american civil rights movement 1950s & 1960s

American Civil Rights MovementAmerican Civil Rights Movement1950s & 1960s1950s & 1960s

AP US History

Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950s Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950s Forward ProgressForward Progress

• 13th Amendment

• 14th Amendment

• 15th Amendment

• Abolished slavery and guaranteed rights—including voting—to African Americans

Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950s Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950s

Push BackPush Back• Jim Crow Laws

• Poll Tax

• Literacy Test

• Grandfather Clause

• Southern states restricted African-Americans despite Constitutional protections

Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950sSituation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950sPush Back Push Back

• Plessy v. Ferguson • Supreme Court declared segregation was legal as long as facilities were “separate but equal”

• Lynching • Mob executions• Used by whites in the

South to terrorize African-Americans and enforce the Jim Crow system

Situation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950sSituation in the U. S. 1877 – 1950sPush BackPush Back

Strange FruitStrange Fruit• Southern trees bear strange fruit

Blood on the leavesBlood at the rootBlack bodies swinging in the southern breezeStrange fruit hanging from the poplar treesPastoral scene of the gallant southThe bulging eyes and the twisted mouthThe scent of magnolia sweet and freshThen the sudden smell of burning fleshHere is a fruit for the crows to pluckfor the rain to gatherfor the wind to suckfor the sun to rotfor the tree to dropHere is a strange and bitter crop

Origin of the Civil Rights MovementOrigin of the Civil Rights Movement

• World War II • 1. African-Americans left sharecropping jobs for industrial jobs in Northern cities

• 2. 700,000 African-Americans served in WW II – “We return from fighting. We return fighting.”

• 3. During WWII, African-Americans successfully protested against Jim Crow

Early ActionsEarly Actions

• 1948 – President Truman orders the desegregation of the Armed Forces– First large scale desegregation effort

Playing for the DodgersPlaying for the DodgersBranch Rickey, president and General Branch Rickey, president and General Manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, noticed Manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, noticed Robinson’s exceptional talent.Robinson’s exceptional talent.In 1946 Branch Rickey signed Jackie In 1946 Branch Rickey signed Jackie Robinson.Robinson.Jackie Robinson, at the age of 27, became Jackie Robinson, at the age of 27, became the first Black Baseball player in Major the first Black Baseball player in Major League history. He played his first game on League history. He played his first game on April 15April 15thth 1947. (almost 66 years ago) 1947. (almost 66 years ago)

Jackie and Civil RightsJackie and Civil RightsJackie Robinson’s Actions affected the world far beyond Major League Baseball.

His courage and discipline in standing up against racism were a preview of the actions taken by many members of the Civil Rights Movement.

The success of the Jackie Robinson experiment was a testament to fact that integration could exist.

Who was Linda Brown?Who was Linda Brown?

• Brown v. Board of Education (Topeka, Kansas) 1954– Facts

• Linda Brown = 8 year old African American student

• Nearest elementary school = 4 blocks from the Brown home (all white)

• Linda Brown’s school (all black) = 21 blocks from the Brown home

• NAACP sues Bd of Education challenging the separate but equal

Origin of the Civil Rights Origin of the Civil Rights MovementMovement

• Thurgood Marshall• NAACP Lawyer who

argues Linda Brown’s case

• Later became the first African-American Supreme Court Justice

Most Significant VictoryMost Significant Victory

• Brown v. Board of Education– “Separate educational

facilities are inherently unequal.”

• School Districts across the nation began to desegregate

• Catalyst for desegregating other aspects of American society

The Story of Emmett TillThe Story of Emmett Till


• August 21: Emmett Till arrives in Money, Mississippi, and goes to stay at the home of his great uncle.

• August 24: Emmett joins a group of teenagers, seven boys and one girl, to go to Bryant's Grocery and Meat Market for refreshments to cool off after a long day of picking cotton in the hot sun. Bryant's Grocery, owned by a white couple, Roy and Carolyn Bryant, sells supplies and candy to a primarily black customers Some of the kids outside the store will later say they heard Emmett whistle at Carolyn Bryant.

• August 28: About 2:30 a.m., Roy Bryant, Carolyn's husband, and his half brother J. W. Milam, kidnap Emmett Till from Moses Wright's home. They will later describe brutally beating him, taking him to the edge of the Tallahatchie River, shooting him in the head, fastening a large metal fan used for ginning cotton to his neck with barbed wire, and pushing the body into the river.

• August 29: J. W. Milam and Roy Bryant are arrested on kidnapping charges in LeFlore County in connection with Till's disappearance. They are jailed in Greenwood, Mississippi and held without bond.

• August 31: Three days later, Emmett Till's decomposed corpse is pulled from Mississippi's Tallahatchie River. Moses Wright identifies the body from a ring with the initials L.T.


• September 19: The kidnapping and murder trial of J. W. Milam and Roy Bryant opens in Sumner, Mississippi, the county seat of Tallahatchie County. Jury selection begins and, with blacks and white women banned from serving, an all-white, 12-man jury made up of nine farmers, two carpenters and one insurance agent is selected.

• September 23: Milam and Bryant are acquitted of murdering Emmett Till after the jury deliberates only 67 minutes. One juror tells a reporter that they wouldn't have taken so long if they hadn't stopped to drink pop. Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam stand before photographers, light up cigars and kiss their wives in celebration of the not guilty verdict.


Celebrating the acquittal

Montgomery, AlabamaMontgomery, Alabama

• Rosa Parks • Refused to give up her seat to a white man.

• Was arrested.• Became a symbol of the Civil

Rights Movement

The ArrestThe Arrest

On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a White man on a bus.

Parks was arrested and charged with the violation of a segregation law in The Montgomery City Code.

50 African American leaders in the community met to discuss what to do about Rosa’s arrest.

“People always say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.” -Rosa Parks Autobiography

Montgomery Bus BoycottMontgomery Bus BoycottOn December 5, 1955, African Americans in Montgomery began to boycott the busses.

40,000 Black commuters walked to work, some as far as twenty miles.

The boycott lasted 382 days.

The boycott ended after the Supreme Court ruled the law unconstitutional.

Martin Luther King Jr.Martin Luther King Jr.

• In 1953, at the age of 26, King became pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery Alabama.

• His start as a Civil Rights leader came during the Montgomery Bus Boycott.


• King organized a boycott of buses in Montgomery

• Lasted 382 days

• King’s home was bombed

• Supreme Court finally outlawed segregation on buses


• Martin Luther King Jr. • Studied tactics of Thoreau, Gandhi, and others

• Preached about soul force—non-violent resistance

• “We will not hate you, but we cannot . . . obey your unjust laws”

Non-Violent TacticsNon-Violent Tactics

• Boycott

• Sit-in

• March

• Refusing to buy a good or service

• Sitting in segregated areas and refusing to move

• Marching with a large group to draw attention to a cause

King Becomes a National FigureKing Becomes a National Figure

• Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

• Civil Rights group organized by King

• Included over 100 African-American ministers

Little Rock, Arkansas—1957Little Rock, Arkansas—1957

• Nine African-American students were to integrate Central High School

• Governor ordered Arkansas National Guard to turn the students away

• Federal judge ordered the governor to allow the students entry

• Governor refused—African-American students were turned away

Little Rock, Arkansas—1957Little Rock, Arkansas—1957

• Eisenhower responds • Put 1,000 paratroopers in Little Rock

• Stationed in the High School—escorted students to class, maintained order

Oprah and the Little Rock Nine

U-46 SchoolsU-46 Schools

• Try to guess the % by race / group for the five U-46 high schools:– White– Hispanic– Black– Asian

The Movement GrowsThe Movement Grows

• Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

• Group of African-American college students in North Carolina

In the summers and over school-holidays volunteers came south to join the fight for freedom and justice. Most — but certainly not all — were college students or recent grads. Most — but certainly not all — were from the North. Most — but certainly not all — were white. Most returned to their campuses and jobs, but some stayed on as full time freedom fighters.

Changes in PhilosophyChanges in Philosophy

What wasthe goal?

What wasthe strategy?

Greensboro, North CarolinaGreensboro, North Carolina

• SNCC used sit-ins to protest segregated lunch counters

• Media coverage showed racism to the entire country

Separate EverythingSeparate Everything

Colored Fountain

Notice thearm band?

• By 1960, 48 cities had desegregated lunch counters

Who says the

KKK doesn’t

know how to

relax?

Freedom RidersFreedom Riders

• Wanted to test enforcement of Supreme Courts decision to desegregate interstate buses.

• Blacks and Whites rode through the South

Getting Ready to Meet the Bus!!

Name the gender?

Freedom RidersFreedom Riders• Peck (a civil rights activist) rode on Bus One.

At the Alabama state line, a half dozen white racists got on the bus, carrying chains, brass knuckles, and pistols. They yanked the young African-American riders from their seats and shoved them into the aisle. Peck and a 60-year-old white freedom rider tried to intervene. The thugs knocked Peck unconscious and kicked the old man repeatedly in the head until his brain hemorrhaged.

Freedom RidersFreedom Riders• When Bus One got to Birmingham,

Alabama, a mob was waiting at the bus terminal, many holding iron bars and pipes. As they entered the white waiting room, they were dragged into the alley and beaten with the pipes. Peck was again knocked unconscious, this time he needed 53 stitches in his head and face.

Freedom RidersFreedom Riders

• In Anniston, Alabama, 200 whites attacked Bus Two and slashed its tires. Six miles out of town, the bus was crippled. The mob barricaded the door, smashed a window, and tossed a fire bomb into the bus. The freedom riders were barely able to force the door open and escape before the bus exploded.

Freedom RidersFreedom Riders• Another group of freedom riders rode from

Tennessee into Alabama. When they reached Birmingham, the Police Chief had them pulled off the bus, beaten and driven back to Tennessee. The freedom riders returned to Birmingham. When they proceeded to Montgomery, a white mob had formed and no police were present. The freedom riders were again beaten. John F. Kennedy finally sent 400 U. S. Marshals to protect the riders as they continued to Mississippi

Ole MissOle Miss

• Mascot – Rebels• Symbol – Confederate

Flag

Ole MissOle Miss

• James Meredith won a court case that would make him the first African-American student at the University of Mississippi.

Ole MissOle Miss• Federal Marshals escorted Meredith to

register

• Riots ensued – 2 dead, 200 arrested, 5000 soldiers needed to stop the rioters

• 1966 Meredith was shot during a freedom march in Mississippi – he survived

No Segregation!!No Segregation!!

Hotel owner pouring muratic acid in his pool

Police ‘escorting’ swimmers froma white only beach

Birmingham, Alabama – 1963Birmingham, Alabama – 1963

• 1963 Video• Demonstrations to protest segregation• King was arrested – released• Children’s March- 959 were arrested• 2nd Children’s March – police used fire

hoses, attack dogs against the marchers• Finally, negative media attention, boycotts,

and protests led to desegregation

Jackson, Mississippi – 1963Jackson, Mississippi – 1963

• Civil Rights activist Medgar Evers was killed in his driveway

• The killer, Byron de la Beckwith was released after two trials (hung jury)

• Convicted in 1994 for violating Evers civil rights – dies in jail 2001

Washington, D. C. – 1963Washington, D. C. – 1963

• March organized to persuade Congress to pass Civil Rights Bill

• 250,000 met to hear speeches, music

• “I Have a Dream” speech – Martin Luther King, Jr.

• After Kennedy was shot, Civil Rights Act of 1964 passed

I Have a Dream

Civil Rights Act of 1964Civil Rights Act of 1964

• An act to enforce the constitutional right to vote and provide legal support against discrimination in public institutions.

De Jure SegregationDe Jure Segregation

• Defined as: segregation that is imposed by law

• Outlawed by Civil Rights Acts, Voting Rights Act, and amendments

De Facto SegregationDe Facto Segregation

• Defined as: segregation that happens in fact although not required by law

• Difficult to overcome

• Involves changing attitudes, not laws

Affirmative ActionAffirmative Action

• Making special efforts to hire or enroll groups that have suffered from discrimination in the past.

• Very controversial—is it reverse discrimination?

Mississippi – 1964Mississippi – 1964

• Freedom Summer – 1000 college students went to Mississippi to register African-Americans voters

• Met violent resistance—4 dead many wounded, churches and businesses burned

Mississippi BurningMississippi Burning

Selma, Alabama – 1965Selma, Alabama – 1965• Voter registration drive – 2,000 African-Americans arrested,

police beatings

• Police killed a demonstrator

• King announced a protest March from Selma to Montgomery

• State police beat marchers, used tear gas

• Federal government stepped in protected marchers

• 25,000 marchers reached Selma

• The March crosses Lowndes County, a stronghold of the Ku Klux Klan. – Population: 81% Black, 19% white.

Voter registration: Blacks 0, whites 2240 (118%)

Selma, Alabama – 1965Selma, Alabama – 1965

• Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed—eliminated the literacy test

• Allowed federal government to enroll voters who were denied suffrage

• Twenty-Fourth Amendment—eliminated the poll tax

Changes in PhilosophyChanges in Philosophy

What was the goal?

What was the strategy?

Black PowerBlack Power

• Slogan coined by Stokely Carmichael (SNCC)

• African-Americans should separate from whites, define their own goals, and lead their own organizations

• Signaled a shift away from non-violent resistance

Black PowerBlack Power

Mexico City, 1968Mexico City, 1968

Black Panther PartyBlack Panther Party

• U.S. African American Militant group.• Founded in 1966 in Oakland.• Led by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale.• Believed violent revolution was the only way to

receive freedom.• Urged African Americans to arm themselves.

Black PanthersBlack Panthers

• Sold copies of Mao Zedong’s Little Red Book to raise money so they could purchase shotguns

• Attended protests and rallies with shotguns and law books!


• Black Power

• Black Militancy—suggested armed revolt– “Power flows out of the barrel of a gun”

• Communist

• Got into shootouts with police


• Started free daycare and free breakfast program in urban ghetto

• Made them popular in Northern cities


• J. Edgar Hoover (head of the F. B. I.) declares that the Black Panthers were the "greatest threat to the internal security of the country."

Malcolm XMalcolm X

X His father was killed by White Supremacist in Michigan, in 1931.

X After time, Malcolm moved to Harlem where he became involved in gambling, drug dealing and robbery.

X Malcolm was arrested at the age of 20 for armed robbery. In jail he studied the teaching of Elijah Muhammad.

Elijah MuhammadElijah MuhammadX Elijah Muhammad was the leader of the

mostly Black political and religious group, The Nation Of Islam.

His teachings, often perceived as racist, preached complete separation from Whites in society.

He often expressed the idea the Blacks were the first people to rule the world and that the Whites tricked them out of power and oppressed them.

Young Malcolm X developed his adept speaking skills and political ideas under the direction of Elijah Muhammad.

Nation Of IslamNation Of IslamX The Nation Of Islam

(NOI) was an activist group that believed that most African slaves were originally Muslim.

X The NOI urged African Americans to reconvert to Islam in effort to restore the heritage that was stolen from them.

X The NOI wanted to create a second Black nation within the United States.

X The “X” in Malcolm’s name symbolizes the rejection of his slave name.

Malcolm X: The ActivistMalcolm X: The ActivistX Malcolm X made constant

accusations of racism and demanded violent actions of self defense.

X He constantly retold the injustices his people suffered in the past.

X Malcolm X gathered wide spread admiration from African American’s and wide spread fear from Whites.

Malcolm X Speaks, 1965Malcolm X Speaks, 1965X “Be peaceful, be courteous, obey

the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery.”

X “Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you're a man, you take it.”

X “You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom.”

Malcolm X Quotes (On King)Malcolm X Quotes (On King)X I'll say nothing against him. At one time the whites in the

United States called him a racist, and extremist, and a Communist. Then the Black Muslims came along and the whites thanked the Lord for Martin Luther King.

X Dr. King wants the same thing I want -- freedom!

End of XEnd of X

• After a pilgrimage to Mecca X changed his philosophy to promote change without violence (if possible) and equality of races

• Assassinated 1965 – allegedly by members of the Nation of Islam –

Last Testament?Last Testament?

• "Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."

• — The final words from Martin Luther King's last speech, given in Memphis Tennessee the night before he was assassinated on April 4, 1968

Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Assassinated in April, 1968

James Earl RayJames Earl Ray

Died 1998

Conspiracy Theory??Conspiracy Theory??

• A racist petty criminal looking to make a name for himself stalks a well-protected black civil rights leader and finally slays him, then manages to make an almost-clean getaway – but not before dropping the murder weapon (with prints) and his personal radio with his prison ID engraved on it.

• It’s almost too perfect because nobody would be that stupid. It must be a CIA-FBI-White House plot. Has to be. There is no way that James Earl Ray, the high-school dropout, Army throw-away, petty thief could stalk Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., kill the most influential civil rights leader of the era and evade an international manhunt for more than two months, only to be busted by Scotland Yard going through a customs checkpoint he wasn’t supposed to be at.

Violence EruptsViolence Erupts

• 125 cities experience rioting

WattsWatts

DetroitDetroit

Washington, D. C.Washington, D. C.

Kerner CommissionKerner Commission

• Appointed by President Johnson after urban riots

• Decides that the main cause of urban violence is white racism

Civil Rights Act of 1968Civil Rights Act of 1968

• Banned segregation in housing (this wasn’t included in the 1964 Act)

american civil rights movement 1950s & 1960s

Documents

strange fruit blood

factslinda brown

brown homenaacp

strange fruitsouthern

jackie robinson experiment

southern breeze strange

whitelinda browns school

school districts