“the civil rights movement”. events caught on video
TRANSCRIPT
“The Civil Rights Movement”
Events Caught on Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGd1fb7z2sw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPrHwmiUMH0
Think About the Following Words
IsolationPersecutionSegregationDehumanizationViolenceInequalitySacrifice
Background Events/Facts
Post Civil War: 13th Amendment-Abolished slavery 14th Amendment-Mandated citizenship and equal
protection of the constitution 15th Amendment-Gave everyone the right to vote
1896-Plessy vs. Ferguson
The court declared that Louisiana law segregating black from whites in trains was alright by a vote of 7-1
The idea of “Separate, but Equal” established segregation as legal in public facilities
This came to be known as the “Jim Crow Laws” based on the notion that blacks were not innately equal to whites
Brown vs. the Board of Education, 1954
Landmark court case that overturned the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision making segregation illegal
Southern states were informed to comply “with all deliberate speed”
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Signed by President L.B. JohnsonDesigned to uphold the 15th Amendment of
everyone’s right to voteOutlawed the common practice of
disqualifying applicants who fail literacy tests
Access and take the Louisiana Literacy Test for voting qualifications: http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_vault/2013/06/28/voting_rights_and_the_supreme_court_the_impossible_literacy_test_louisiana.html
The Federal Government now oversees and has jurisdiction over all voting practices
Highly influenced by the Selma to Montgomery marches, a.k.a “Bloody Sunday”
Take 10 minutes to research the Selma march using the internet for events, statistics and photographs
1st Selma March
Segregation In Photos
Separate facilities examples:
Influential Organizations
1909-NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) forms
1942-CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) forms
1957-SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) is founded by Dr. King based on Ghandi’s teachings of nonviolent protest
1960-SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordination Committee) forms
Influential People
Jackie Robinson – 1st African-American to play major league baseball in 1946
Often harassed by fellow teammates and opposing players as well as fans and the general public
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Reverend in Montgomery AlabamaFounded the SCLCPracticed Ghandi’s philosophy of nonviolent
protestStarted his Civil Rights Movement career
during the Bus Boycotts in MontgomeryOrganized the 1963 “March on Washington”
where he delivered his famous “I Have A Dream” speech
Wrote the famous “Letter From Birmingham Jail” in April of 1963
MLK (cont’d)
Dec. 1964- wins the Nobel Peace PrizeApril 4, 1968-assassinated in Memphis,
Tennessee
Rosa Parks
Arrested in 1955 for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus
Was an active member of the NAACP in fighting for people’s rights
Claudette Colvin
1st woman to be arrested for not giving up her seat on a bus
Emmett Till
Murdered at age 14 in 1955 for allegedly flirting with a white female in which the assailants were aquitted
This event motivated people to collectively get involved to promote change
Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth
Led the fight against segregation in Birmingham, Alabama, which included multiple attempts on his life
Sought to integrate the public schools in Birmingham; Co-founder of the SCLC
Rev. Ralph Abernathy
Dr. King’s main assistant during the movement
Extremely active during the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Jimmy Lee Jackson
Viet Nam Veteran who was shot to death in Marion, Alabama while trying to protect his mother from being beaten by law officials during nonviolent protesting
James Peck
Civil Rights Activist who risked his life during the Freedom Rides in 1961
Severely beaten requiring 53 stitches to the head
Other Contributors
Fred Gray-attorney who vowed to kill segregation
John L. Lewis-Chairman of the SNCCCorretta Scott King-Dr. King’s wife who
dedicated her life to fighting for equality and freedom for people all over the world
“Greensboro Four”-college students from Chattanooga who conducted Sit-Ins at “whites only” lunch counters
Ruby Bridges-1st African-American to attend a white elementary school at age 6
The students who tried to integrate the school systems in the 1960’s