Chapter 4, Section 4 “The Civil Rights Struggle”

Main Idea Even though the Constitution guaranteed rights to Americans, African Americans and other groups still did not have civil rights. African Americans organized a civil rights movement to gain equality.

I. Struggle for Rights (140-141) A. After the Civil War, African Americans routinely faced discrimination. B. Discrimination- unfair treatment based on prejudice against a certain group. Company E, 4th US Colored Infantry. Shown armed with rifles at Fort Lincoln.

C. After the Civil War, Southern States passed so-called “Jim Crow” laws requiring African-Americans and whites to be separated in most public places, incl. schools. The social separation of races was called Segregation. (Later, African Americans had to sit in the back of buses, separate sections in restaurants/theaters and use separate public restrooms/water fountains) African Americans fared much better in the North: 1. Could vote freely 2. Segregation was less noticeable ***It would take more than 100 years for African Americans to secure their Civil Rights***

D. Civil Rights- rights of full citizenship and equality under law. E. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) worked through the courts to challenge laws that denied African Americans rights. (founded 1909)

F. The National Urban League helped improve opportunities for African American in cities. G. Many groups and others built a civil rights movement. It made important gains and President Truman ordered an end to segregation in the armed forces.(1948)

“Discrimination and segregation in the Armed Forces…is a grave threat…to the internal stability of our nation. Segregation becomes all the more important at a time when the United States should be assuming moral leadership in the world.” –A. Philip Randolph, Civil Rights leader

H. Brown vs. Board of Education (1954)Topeka, Kansas, NAACP lawyers successfully argued that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. It violated the 14th amendment’s principal of equal protection under law.

I. Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955) Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man. Her action resulted in a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. One year later the S.C. rules that public bus segregation was unconstitutional. Parks and MLK gained national prominence

J. Dr. King was the main leader during civil rights movement. 1. Believed in non-violent protest 2. Organized marches, boycotts, & demonstrations 3. Inspired many with “I Have a Dream” (1963)

K. African Americans staged “sit-ins” at lunch counters that served only whites. White and African American “Freedom Riders” rode buses together to protest segregation. ***Such protests were met with violence by whites.***

L. Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination in public facilities, employment, education, and voter registration. Banned all discrimination!!! M. 24th Amendment outlawed poll taxes. The Voting Act of 1965 further protected access of minorities to the polls.

Landmark Civil Rights Acts 1. Brown v. Board (1954) 2. Civil Rights Act of 1957 (Congress sets up commission on civil rights and creates a division in the Justice Dept.) 3. Equal Pay Act of 1963 (Bans wage discrimination based on race, gender, religion, or national origin) 4. Civil Rights Act of 1957 (Strengthens 14th Amend. protections; bans discrimination in employment, voting, & public accommodations.)

5.Voting Rights Act of 1965 Empowers federal gov. to intervene in voter registration discrimination 6. Open Housing Act of 1968 Prevents people selling/renting homes from using certain forms of discrimination 7. Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 Provides that businesses receiving federal funds must have affirmative action programs to increase the number of female/minority workers

8. Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 Bans discrimination in employment, transportation, public accommodations, and telecommunications against persons with physical or mental disabilities.

In the 1970’s the federal gov. began: Affirmative Action- Programs intended to make up for past discrimination. It encouraged the hiring and promoting of minorities and women, and the admission of more minorities into universities. ***Critics complain that affirmative action programs gave preferential treatment to women and minorities, amounting to discrimination against men and whites.***

The struggle for equal rights continues. 75,000 workplace discrimination complaints each year. In addition, many Americans feel they are subject to racial profiling. Racial Profiling- being singled out because the way you look. Some become victims of hate crimes.

Time and again history has proven that race-based policies do not make us safer. In fact, not only do such practices waste limited resources, they make us less safe. Here are some examples: President McKinley's Assassination - In September of 1901 President McKinley was murdered by Leon Czolgosz (pronounced "Cholgosh"). George Foster, a secret service agent during McKinley's term in office, admitted to overlooking Czolgosz because he was focused on a "dark complexioned man". Ironically, it was the African-American former constable whose complexion aroused so much suspicion, Jim Parker, who saved President McKinley from a third bullet and apprehended Czolgosz. This act of heroism was widely credited with extending the President's life for several days. Japanese Internment - Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. lashed out against U.S. citizens and resident aliens of Japanese ancestry. Signed by President Roosevelt in February of 1942, Executive order 9066 allowed for the removal of Japanese and Americans of Japanese ancestry from Western coastal regions to guarded internment camps. Located across the U.S., these permanent detention camps lasted until 1946, imprisoning over 110,000 people. Throughout the entire course of the war, 10 people were convicted of spying for Japan. None of them were of Japanese or Asian descent. The Oklahoma City bombing - After bombing a federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995, the two white male assailants were able to flee while officers reportedly operated on the initial theory that 'Arab terrorists' had committed the attacks. Post-9/11 cases - The arrests of John Walker Lindh (a white, middle-class male) and Richard Reid (a British citizen of West Indian and European ancestry) confirm that effective law enforcement techniques must rely solely on behavior and not race or nationality in order to ensure security. Moreover, in 2003, reportedly as an act of civil disobedience, a white college student from Maryland smuggled box cutters, bleach, matches, and an item with the same consistency of plastic explosives onto six airplanes. Later, he said that he was able to pass through airport security multiple times because he did not "fit the profile".

Some Americans even become victims of hate crimes (based on race, color, national origin, gender, disability)

Mini Quiz!!! 1. The social separation of races….? 2. Helped improve the lives of African Americans in U.S. cities? 3. What is Affirmative Action? Is it controversial…Yes or No? 4. Being singled out because of the way you look? 5. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. believed in what type of protest?