How and Why did Black Americans Fight for Civil Rights (1917-1955) Flashcards
Black RIghts 1917-1955
What was the 13th Amendment (and what day)
31/1/1865 - Abolished Slavery
What was the 14th Amendment (and what day)
9/7/1868 - Made all people born or naturalised in the USA official US citizens - this included past slaves
What was the 15th Amendment (and what day)
3/2/1870 - All US men (included newly-freed slaves) were to have the same voting rights
Why did Black people have to fight for their rights despite the 13th, 14th and 15th amendment
Despite the consitution giving them equal rights, they were not treated that way by the public
How were Black people discriminated in jobs
Last Hired, First Fired and were expected to fill only the lowest paid jobs
How were Black people discriminated in housing
They were expected to live in segregated areas which were the generally worst parts of an area
How did Woodrow Wilson discriminate against Black People
He segregated the White House and all government offices in 1913
How many anti-black race riots in 1919 which led to the deaths of hundreds of black people
25
Which parts of the USA were the most racist against Black People
Mostly the Deep South, but nowhere was completely safe
What were Black Schools like in the Deep South, and how successful were Black Students
They were often poor and badly funded, paying teachers little and providing few resources or students. Black students still did well and many beame doctors, lawyers and teachers, which went against the racist Southern beliefs that Black people weren’t intelligent
What laws were introduced across the late 19th and early 20th century which segregated every aspect of life
Jim Crow Laws
Name 5 examples of things that were segregated
- Housing
- Education
- Public Transport
- Public Toilets
- Water Fountains
Who introduced the Jim Crow Laws
State and Local Governments, NOT the Federal Government
Name four reasons Black voters had fallen from 1896-1917
- There was a literacy test to qualify to vote, but Black people got far harder passages to read
- In some states only homeowners became allowed to vote, of which many black people were not
- Some states held all white elections to select the candidates, leaving only racist candidates making black people not want to vote
- Many polling stations were surrounded by white people who waited to beat up any Black person attempting to vote
How many Black voters were there in Louisiana in:
1896:
1904:
1896: 130,334
1904: 1342
What is lynching
Hanging someone from a tree
How many white men and how many black men were lynched from 1915-1930
White Men: 65
Black Men: 579
Why were black people lynched
Literally no reason - some had committed crimes, some had been accused of committing a crime (usually made up), some were lynched without even being accused of anything
What one lynching in particular attracted a lot of shock and publicity, and what year
14 year old Emmett Till was lynched in Mississippi in 1955. He was from the less racist Chicago and didn’t know how racist the South was, so he asked a White Woman on a date and was lynched as a result
Who are the KKK and what years have they been active
1865-1872, 1915-1944, 1946-Today
They are a White Anglo Saxon Protestant (WASP) group, who commit acts of terror against anyone that has a different identity to them, including non-White people (especially Black), Gay people and people of any religion that isn’t Protestant
What state were the second KKK founded in 1915
Georgia (Deep South)
Estimated KKK numbers in 1925
3-8 million
Why did many people accept the KKK in their community
Many political figures, such as State Governors and Police Generals, were KKK members, and them as well as regular KKK members were too powerful and intimidating to argue with
What federal law made segegration legal and what year
Plessy vs Ferguson - 1896
Allowed for the existence of segregation if it was ‘separate but equal’
What did WIlson think of segregation, and what did Harding and Coolidge think of segregation
WIlson was a big supporter of segregation
Harding and Coolidge spoke in favour of civil rights and against segregation and lynching to influence opinion, but didn’t change laws regarding it
Why was the Government less interested in Civil Rights from 1929
The Great Depression took priority
What was ‘The Great Migration’ and what years did it occur
The movement of black people from the South to the North and East from 1917-1932