Kennedy African Americans In The North And South Flashcards
What does it mean by Kennedy’s courting of the black vote ?
- in 1961 Andrew Hatcher became the first black member of the White House press office
- Kennedy would never be accepted by democrats in the south due to his allegiance to abolish racial discrimination in federal aided housing, publicly intervening when MLK was convicted for probation violation after a sit in in Alabama , offering sympathy to his wife and Bobby making efforts to get him out of jail
How many black federal judges did king bring forward ?
5
How many suits did Bobby bring in justice department ?
57
What was the situation of civil rights towards the end of Eisenhower’s presidency and onset of JFK’s ?
-The successes of Brown , Montgomery bus boycott and Little Rock had not benefited maintained in the last years of Eisenhower’s presidency.
-The NAACP continued to bring cases to the Supreme Court and win them but movement seemed to be treading water.
What was the name of the organisation King had established? what were their motives ? Did they face opposition ?
- SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference)
-use black churches to promote the organisation of non violent protest. - yes they faced resistance from the police white citizens council the Klan and some black church leaders who feared white retaliation.
- in this climate MLK struggled to to make an impact and the next move had to come from elsewhere.
What were sit-ins? Why did they occur ?
-By 1960 the promise of desegregation had evaporated and Jim Crow laws were still active in the south (prevented AA from accessing education, transport and even restaurants on an equal basis.
- In the response to the lack of progress students began to take matters into their own hands , they began to protest using the weapons they had : their bodies and wallets.
- They would go to a segregated restaurant , sit in the whites only seat and asked to be served.
Why were students the most suitable for the sit ins.
- they were well suited due to their student status they lacked any element of financial commitment in terms of supporting a family that elder people possessed (made them unwilling to put themselves in danger to fight for their beliefs)
When did sit ins begin ?
- 1 February 1960 whist Eisenhower was still president.
After a month of the first sit in what was the figure of its replications ? Where was the most notable?
- 50,000 students in 30 venues across 7 states
- caused violent reactions from local white people and media attention.
- most organised example Nashville
How did the sit ins electrify the civil rights movement ?-
- such a large scale movement in a short period
- severed the alienation faced by the students who grew up in their teenage years believing that the Brown case was a plight for ethnic freedom.
- the tactic of using sit ins became well established under Kennedy years and were used in Albany, Birmingham and Selma as part of orchestrated campaigns.
What group did the sit ins give birth to ? Who organised them ?
-Student non-violent co-ordinating committee (SNCC)
- Ella Baker.
How did Kennedy secure the most political capital in regards to AA ?
- secured MLK’s release after he was sentenced for a month of hard labour .
- The kennedy’s clear eye on the black vote was evident from the start of their involvement with the movement.
When and what did CORE set out to do ?
- In the spring 1961 CORE sought to push the movement further by replicating the 1947 journey of reconciliation which had attempted to integrate interstate bus travel.
- the bus service was widely used for long haul journeys - changing buses required waiting rooms and restaurants.
What was the state of interstate bus travel at this point ?
- In the North bus travel was integrated yet in the South it wasn’t despite the Supreme Court precedents of Morgan v Virginia (1946) and Boynton v Virginia (1960).
What were the freedom rides ?
-13 rider (7 black and 6 white), led by CORE director James Farmer set out from Washington to New Orleans to test the success of the courts decision.
- if they reached New Orleans unscathed it would mean that progress was being made.
- if they faced hostility it would force a new president to confront issues of civil rights early on in term by exposing the hypocrisy of the South both to the national media and communists press in the USSR china EE
What happened during the freedom rides ?
- the ride prompted violence and intimidation particularly at Aniston.
- TV images of defiant but badly beaten riders, like Jim Zwerg and James Peck, were broadcasted globally and with particular glee in the Soviet Union.
Define term attorney general
- best summarised as the chief lawyer and chief law enforcement officer of the US government.
What was attorney general Robert Kennedy’s role during the freedom rides ?
- called for a cooling off period yet the rides continued unabated
- after having forced the Governor of Alabama John Patterson to protest the riders, and striking similar deals with Democrat Governors of Mississippi and Louisiana to let the initial ride through , he demanded that the Intersate Commerce Commission (ICC) enforce their own 1955 ruling on desegregation of interstate buses.
What occurred after the ICC deliberated ?
- 60 further rides with 300 riders (75%) of whom were male, made their way to Jackson, Mississippi , where everyone was arrested.
What was the date of the desegregation of the interstate travel facilities?
- on 1 November 1961
Summarise the effects of the freedom rides
- CORE campaign had been a huge success gaining international attention , leveraging grassroots oactivism and the power of the media through he provocation of white southern people.
- Kennedy administration had delivered on its promises to black voters, perhaps not with spectacular gesture but with consistent and reliable support of bobby Kennedy
What did SNCC pursue after the sit ins ? Where ? Who?
- the success of the sit-ins led to the SNCC to think bigger and three of three headed to Albany Georgia to challenge segregation there.
- Charles Sherrod , Cordell Reagon and Charles Jones diverted their focus from solely on restaurant sit ins and turned to libraries parks and the buses (utilising protests and boycotts).
What issues did they encounter ?
- they came in conflict with established civil rights groups and fell foul with the police chief , Laurie Pritchett.
How did Laurie Pritchett limit the movement ?
- he studied the movements tactics and found that inflicting violence led to media attention which would lead to presidential involvement he therefore laid out instructions.
- police the marches fairly
- contact jails in 40 mile radius to endure if arrests had to be made then jail space would be available and AA wouldn’t be crowded in single cells.
- treat king if and when he arrived with considerable care
What did Pritchett do in regards to king
- as a result of the SNCC’s frustration towards Pritchett tactics ,campaigners and the protesters stagnated and thus local groups invited king.
- he answered to the call of annoyance of the SNCC who felt that ling was sweeping in to take all the glory.
- king was arrested during a march and given the choice between $178 fine or jail time he followed through with the latter.
- Pritchett saw the potential for media attention so he swiftly and discreetly arranged for his fine to be paid and was released with little fuss.
