The Civil Rights Movement

Post-WWII African Americans grew dissatisfied with their second-class status after WWII – Risked their lives defending freedom abroad Civil Rights Movement- a broad and diverse effort to attain racial equality

Segregation divides America Jim Crow laws- enforced strict separation of the races in the South – Schools, hospitals, transportation, & restaurants De jure segregation- imposed by law 1896 Plessy vs. Ferguson-”Separate but equal”

Segregation in the North De facto segregation: segregated by unwritten custom or tradition, face of life Blacks were denied housing in many neighborhoods and faced discrimination in employment (NORTH)

The Impact of Segregation African Americans received low-paying jobs Higher rates of poverty and illiteracy Lower rates of homeownership and life expectancy Couldn’t vote in the south

The Civil Rights Movement Grows Congress of Racial Equality (CORE): became convinced to use non-violent methods to gain civil rights – Organized Protests in northern cities Jackie Robinson President Truman used his executive power to order the desegregation of the military

Playing for the Dodgers Branch Rickey, president and General Manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, noticed Robinson’s exceptional talent. In 1946 Branch Rickey signed Jackie Robinson. Jackie Robinson, at the age of 27, became the first Black Baseball player in Major League history.

Jackie Robinson Born in Cairo, Georgia, in Robinson’s family moved to California after his father deserted the family. At the University of California in Los Angeles, Robinson starred in football, track, basketball and baseball. In 1944, Robinson played in the Negro leagues on a team called the Kansas City Monarchs. 42

Jackie’s Courage Jackie Robinson faced virulent racism. Members of his own team refused to play with him. Opposing pictures tried to beam his head, while base runners tried to spike him. He received hate mail and death threats daily. Fans shouted Racist remarks at him in every ball park. Hotels and restaurants refused to serve him

Rosa Parks Rosa Parks was born on February 4, She grew up in Pine Level, Alabama, right outside of Montgomery. In the South, Jim Crowe laws segregated African American’s and whites in almost every aspect of life. ◦This included a seating policy on buses. White’s sat in the front, Blacks sat in the back. ◦Buses also drove White students to school. Black students were forced to walk everyday.

Events Leading Up To Rosa’s Protest Parks was an active member of The Civil Rights Movement and joined the Montgomery chapter of NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) in In 1944 Jackie Robinson refused to give up his bus seat in Texas. In 1955, Black Activist in Montgomery were building a case around Claudette Colvin, a 15 year old girl who refused to give up her seat on a bus. She was arrested and forcibly removed from the bus. African Americans made up 75% of the passengers in the Bus system but still had to deal with unfair rules.

The 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 Boycott On December 5, 1955, through the rain, the 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 bus companies finances struggled. Until the law that called for segregation on busses was finally lifted.

NAACP Challenges Segregation NAACP became the largest and most powerful civil rights organization Thurgood Marshal (Eventual Member of the Supreme Court)-headed the team that challenged the legality of segregation

Martin Luther King Jr. Born in Atlanta, Georgia. Graduated Morehouse College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology. Later, at Boston University, King received a Ph.D. in systematic theology. 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.

Career As A Leader In 1955 he became involved in The Montgomery Bus Boycott. The Boycott was the start to his incredible career as the most famous leader of the Civil Rights movement. He went on to deliver numerous powerful speeches promoting peace and desegregation. During The March On Washington he delivered one of the most famous speeches of 20 th century titled, “I Have A Dream” Before he was assassinated in 1968, he won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Brown vs. Board of Education 1954 NAACP challenged the “separate but equal” ruling The Supreme Court agreed with NAACP argument that segregated public education violated the U.S. Constitution Effects: – Great impact since it touched so many Americans – Opposition to the ruling declared that the South would not be integrated (White Citizens Council)

Little Rock Nine President Eisenhower sent federal troops to Little Rock to protect the African American students and to enforce Brown vs. Board For the entire school year, federal troops stayed in Little Rock escorting the students to and from school /little-rock-9#little-rock-9

Effects of Little Rock Nine It demonstrated that the President would not tolerate open defiance of the law However, most southern states found ways to resist desegregation and it would take years before black and white children went to school together

Montgomery Bus Boycott Rosa Parks actions transformed the movement NAACP began preparing a legal challenge Rise of MLK: urged non- violence Boycott lasted a year In 1956 the Supreme Court ruled the Montgomery bus segregation law was unconstitutional

Effects of the Boycott and the Supreme Court Victory Revealed the power African Americans could have if they joined together King established the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) ◦Advocated nonviolent resistance to fight injustice

Freedom ride Test the federal government’s willingness to enforce that segregation on interstate buses was illegal (Boynton v. Virginia 1960) En route, they defied segregation codes In Alabama firebombed one bus and attacked the riders of the second bus

Effects of the Freedom Ride President Kennedy takes action Federal Transportation Commission issued an order mandating the desegregation of interstate transportation Civil rights activists achieved their goal and that intimidation would not defeat them

Sit-ins Four black students at North Carolina sat down in a white diner and were told that they would not be served (First) Sit ins became a new way to protest segregation of public facilities

Focus on Birmingham Letter from Birmingham jail by King Freedom marches: schoolchildren joined the demonstrations Many Americans were shocked by the news coverage of nonviolent protestors set upon by dogs and jets of water Kennedy approves civil rights bill

Letter From a Birmingham Jail King, wrote the letter after being arrested at a peaceful protest in Birmingham, Alabama.  The letter was in response to a letter sent to him by eight Alabama Clergymen called, “A Call For Unity.”  The men recognized that injustices were occurring in Birmingham but believed that the battles for freedom should be fought in the courtroom in not in the streets.  In the letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King justified civil disobedience by saying that without forceful action, true civil rights would never be achieved. Direct action is justified in the face of unjust laws.

Malcolm X Influenced by race riots Difficult childhood While in jail, converted to the Nation of Islam ◦Strict rules of behavior, no drugs or alcohol, and demanded a separation of the races

Malcolm X He became the Nation of Islam’s most prominent minister ◦However, he broke away and formed his own ◦Three members were later convicted of assassinating Malcolm After his pilgrimage to Mecca, Malcolm was more willing to consider limited acceptance of whites

“Black Power” Move away from nonviolence Stokley Carmichael’s definition: it meant African Americans should collectively use their economic and political muscle to gain equality ◦Institutional Racism ely-carmichael#stokely-carmichael

Black Panthers Symbol of young militant African Americans Protected urban neighborhoods from police abuse Created antipoverty programs Stokely was “honorary Prime Minister”

Letters From a Birmingham Jail (cont.) In the letter King justifies civil disobedience in the town of Birmingham.  “I cannot sit idly in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”  “There can be no gain saying the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of brutality is widely known. Negroes have experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts.”  “Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself.”  “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor, it must be demanded by the oppressed.  “Wait has almost always meant 'never.‘”

March on Washington To put pressure on Congress to pass the new civil rights bill Drew more than 200,000 MLK-”I have a dream” One of the largest political demonstrations A model for peaceful protest -luther-king-jr-leads-the-march-on- washington#martin-luther-king-jr- leads-the-march-on-washington

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The act banned segregation in public accommodations Gave the federal government the ability to desegregate schools Prosecute individuals who violated people’s civil rights Outlawed discrimination in employment Established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) rights-act-of-1964

The Push for Voting Rights Literacy tests Poll taxes Intimidation All kept blacks from voting

Voting Rights Act of 1965 Spurred by actions of protesters and the President, Congress passed the act It banned literacy tests and empower the federal gov to oversee voting registration By 1975, Congress extended to Hispanic voters Black participation jumped from 7% in 1964 to 70% in 1986

The Riots Frustration over discrimination and poverty Worst in Newark, New Jersey and Detroit, Michigan in the summer of 1967 Blacks using violence against police and white business owners in black neighborhoods

MLK’s final days Understood the anger and frustration of many urban African Americans Disagreed with the call for “black power” King’s assassination triggered riots in more than 100 cities (April 4, Assassinated Memphis, Tennessee) 2 months later Robert Kennedy was assassinated (June 6, 1968 Los Angeles, CA)

Significant Gains Eliminated legal or de jure segregation Knocked down barriers of voting and political participation for African Americans Poverty rates fell Increase in the number of African Americans high school graduates Appointment of Thurgood Marshall as the first African American Supreme Court Justice in 1967 Fair Housing Act

Controversial Issues Affirmative Action: increase African American representation in schools and the workforce Racism Social and Economic gap