Civil Rights Flashcards
What is the nickname given to laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern USA?
Jim Crow Laws
Give two examples of places where Jim Crow laws would segregate black and white people.
Public parks / cinemas / restaurants / schools / universities / public transport
What was the name of the white supremacist organisation that terrorised black Americans?
Ku Klux Klan (KKK)
What was the name of the court case that ruled racial segregation was legal as long as provisions were ‘separate but equal? When?
Plessy v Ferguson (1896)
Give three examples of how the KKK terrorised black Americans in the South?
- Lynching (murder or mutilation - usually by hanging)
- Burning crosses near homes of people they wanted to frighten
- Large groups dressed in white, hooded robes marched through town centres as a show of power
What sort of poorly paid jobs did black Americans typically do in Southern states? (2)
- Sharecropping (farming)
- Domestic service (i.e. cleaners, nannies, cooks)
Give two examples of ways in which black Americans in northern states were discriminated against.
- Given poorer quality housing often in ghettos
- Had the worst-paid jobs and received lower wages for them– black workers often earned 50% less than white workers for doing the same job.
Give four examples of how Southern states stopped black Americans from voting
- Literacy tests
- Grandfather Clause (i.e. you could only vote if your grandfather had been able to do so. This prevented the majority of black Americans as their grandfathers had been slaves and therefore not able to vote)
- White employers threatened to sack black workers if they registered to vote
- Made black Americans pay poll tax before they could register which many could not afford
What was the name of the organisation that used the American legal system to challenge segregation?
NAACP
Give three examples of non-violent direct action
- Sit-ins
- Boycotts (refusal to use particular services until they desegregate)
- Peaceful marches
What was the name of an organisation that used non-violent direct action to try to end segregation?
CORE
What was the name of the court case the NAACP fought to end segregation in schools? When?
Brown v Topeka (1954)
What was the name of the lawyer who represented the black schoolgirl Linda Brown?
Thurgood Marshall
What was the outcome of the 1954 Brown v Topeka court case in relation to segregation?
Supreme Court ruled segregation in public education was no longer legal as separate schools could never truly be equal.
What was a key limitation of the Brown v Topeka ruling in relation to segregation?
It did not give schools a deadline for desegregation so many ignored the ruling.
Give two examples of groups that opposed the Brown v Topeka ruling.
- Ku Klux Klan
2. White Citizens Councils
What was the name of the document many Southern politicians signed promising to fight the Brown decision?
Southern Manifesto
What was the name of the school in Arkansas at the centre of the campaign to enforce the Brown v Topeka ruling to desegregate schools?
Little Rock High School
What was the name of the Arkansas State governor who opposed school desegregation?
Orval Faubus
Who tried to prevent the nine black schoolchildren from enrolling in the (previously) all-white school? (2)
- The Arkansas National Guard – ordered by Orval Faubus
2. A mob of white people gathered outside the school
How did President Eisenhower intervene with the backlash of Little Rock nine?
Eisenhower ordered the National Guard to protect the nine students until the end of the term.
How did Faubus delay the desegregation in Little Rock?
He closed all schools until the Supreme Court forced them to re-open in 1959.
When was Little Rock Nine?
1957
When were schools in Little Rock fully integrated?
1972 (18 years after Brown v Topeka ruled segregation was illegal).
What percentage of black children attended desegregated schools by 1964?
Only 3%
What impact did the Little Rock campaign have on moderate white opinion in America?
Many moderate white Americans were horrified at the images of the black school children being abused by the white mob.
Under Alabama’s segregation laws, in which section of the bus did black passengers have to sit?
Back of the bus, or middle section if no white passengers needed the seat.
What was the name of the woman arrested for refusing to give up her seat for a white passenger?
Rosa Parks
What was the name of the organisation set up to oversee the non-violent protest against Rosa Parks’ arrest?
Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA)
What form did the non-violent protest against the Montgomery bus company take?
Boycott of all buses
How did black people organise themselves to avoid using buses? (2)
- Carpool system
- Black taxi drivers reduced their fares
What percentage of Montgomery’s black citizens refused to use the buses?
85%
How much money did the Montgomery bus company lose as a result of the boycott?
$250,000
What was the name of the man whose career as a civil rights campaigner was launched during this protest?
Martin Luther King
What did the NAACP do to support the bus boycott?
NAACP fought a court case challenging the legality of segregation on public transport
How did the Supreme Court show its support for the desegregation of public transport in 1956?
It ruled that segregation on public transport was unconstitutional (illegal).
When was the Montgomery bus boycott?
5 Dec 1955 – 20 Dec 1956
How long did the bus boycott last?
Just over 1 year
Give three reasons the boycott was a success.
- The black population of Montgomery was well organized and committed
- The boycott gained positive national media coverage
- The boycott damaged the bus company financially
Give three reasons why Martin Luther King was an effective leader of the Civil Rights Movement.
- Inspirational and charismatic orator (speaker)
- Roots in the black church gave him credibility among the largely Christian Southern black community
- Emphasis on peaceful protest appealed to moderate white people
How did the 1957 Civil Rights Act aim to support black people in the South to vote?
Gave courts the power to prosecute any individuals or states that prevented black people from voting
What was the increase (percentage) of black voters as a result of the 1957 Civil Rights Act add?
3%
Why was the impact of the 1957 Civil Rights Act so limited
All-white juries were unlikely to convict corrupt local officials who opposed desegregation.
What was the name of the organization set up by Martin Luther King to promote non-violent direct action?
SCLC
Why were the criminal activities of the KKK rarely punished?
Members sometimes worked in law enforcement (i.e. police) or sat on juries.
What was the name of and what happened to the 14-year-old child who was murdered by the KKK after he wolf-whistled a white woman?
Emmett Till / He was beaten up and murdered by the relatives of the white woman
What did the boy’s mother do that increased media attention on the brutality of his murder?
Help open-casket funeral so everyone could see his beaten up face
What happened to the two men charged with murdering the 14-year-old boy?
Found not guilty by all-white jury.
Give one reason why the murder of Emmet Till is seen as the start of the Civil Rights movement
The horror of murder encouraged many people to join the movement
What were the White Citizens Councils set up to do?
Defend segregation in the courts
What was the membership of the White Citizens Councils in the mid-1950s?
250,000
What was the name given to white Southern Democrats who opposed desegregation?
Dixiecrats