AFRICAN AMERICANS Flashcards
1
Q
Ways federal govt (excluding Supreme Court) helped social rights
A
- 1865 13th amendment - slaves made free, personal liberty, allowed to move, not separated form family
- Executive order 8586 (Roosevelt November 1940) - prohibits discrimination of race, colour, creed for soldiers
- 1948 - executive order 9981 (truman) against segregation in military
- July 1964 - civil rights act (public accommodations and employment) discrimination in voting, public facilities, public education -> prevented local juries deciding on cases of discrimination
- September 1965 - executive order 11246 called for action to end underrepresentation of racial minorities in workplace -> discrimination barred in federal employment
- October 1965 - immigration act -> ended immigration quotas based on national origins, race, religion or colour
2
Q
Ways the Supreme Court helped social rights
A
- 1896 plessy v Ferguson - separate but equal principle, plessy challenging railway segregation in Louisiana
- Jim Crow - attempt to segregate residential areas - Supreme Court objects
- 1954 Brown v Topeka - improving education of black Americans, gradual improvement of standards of life (educations significant)
- 1960 - segregation on interstate buses is unconstitutional -> leads to freedom rides
- 1960 - Supreme Court declares that ban on parades, processions and public demonstrations to be unconstitutional in Birmingham Alabama (jim crow land)
- December 1964 - Supreme Court upheld accommodation aspect of civil rights act -> heart of Atlanta motel v usa
3
Q
Ways war/international context helped social rights
A
- 1941-1945 - over 1.15 million black Americans in army but fought in segregated units -> after 1945 army becomes desegregated
Executive order 8802 (June 1941) - prevent discrimination in defence industries
4
Q
Ways black Americans themselves helped social rights
A
- 1901 - booker t washington invited by Roosevelt to white house -> informal adviser to Roosevelt and Taft
- 1941 - Randolph threatening a mass march on Washington -> pressured Roosevelt to end discrimination in war industries (1963 march on Washington organised by Randolph)
- Organisation of black Americans - more skilful in asking for their demands
- Web du bois - organised protest march in New York
- Little Rock - emphasis on importance of educations and rights of black Americans, media used to draw attention to civil rights/treatment of black Americans in south
- Freedom rides - injunction against kkk (however not intended aim), bull Connor allowed kkk to attack for 15 mins without taking action
- March on Birmingham - led to presidential involvement
- March on Washington - led to CRA
- Montgomery bus boycott
5
Q
Ways white people/southern states helped social rights
A
- 1960s - cooperation with white leaders yielded progress in civil rights
6
Q
Ways federal govt hindered social rights
A
- 1865 13th amendment - despite freedom didn’t automatically gain rights like white people
- Executive orders 1940-1941 - didn’t have plan to increase racial equality/extend civil rights
- 1948 - executive order 9981 (truman) against segregation in military -> limited in practice, can be considered self serving as he didn’t try and desegregated education
- Truman praised by black American activists for his open support of civil rights - but no legislation to return to 1870s position
- Eisenhower against ending separate but equal principle - but gave federal support for desegregation of schools -> tokenistic actions but can’t change social attitudes
7
Q
Ways the Supreme Court hindered social rights
A
- 1882 - legislation against kkk unconstitutional
- 1896 - separation doesn’t imply inferior treatment, separate but equal (however facilities of black Americans were always of quality)
8
Q
Ways black Americans themselves hindered social rights
A
- 1963 - speech in Washington -> more radical activists (Malcolm x) were critical of fake show of unity, lack of emphasis on key issue of economic inequality, the obvious appeal to the white community and false sense of unity in referring to the American dream
- 1964 crm losing unity - mlk organisation excessively dependent on white handouts
9
Q
Ways white people/state govts hindered social rights
A
- December 1865 - Kkk founded in Tennessee
- 2000 deaths/injuries in Louisiana in run up to 1868 presidential election -> president grant prepared to suspend habeas corpus (only be detained by lawful arrest) and use federal troops to suppress violence
- Freedmen’s bureau members were targeted in 1860s - crisis rights workers killed
- Black Americans still suffered violence/segregation
- Southern states pass Jim Crow laws (discriminatory measures, segregation legalised)
- 1881 - Tennessee segregates travel, spreads to rest of south
- 1899 onwards - segregation in waiting rooms, trams, sports, hospitals, orphanages, prisons, funeral homes, cemeteries and education
- Jim Crow - segregation of residential areas possible to achieve in mainly black or white areas as they intimidate/refuse to sell, north also had segregated areas
- 1915 - kkk reborn after portrayed in movie as part of herioc struggle against northern domination and black control
- 1951 - attacks on homes of naacp members in Florida
- 1963 - assassination of Edgar Evers in Mississippi
- 1963 - 16th street baptists church in Birmingham bombed
- 3 civil rights workers in Mississippi murdered - failure of radical white opposition to appreciate change in tide of public opinion
- Brown v Topeka - WCC created, increase in opposition to civil rights
- Bull Connor (Birmingham police chief) - strongly opposed, hate/violence
- Rise in killings of Black Americans - 1890s every two days black American killed, regular way of life to 1950s
10
Q
Ways federal govt helped political rights
A
- Radical republicans - led by enthusiasts for civil rights (persuasive and influential advocates for change)
- Freedmen’s bureau - congress helps radical republicans establish the organisation, helps emancipated slaves
- Congressional reconstruction - high levels of voter registration and black Americans sat in assemblies -> this level of progress not seen for another 100 years
- 1946 - truman appoints committee on civil rights
- 1957 - civil rights act became law -> black Americans right to vote set in law, justice department has civil rights department, attorney general given powers to intervene when rights threatened
- Civil rights bill forced to forefront of national policy - violence (murder of medgar evans 1962), increasingly effect campaigns by civil rights organisations -> march on Washington (250000 people)
- January 1964 - 24th amendment right of citizens to vote shouldn’t be denied -> ended regulation in southern states that only people who paid the poll tax could vote (excluded many black Americans)
- July 1964 - civil rights act (public accommodations and employment) discrimination in voting, public facilities, public education -> prevented local juries deciding on cases of discrimination
- August 1965 - civil rights act (voting rights) -> act passed into law the 15th amendment, abolishing literacy test
11
Q
Ways Supreme Court helped political rights
A
- 1944 - ruled that unconstitutional to exclude black Americans from party primary voting (voting for presidential candidates by registered members of political parties)
- March 1965 - Supreme Court overturned Mississippi law discriminating against black American voter registration -> usa v Mississippi (decision backed by Johnson and federal action taken)
12
Q
Ways federal govt hindered political rights
A
- Johnson was sympathetic to white people - loophole allowed them to make progress, could act independently (they made the discriminatory black codes)
- 1877 - house of reps have democrat majority -> not in favour of civil rights
- Reconstruction - short lived/reversed quickly, presidents generally didn’t support civil rights
- 1957 - civil rights act became law -> but wasn’t actually comprehensive
- 1957 and 1960 civil rights acts didn’t add substantial numbers to black American voters
- Democrats political dominance was built on defence of segregation and supremacy -> barrier to strong presidents (Truman, Kennedy)
- Limited electoral support for civil rights - many black Americans couldn’t vote, issue not popular in north of America until 1960s
13
Q
Ways Supreme Court hindered political rights
A
- 1883 - Supreme Court rules 1875 civil rights act as unconstitutional -> private discrimination doesn’t fall under federal jurisdiction
- 1898 - Supreme Court rules discriminatory voter registration laws not unconstitutional -> no specific mention of race in voting qualifications (although obvious intention was to disenfranchise black americans)
14
Q
Ways black Americans themselves hindered political rights
A
- 1960 - only 28% southern black Americans of voting age were registered to vote
15
Q
Ways white people/state govts hindered political rights
A
- 1877 election - hayes (republican) makes deal with South Carolina and Louisiana reps -> vote for him and get to control own affairs (ignore reconstruction legislation)
- 1877 onwards - opposition to civil rights didn’t centre around illegal terrorism but from activity of legally constituted state govts
- Southern states introduce literacy tests, exclude black Americans - intentionally make it difficult to vote
- Jim Crow - south removes back American political representatives through intimidation
- Southern states allowed to establish qualifications preventing black Americans from being able to vote
- Grandfather clauses - if your family could vote before 1866 then you could vote -> black Americans excluded from this
- 1890 - Mississippi sets up voter registration tests (other states follow)
- 13000 black American voters in Louisiana in 1896 fell to 5000 in 1900
- Violence and intimidation discouraged black Americans who were able to register
- Southern states - still black American rights still infringed on and local juries didn’t enforce law
- 1950s and 60s - influence of southern democrat senators/representatives prevent passing legislation -> failed 1938, 1946, 1948, 1940
- Entrenched opposition of judicial system in south - police, councillors, courts and juries opposed to change
- Traces of kkk/similar organisations (tradition of violence/lynchings) - easy access to weapons, white juries unwilling to convict in matters of racial crime
16
Q
Ways federal govt helped economic rights
A
- 1933 Civilian conservation corps (ccc) - provide work for unemployed -> ‘no discrimination made on account of race, colour, creed’
- executive order (1955) - equal opportunity in federal employment
- Executive order 11578 (Nixon) - employers with federal contracts should draft affirmative action policies -> policy of not just trying to give equality but actively trying to help form positive action
- Act of 1972 - extends equal employment legislation to all federal, state and local govts
- Civil rights act 1991 (employment) - businesses burdened to show that discrimination in employment isn’t from racial discrimination but based on genuine requirements of companies
17
Q
Ways war/international context helped economic rights
A
- Stress on economic improvement anticipated post 1964 direction of civil rights movement - more economic opportunity, key to progress reducing poverty
18
Q
Ways black Americans themselves helped economic rights
A
- Web du bois recognised gains - 1913 black Americans owned 550000 homes, 937000 farms, 40000 businesses, 70% literacy rate, 40000 churches, 35000 teachers, 1.7m students in state funded schools
- 1916 - Garvey set up shipping company called black star line linking trade with Africans worldwide -> importance of economic development and set up negro factories corporation to promote manufacture/trade among Africans
19
Q
Ways federal govt hindered economic rights
A
- Fair labour standards act - didn’t cover agriculture/domestic service -> many black students excluded
- Affirmative action - opposition as it is unAmerican, unfair that some people will have more support, perceived as socialist
20
Q
Ways black Americans themselves hindered economic rights
A
- Summer of 1965 - high unemployment, poverty, poor schools/housing and unfair treatment for black Americans -> watts riot
21
Q
Way white people/state govts hindered economic rights
A
- 1860s sharecropping - although slaves are able to get work/make a living, it was quite similar to slavery and kept hierarchy in place
- Economic inequality - 1989 77% whites graduate high school v 63% black americans graduate, in college 21% whites graduate v 11% black Americans graduate
- Unemployment - 1988 5% points higher in black Americans than whites
- Managerial/professional - black Americans only occupied half of professional occupations of white Americans
- Income gap - although black american income doubled (1950 to 1989) the gap increased from $7000 (1950) to $12000 (1987) -> average wage white men $7.69, black men $6.26
