Civil Rights Flashcards
When was Eisenhower in power
1953-61
When was the bus boycott
1st December 1955- 20th December 1956
What was the Montgomery NAACP
Set up in Montgomery in 1946 and focused on bus reform throughout the early 1950s
What was the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA)
Set up on 5.12.55 to support the bus boycott and demand political changes for black people
Define black nationalism
The belief that black people will never be truly equal in intrigated communities
Define militant
Somebody who favours violent methods for a political or social cause
Define Black Power
Movement emphasising racial pride and creation of black political and cultural institutions to control their own communities and promote black culture, values,pride history etc
Who were the founders of the Black Panthers
Huey Newton and Bobby Seale
What treatment did black Americans face
Across the USA, black Americans faced negative treatment such as racial segregation and discrimination. Jim Crow Laws enforced segregation in public parks, cinemas, restaurants, schools, universities and on public transport
What were the attitudes like in the ‘Deep South’
The Deep South is those states in the USA’s south-east with a history of slavery and who formed the Confederacy during the US Civil War. Many people in these states held very traditional and conservatives views. These states are Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas,Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee,Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina Virginia and Florida
Why do many laws vary between states
The US has a federal system of government. This means while the constitution gives federal government (President, House of Congress and the Supreme Court) some powers, it also gives states the right to pass many of their own laws
What was the Klu Klux Klan
A group who persecuted Jews, Catholics, communists, and anyone who wasn’t white, especially African Americans. They put burning crosses in front of houses, blew up homes and murdered people. Many policemen and judges in the South were members or sympathetic to the organisation
How many black Americans could vote in the South
Before the war, around 3% could vote, while in 1956 about 20% were registered to vote
Why were so few black Americans registered to vote
White people could stop black from voting using a variety of official had unofficial methods:
- Employers threatening to sack black employees
- White gangs gathered outside registration and voting places
- Black campaigns and the lawyers and activists who went to court to defend the right to vote frequency faced beating or murder
- Unfair voting registration tests, including literacy tests, that would be biased towards white people
What factors contributed to the growth of the civil rights movement in the 1950s
Factors included:
- Better education for black people, especially in the North, led to more black professionals
- Migration meant that many poor black people moved north and liberal whites moved south
- Southern towns grew, giving black people new job opportunities in industry
- The Cold War made the US government sensitive to international criticism
- In the Second War many white people worked with black people and black Americans saw integration abroad
- Television brought events into the living room- racism could not ignored across the USA
What nationwide civil rights organisation were there in the 1950s
- National Association for the Advancement of Coloured people (NAACP)
- Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
What groups campaigned for rights in the South
Local groups were often church-based. These often had more success in the South. Some local groups did not oppose segregation but wanted equal standards. These groups were important in helping develop tectic of on-violent direct action
How did the NAACP campaign for civil rights
Focussed on campaigning through the courts
What was Plessy v. Ferguson
CORE campaigns use non-violent direct action protests such a boycotts, picket and sit-ins of segregation places
How did church organisations campaign for civil rights
Black American churches were important centres of most black communities in the South. Black clergymen were often community leaders and organisers,and were involved in the civil rights movement because:
- Most were paid by the church so would not lose their jobs if they spoke out against white racism
- They were educated and good public speakers
- They were good negotiators
- They had their own network of contacts in the black community
- They could persuade and gain support
- They sometimes used non-violent direct action, bu stressed forgiving opponents
What opposition did the civil rights movement face in the South
They faced violent opposition from the KKK as well as from white Southern churches who use the bible to justify segregation
When and where was Emmett Till murdered
The 14 year old from Chicago was murdered in August 1955 in Mississippi
What happened to Till’s killers
The trial was reported across the country. The jury cleared the defendants after an hour. The defendants later sold their story (admitting the murder) to a magazine for $3,500
What was the impact of Till’s murder
Till’s mother, Mamie Bradley, insisted on an open casket with an open viewing of her son’s battered body in the funeral home. This led to huge publicity
Who were the Dixiecrats
The Democrats were the dominant political party of the South. Many politicians opposed integration. The most significant opponents were nicknamed ‘Dixiecrats’ after Southern Democrats who had formed their own breakaway party
What was the Brown v. Topeka case 1954
The NAACP took the case of Linda Brown to the Supreme Court as she could not go to the white school near her house. The Supreme Court ruled that the Plessy ruling should no longer apply so that ‘ separate but equal’ could no longer be used to justify segregated education
What was the impact of Brown
- The Brown case reversed Plessy, sparking off many more desegregation campaigns
- The Supreme Court set no timetable for desegregation, but in 1955 another Supreme Court case ruled that desegregation should be carried out by states ‘with all deliberate speed’. A vague statement that gave Southern states flexibility
- In the Deep South progress was slower. Governors of some states, such as Kansas and Mississippi did not accept desegregation
- A white backlash began as can be seen from the Southern Manifesto, a declaration signed by 11 Southern States that claimed desegregation was against the US constitution
What happened at Little Rock in 1957
Little Rock, Arkansas, was desegregating Central High School in 1957. Due to threats and discrimination only nine students were willing to go at the start of the school year. Governor Orval Faubus sent 250 state troopers to ‘keep the peace’ by stopping the black students from entering the first day of school. On the second day, Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Little Rock Nine students, was shouted at by a mob of white people as white people as she walked into school
What was the significance of Little Rock
Photographer of Eckford and the white mob were in the newspaper worldwide with the Little Rock Nine becoming famous. The federal government became embarrassed by the publicity. As a result:
- President Eisenhower, who did not initially agree with legally enforcing integration, sent in 1000 federal troops to force Kansas to obey the law
- Governor Fausbus’ state troops were put under federal control using a presidential order
- Eisenhower explained his actions on TV saying how states had to respect the law
- At the end of the school year, Governor Faubus closed every Little Rock school for the next school year in order to avoid integration
- Parents forced schools to re-open as integrated in September 1959
What were the WCC
The White Citizens Council (WCC), set up after the Brown ruling, grew rapidly in the late 1950s. They were campaigned against desegregation and, like the KKK, carried out threats and violent actions against black families and civil rights activists
How did civil rights organisations cope with opposition to desegregation in schools
The NAACP and CORE sen representatives to work with families if children involved in school desegregation. CORE produced a leaflet advising how students should behave during integration and warning them about the hostility they would face
Who was secretary of the Montgomery NAACP and leader of its Youth Council
Rosa Parks
Why did she become the figurehead of the bus boycott of 1955-56
Parks was a respectable, middle-aged, married women who was well regarded in the black community. There was nothing disreputable about her that opponents could use to make her opponents look bad
What action was taken due to Parks’ arrest
The WPC (Women’s Political Council) called for a one-day bus boycott on 5th December. 90% of black passengers boycotted the bus company
Who was Montgomery’s mayor
Mayor Gayle
What were the aims of the MIA
The Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) was set up on 5th December 1955. It aimed to support the bus boycott and campaign for improvements demanded by the WPC
Who was chosen as leader of the MIA
Martin Luther King
When did the Montgomery Bus Boycott take place
5th December 1955 to 20th December 1956
How did the authorities respond
Many white people in Montgomery opposed the boycott. WCC membership rose sharply and even Mayor Gayle joined. White officials harassed MIA officials and arrested them on minor charged such as speeding. On 22nd February 89 MIA members, including King, were arrested for disrupting lawful business. Their trial increased publicity although King was found guilty and made to pay a $500 fine.
What system was introduced to help the boycott
The MIA met with church groups and other organisations to set up car pools, which began on 12th December
Why was the boycott successful
Overall it was combination of organisation, commitment, publicity and the leadership of King and E.D Nixon (NAACP member helped organise the boycott and went on fundraising tours)
Why was the boycott important
For several reasons:
- Showed black people could organise mass resistance
- Attracted widespread support and publicity
- Made King a well known figure
- Showed how non-violent direct action could work
What happened after the boycott
While buses were desegregated the day after the boycott ended on 21st December 1956, there was still a white backlash. Several black churches were firebombed as were the homes of MIA leaders including King. Bus services had to be suspended for several weeks as shots were fired at black people. Bus stops and other facilities remained segregated for years after
How did the federal government respond to the boycott
President Eisenhower introduced the 1957 Civil Rights Act
