1. The Struggle for Civil Rights

2. A Brief History of Civil Rights to the 1950s
1863: Lincoln issued Emancipation Proclamation, ending slavery in the South.
1865: 13th Amendment ended slavery throughout the U.S.
1866: 14th Amendment granted citizenship rights to “all persons born or naturalized in the U.S.”
1870: 15th Amendment stated people could NOT be denied the right to vote based on race.

3. Despite this constitutional progress, the Southern states responded with:
poll taxes
Literacy tests
grandfather clauses
Jim Crow laws segregation in the South
In 1896, the Supreme Court legalized “separate but equal” in Plessy v. Ferguson.

4. Although there were attempts at reform during the Progressive Era (the NAACP was formed in 1909), the South clung tightly to strictly defined classes and rules based on race until well into the 1950s.

5. WWII: A Turning Point
Many African Americans served with honor during WWII—the Marines enlisted African Americans for the first time and the Navy commissioned first African American officers during the war.
Despite their efforts, African Americans served in segregated units.
Having fought a war against oppression and in favor of human rights, Truman issued Executive Order 9981 in 1948—which ended segregation in the U.S. armed forces.
This would prove to be the beginning of a concerted effort by African Americans to finalize realize the equality that had been promised to them nearly 100 years before . . .

6. The Beginning of Change: Brown vs. Board of Education
In 1954, the Supreme Court, hearing
a claim from parents in Topeka
Kansas, declared that “segregated
educational facilities are
inherently unequal.”
Despite this ruling, the
South would cling
tightly to their
segregated class structure.

7. 1950s Racism and the Social Structure in the South: The Story of Emmett Till

8. Montgomery Bus Boycott—1955
desegregated Montgomery buses
Significance:
proved effectiveness of non-violence
pushed MLK to forefront

9. Southern Christian Leadership Conference—1957
Significance:
Most active civil rights group
promoted non-violent approach

10. Little Rock Nine—1957 Significance:
Significance:
proved that federal government was behind desegregation

11. Sit-In Movement—1960 Significance: national news coverage
widespread/white support
policies changed store by store

12. Freedom Riders Mobilized—1961
Significance:
Federal Interstate Commerce Commission issued rules to integrate all bus and train stations.

13. James MeredithU. of Mississippi—1962
Significance:
Federal gov’t (JFK) again steps in—sent U.S. Marshals to protect Meredith/enforce SC ruling that he be allowed to attend

14. Birmingham Campaign—1963 Significance:
proved importance of media coverage/success of non-violence
Birmingham began desegregation

15. How would you characterize (describe) the early Civil Rights Movement (1950—1963)? (What is important to know/understand so far?)

16. JFK’s Address on Civil Rights

17. March On Washington Significance:
brought more national attention to Civil Rights cause
led to Civil Rights Act 1964

18. Civil Rights Act 1964
Banned discrimination in employment and ALL public accommodations—gave federal government power to enforce desegregation EVERYWHERE

19. March on Selma—1965
Significance:
LBJ protected a second march

20. Voting Rights Act 1965 What was it?
Literacy tests, poll taxes, etc. were outlawed
gave federal government power to oversee local and national elections for fairness
Significance:
within 3 weeks, 27,000 African Americans had registered to vote in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana

21. Conclusions
1955—1965: Federal government took increasingly strong steps to ensure federal laws regarding CR were upheld
Early movement ended de jure segregation (legal), BUT de facto segregation (in practice) continued.
--Neighborhoods, bank loans, employment
By 1965, many African Americans were losing patience with the slow pace of real progress in their daily lives . . .