a symbol of his African ancestors
Ballots or Bullets Malcolm made a
pilgrimage to Mecca Changed his thinking Started to preach
racial equality Broke from nation of
Islam Malcolm was
assassinated by members of Nation of Islam 2-21-65
Black Power Tension building
among Civil Rights groups
Many younger groups were impatient
Wanted quicker results
Who coined the phrase “Black Power”
Answer-Stockely Carmichael
Black Panthers Oakland, CA- Huey
Newton and Bobby Seale founders
Fought police brutality in the ghettos
What were some of the goals of this group?
Answer-End police brutality- exempt blacks from military service- provide services for the black
Turning Point in Civil Rights
MLK objected to Black Panther movement
Believed that preaching violence would end in grief
King was planning Poor People’s march on DC
Kings Death
King was in Memphis to support a garbage strike
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968
By who? Answer-James
Earl Ray, caught and sentenced to 99 years
Reaction to King’s Death
Led to worst urban riots in US History
100 cities exploded in flames
Civil Rights Gains
Civil rights act of 1964 ended discrimination in housing
Other gains included Pride in racial
identity Political Increased schooling
Unfinished Work Needed to equalize
education White flight led to
segregation again Needed to equalize job
opportunities Define affirmative action- Answer-Policy seeks to
correct the effects of past discrimination by favoring certain groups who were previously disadvantaged
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