NAACP Flashcards
Why was the Scottsboro Trial such an important case for the NAACP?
- Hadn’t originally wanted to get involved. Nine African Americans accused of raping a white woman (Victoria Price), all white jury, eight sentenced to death (the ninth was 13yrs old). A mistrial occurs & the Communist Party gets involved saying there should be a retrial as the accused didn’t get a proper defence. Price revealed to be a prostitute, evidence against her, jury still finds the men guilty. All of them jailed, one sentenced to death but this was commuted by the governor. NAACP realise if they hadn’t intervened they would all have been executed, rethink who they represent. Prior to this they had focused on the middle classes. NAACP reach out more to working classes who they can mobilise, membership increases rapidly.
When and why was the NAACP founded?
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was founded in 1909 in reaction to a race riot in Illinois. A mixed organisation, many members also campaigned for other causes such as labour rights, social reform and the suffragette movement.
What magazine was produced by the NAACP?
“The Crisis: A Record of the Darker Races”, edited by W.E.B Du Bois (from Massachusetts). It encouraged blacks to celebrate their cultural heritage, bring a sense of cultural uplift which contrasts the pervasive sense of cultural inferiority.
During the early years of the NAACP what was the organisations focus?
Try to push through anti-lynching legislation and takes on multiple legal cases. During the 1930s the NAACP had a reputation as a somewhat elitist, middle class organisation as it was largely composed of black businessmen, academics, church ministers, doctors and lawyers.
In 1923 what case brought the NAACP to national attention?
Twelve African Americans were sentenced for agricultural riots and sentenced to death. NAACP commutes these sentences. Political establishments begin to recognise the organisation. It becomes a respected organisation for black legal defence.
How did the 1926 Dr. Ossian Sweet case impact the membership of the NAACP?
NAACP hired Clarence Darron (monkey trial defendant) onto the case during which they successfully prove the hypocrisy and double standards of Jim Crow. Other professions begin to join the NAACP e.g. barbers and undertakers - people who are embedded in the community, have largely all-black clientele and can spread the word. Business owners and highly qualified professionals could afford to join the organisation as there is less of a risk posed to their employment.
What focus did the NAACP shift to during the 1930s/40s?
Voter registration which was seen as a key to ending segregation. WW2 had brought attention to discrimination as Northerners who trained in the South began to experience segregation first hand.
How did the NAACP’s chief legal councillor Charles Hamilton Houston plan to legally challenge segregation?
Harder to overrule Plessy v. Ferguson, decides to make it a burden & push for equal facilities. Knows most local governments can’t afford to do it, would put a burden on the taxpayers which would make them start to question the law. Risky plan. Targets graduate schools especially law schools, middle class, wealthy, few blacks attend, more willing to accept change. Thurgood Marshall joined Houston to make this happen.
Why was Hederson v. United States such an important case for the NAACP and the Civil Rights Movement?
1950? Supreme Court agrees segregated train dining cars was unequal and rules it unconstitutional. Plessy v. Ferguson had ruled segregation in dining cars was constitutional. Supreme Court had overturned PART of its previous ruling. NAACP could now try to completely overturn Plessy v. Ferguson - leads to Brown v. Board of Education.
What year was Brown v. the Board of Education passed and how was it started?
- NAACP encouraged parents to bring cases forward of applying to white schools and being rejected, 20 students, class action suit. Linda Brown’s name was at the top of the list hence the name. Started in 1950, some cases prior to this, has to go through local, state and federal levels. Debated for two years. Frederick Vivison dies midway, replaced by Earl Warren. Warren says they need a unanimous decision as it will have a huge impact. 1954 ban segregation in public schools.
Why was the NAACP reluctant to challenge the constitutionality of segregation until the 1950s?
Post-WW2, Cold War (Brown decision announced in Eastern Europe before some parts of the U.S.), post-war economic boom, can afford integration etc.
Why did the Supreme Court rule in favour of desegregation?
Warren said it violated the 14th Amendment. Also no matter how high a quality an institution has, psychological evidence was presented that it caused blacks feelings of inferiority, therefore segregation can never mean equality.
What did the Brown decision mean for the NAACP?
Going against the ruling is now breaking the law. NAACP had to bring a court case against every institution that resists and supply evidence. Legal action no longer fundamental, direct action begins to take over.
How did Southern segregationists react to the Brown decision?
States purposely slowed down integration. Create obstacles, threaten to close all schools (unpopular with white communities), just allow a small number of blacks in and say they’re integrated. Mississippi didn’t fully integrate until 1969. States tried to cripple the NAACP, some publish their membership lists, targeted by white supremacists. 246 branches lost in the South, NAACP banned in Alabama.
What did the Brown decision mean for the Civil Rights Movement?
African Americans know the courts, law and government are now on their side - the government had to protect them. Legal action is needed less, direct action becomes instrumental during the next decade.
