Chapter 16

 Origins of the Movement  Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and the “separate but equal doctrine”  Jim Crow Laws  NAACP and CORE  The Movement Begins 1. Truman and the Military (1948) 2. Brown v. Bd. Of Educ., Topeka, KS (1954) 3. Southern Manifesto

4. Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955) 5. MLK Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference  President Eisenhower and Civil Rights 1. Little Rock 9 (1957) 2. Civil Rights Act of 1957

 The Sit-In Movement  Greensboro Sit-In (1957)  Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)  Freedom Riders (1961)  JFK and Civil Rights  RFK and the Justice Dept.  Integrating Ole Miss (1962)

3. March on Birmingham, AL (1963) 4. March on Wash. DC (Aug. 1963) C. LBJ on Civil Rights 1. Civil Rights Act of Equal Employment Opportunities Commission 3. Poll Taxes 4. March on Selma (Jan. 1965) 5. Voting Rights Act of 1965

1.) What social and economic issues led to a splintering in the African American civil rights movement? 2.) How did Martin Luther King Jr.’s tactics differ from Malcom X and the Black Panthers?

A. Problems for Urban African Americans 1. De Facto Segregation and Racism  De Jure segregation (segregation by law) had ended with the Civil Rights Act (‘64) however De Facto segregation (segregation by tradition) continued  African Americans still found themselves in impoverished communities and being channeled into low-paying jobs  1965 only 15% of African Americans held professional jobs and almost half of all African American families lived in poverty with a median income of 55% of that of the average white family 2. Watts Riot (1965)  Alleged police brutality by the LAPD led to a six-day long race riot in South Central, Los Angeles  34 dead, 900 injured and $45 million in property damage  Race riots continued in major cities throughout Kerner Commission (1967)  President Johnson created a commission to investigate the causes of the urban riots  The commission blamed racism and recommended the creation of more jobs, low-income housing and a government commitment to end de facto segregation

B. Economic Rights 1. MLK Jr. Loses Support  African American leaders became critical of MLK Jr.’s non-violent strategies  Many people felt that non-violent strategies failed to improve the economic condition of African Americans and minorities in America 2. Chicago Movement  In 1965 MLK Jr. began a new campaign to improve the lives of impoverished African Americans  MLK Jr. and the SCLC’s goal was to work with local city leaders in the North to improve the economic status of African Americans in their cities  Plans were made to clean up the slums and realtors and bankers agreed to promote open housing ; in practice very little changed

C. Radicalization of the Civil Rights Movement 1. Black Power Movement  Many young African Americans began to call for Black Power, the belief that African Americans should control the social, political and economic direction of their struggle (also included physical violence for self- defense)  Stokely Carmichael, leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), removed white members from the organization 2. Malcom X and the Nation of Islam  Young African Americans unsatisfied with non-violent tactics joined the Black Muslim movement (Nation of Islam) that preached black nationalism  Malcom X was a powerful leader in the movement and encouraged African Americans to be economically self-sufficient, focus on strengthening black families, and the use of violence for self-defense

3. Black Panthers  Malcom X’s ideas influenced a new generation of militant African Americans that preached black power, black nationalism, and economic self-sufficiency  These ideas lead to the creation of the Black Panther organization in Oakland, CA by Huey Newton, Bobby Seale and Eldridge Cleaver  Focused on revolution and encouraged African Americans to arm themselves and confront white society demanding equal rights D. Assassination of MLK Jr.  Dr. King went to Memphis, TN to support an African American labor strike  MLK Jr. was promoting a new plan, the “Poor People’s Campaign” that would ask the federal government to commit billions of dollars to end poverty and unemployment in the US  On April 4, 1968, MLK Jr. while standing on his hotel balcony was assassinated by a sniper  His death touched off national mourning and riots in over 100 cities  Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1968 to end discrimination in housing