Changing Status of Minorities in the 1950's

Question 1

How many Native Americans served in war and worked in production?

Answer 1

25000 Native Americans served in war and 40000 worked in production.

Question 2

What did serving in the war mean for Native Americans

Answer 2

Many left reservations to live the same as other groups in cities.

Question 3

What was the Indian Claims Commission?

Answer 3

The Indian Claims Commission was established in 1944 to offer financial compensation for claims for lost land, but not to return to the land, and compensate for past exploitation.

Question 4

What did the House Concurrent Resolution, Number 108 of 1953 announce?

Answer 4

Termination policy for researvations

Question 5

What did the the House Concurrent Resolution, Number 108 termination policy entail?

Answer 5

The termination policy entailed breaking up reservations and encouraging Native Americans to move to urban areas to live like other citizens without consulting them.

Question 6

Where did Native American Researcation termination begin?

Answer 6

Termination began with the sale of valuable land belonging to tribes in Oregon and Wisconsin.

Question 7

What happened with the termination of Native American Researvations

Answer 7

Disaster from start. Many left reservations and drifted into unemployment and alcoholism then moved back. By 1960, only 13000 out of 400000 moved permanently and only 3% reservation land lost

Question 8

What was the Bracero programme and how many people entered the USA each year between 1950-54?

Answer 8

The Bracero programme was a program that allowed Mexican workers to enter the USA to work on farms. 200,000 people entered each year between 1950-54.

Question 9

Why were there plenty of farming jobs available during this time?

Answer 9

Farmers couldn’t meet demands as many saw fruit and vegetables as no longer luxury but essential to diet.

Question 10

How many Hispanic Americans immigrated legally and illegally during the 50s?

Answer 10

A huge wave of legal and illegal immigration brought in 219,000 Hispanic Americans during the 50s.

Question 11

What type of worker did employers prefer to work in their farms

Answer 11

Illegal immigrants as they didn?t have to meet minimum wage standards

Question 12

When did Truman set up the Civil Rights Committee?

Answer 12

Truman set up the Civil Rights Committee in September 1946.

Question 13

What was the purpose of the Civil Rights Committee?

Answer 13

The purpose of the Civil Rights Committee was to investigate racial abuse.

Question 14

What did the 1947 report ‘To Secure These Rights’ state?

Answer 14

The 1947 report ‘To Secure These Rights’ stated that the USA couldn’t claim to lead the free world whilst racial minorities were treated unequally.

Question 15

Who blocked every civil rights measure?

Answer 15

A coalition between 20 Southerner Democrats and 15 Republicans blocked every civil rights measure.

Question 16

When was Executive Order 9981 passed?

Answer 16

Executive Order 9981 was passed in 1948.

Question 17

What did Executive Order 9981 do?

Answer 17

Executive Order 9981 desegregated the armed forces entirely and guaranteed fair employment in civil service.

Question 18

What replaced the Fair Employment Practise Committee

Answer 18

The Fair Employment Board replaced FEPC but was underfunded.

Question 19

What did the Fair Employment Board

Answer 19

The Fair Employment Board desegregated gov-run shipyards, veterans? hospitals, and encouraged integration of schools.

Question 20

When was the NAACP founded and what is their mission?

Answer 20

The NAACP was founded in 1909 to promote racial equality and fight for racial justice.

Question 21

What is the NAACP

Answer 21

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Question 22

How was education unequal for Black Americans in the South?

Answer 22

Schools in the South spent 3x more on white schools than black-American schools and 100 times more on school transport. In 1946, black Americans in the South were illiterate. Black-American children had to walk miles to poorly resourced schools.

Question 23

What was Brown vs. Topeka and what was its outcome?

Answer 23

Brown vs. Topeka was a court case where Reverend Oliver Brown?s 7yr old daughter had to cross railroad tracks to get to a Black school. On May 17th, 1954, the court ruled that ?separate but equal? had no place.

Question 24

Was desegregation implemented quickly after Brown vs. Topeka?

Answer 24

No, desegregation was very slow to implement as it placed responsibilities on local authorities. Southern politicians saw it as a green light to not act.

Question 25

In what years did 723 school districts desegregate?

Answer 25

1956-57.

Question 26

How many black-American school children were involved in the desegregation of school districts from 56-57

Answer 26

300,000

Question 27

What was the extent of change in 1955 regarding attitudes towards desegregation?

Answer 27

Attitudes were hardening, with Southern school boards finding more reasons to oppose desegregation.

Question 28

What was the most common way that grants were given to schools in 1955?

Answer 28

Grants were most commonly given to private schools which were segregated and gave racially biased tests to ensure white children went to the best schools.

Question 29

How many lynchings took place in the 1950s, and how many of them occurred in 1955?

Answer 29

There were 11 lynchings in the 1950s, and 8 of them took place in 1955.

Question 30

What horrific event took place in 1955 involving a schoolboy?

Answer 30

The horrific murder of schoolboy Emmett Till took place in 1955.

Question 31

What happened at a school in Tennessee that prevented desegregation?

Answer 31

A mob of 2000 people prevented desegregation of a school in Tennessee, which was only restored after the National Guard arrived.

Question 32

What happened to the KKK in 1955

Answer 32

It grew to 20000 members