Civil Rights 1960s

Beginning of Civil Rights 13th Amendment Abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude 14th Amendment Become United States citizen and gain basic equal rights 15th Amendment Prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote

What Stopped Civil Rights? Racism Deeply rooted belief involving the idea that one’s own race is superior and has the right to rule others Segregation To require, often with force, the separation of racial and/or religious groups

Segregation De Facto Segregation De Jure Segregation Exists by practice, customs, and traditions De Jure Segregation Exists by law

Separate but Equal Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) Jim Crow Laws Supreme Court ruled it did not violate the 14th amendment Jim Crow Laws Developed mostly in the south aimed at separating the races at schools, elevators, public restrooms, waiting rooms, etc.

What did this create? Prejudice: a pre-determined attitude or opinion about a person or group based upon that person or group’s race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, accent, gender, disability, or other external characteristic Hate groups start to form such as the Ku Klux Klan Lynching, which is violence based on racism becomes more prevalent

What to do? NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Strategically decided to challenge segregated public education Thurgood Marshall Worked for NAACP to overturn older court rulings Brown vs. Board of Education Desegregated public schools

Reaction to Brown Decision Within a year more than 500 school districts desegregated their schools Some states did not take it so well “The people of Georgia will not comply with the decision of the court” –Governor Talmadge In some cases the Ku Klux Klan was brought in to challenge the desegregation

Little Rock 9 A plan to desegregate Little Rock Central High School by 9 volunteers Arkansas Governor sent the National Guard to turn them away, but was overruled by a federal judge The first day was so chaotic, President Eisenhower had to send military personnel to keep order

Little Rock 9 Military could not stop what occurred during school The 9 students were harassed by other students on a regular basis

Civil Rights Leaders

Rosa Parks First famous for beginning the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted 381 days Officer of the NAACP “March on Washington

Martin Luther King’s “soul force” Nonviolent resistance “We will not hate you, but we cannot obey your unjust laws” - MLK Took ideas from Jesus, Henry Thorea, and Gandhi

Civil Disobedience Practiced by MLK and his organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference It is the act of deliberately disobeying the rules as a means to create conflict or end segregation Nonviolence was necessary

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee Criticized MLK for not being controversial enough Sit-ins Activist would sit-in at a segregated establishment as a form of protest Resulted in beatings, and pouring food over students Boycotts

Freedom Riders A group of activist set out to challenge the Supreme Court decision banning segregation on bus routes and in bus terminals The riders were met with extreme violence This reported news led the Kennedy administration to enforce the law

Malcolm X Formerly Malcolm Little Changed his name, dropping what he called his slave name Became Islamic Minister

Malcolm X’s Ideology Opposite philosophy of MLK Felt African Americans should fight back Believed African Americans should separate from white society and fight for their freedom- Black Power

Stokely Carmichael Created the popular usage of ‘Black Power’ SNCC became more militant under his leadership He advocated for black people to define their own goals, and lead their own organizations.

The Black Panthers Preached the motto of ‘Black Power’ Organized to fight police brutality in the ghettos of Oakland, California Felt African Americans should be held from military service

Accomplishments of Civil Rights Movments Civil Rights Act of 1957 Enlarged federal power Civil Rights Act of 1964 Banned discrimination in employment Speed up school desegregation Banned discrimination in public accommodations

Accomplishments continued Voting Rights Act of 1965 Eliminated voter literacy test Civil Rights Act of 1968 Prohibited discrimination in the sale/renting of housing Strengthened antilynching laws