p1.1.1 nature & characteristics of discrimination (US)

Question 1

what are the jim crow laws?

Answer 1

the southern states implemented a series of legal restrictions which created segregation of facilities for black and white americans. in order to avoid contravening the 14th amendment, southern politicians claimed that these laws ensured that black people had equal rights, they were just separate

Question 2

what is disenfranchisement?

Answer 2

states used measures to restrict access to the vote for black americans, e.g. you can only vote if your grandfather could vote

Question 3

what is plessy vs ferguson?

Answer 3

1896: made ‘separate but equal’ segregation mandatory

Question 4

what were the 14th and 15th amendments?

Answer 4

14th (1868): ‘equal protection’ of the law for all citizens
15th (1870): granted black men the right to vote
the intent of these amendments, alongside the abolition of slavery, was to provide legal and political equality for black americans

Question 5

what is the civil rights act of 1866?

Answer 5

equal rights in contracts and employment, attempting to provide for economic equality

Question 6

what is peonage?

Answer 6

debt slavery: freemen were given loans by their owners and weren’t allowed to leave until they had paid it off

Question 7

what was the kkk?

Answer 7

the ku klux klan was a group of white supremacists from the south that wanted black people to remain subservient to whites. several southern states allowed whites to whip blacks for indiscipline and to send them back to their previous owners if they were thought to be ‘vagrants’. members of the kkk terrorised and killed many black people for trying to rent or buy land, go to school or get a better job

Question 8

what is lynching?

Answer 8

individual african americans were often hanged or burned for alleged crimes. a common accusation was sexual assault, or even the flirtation of a black man with a white woman

Question 9

what was the experience of african americans during ww2?

Answer 9

they equally served in the war, but were still discriminated against
there was segregation in the army canteen, the military hospital, the parade ground and even in church
tuskegee airmen: a black unit of the air force which ranked among the best pilots but still faced racism
all this caused people to question why america fought against racist regimes abroad, yet didn’t do anything about their own

Question 10

how were black people discriminated against in the north?

Answer 10

discrimination wasn’t as serious in the north, but it was still widespread
blacks soldiers returning from the war face hostility due to the housing crisis
black people usually voted freely, received fairer treatment in court, got paid better and were free to express their own views
most urban northern black people lived in ghettoes and had to take the lowest paid jobs

Question 11

how did black activism develop?

Answer 11

chicago 1930s: don’t buy where you can’t work’ boycotts
1941 a. randolph: planned a march on washington to pressurise the federal government into banning all job discrimination (only a threat, didn’t actually happen)
fair employments practices committee ensured black people were employed in the war industry (had little impact: ‘hate strikes’ where white workers walked out, refusing to work with black people)

Question 12

why was linda brown’s case chosen?

Answer 12

linda brown was a young black girl who had to travel a mile everyday to go to the segregated all-black school when there was a white school much closer to her house. her father, oliver brown, appealed this to the supreme court and argued that she should be able to attend the school closer to her home. her case was chosen by the NAACP because her family had a good reputation in topeka

Question 13

how did the NAACP approach brown vs board?

Answer 13

the NAACP selected oliver brown to headline the case. it’s chief lawyer, thurgood marshall, argued that ‘separate but equal’ in a child’s education had a detrimental effect on their intellect and health - having separate schools for black and white children greatly impacts future learning

Question 14

why was the decision of the court in brown vs board a ‘landmark’ ruling?

Answer 14

the court unanimously decided that the segregation of schools was wholly unconstitutional. this meant that the supreme court had gone against the plessy vs ferguson ruling from 1896. because of this ruling, the basis for segregation was removed

Question 15

what was earl warren’s role in the ruling of brown vs. board?

Answer 15

earl warren was a republican and was elected as chief justice in 1953. warren sought an unanimous ruling in the case, not just a majority - he wanted to send a strong message from the supreme court that segregation in schools was morally wrong and violated the 19th amendment. however, the supreme court did not give direction for the implementation of the ruling because warren and the other justices expected strong opposition

Question 16

what was outlined in brown vs board 2?

Answer 16

on 31 may 1955, the states were commanded to introduce educational desegregation ‘with all deliberate speed’

Question 17

who were the little rock 9?

Answer 17

9 black students, registered by the NAACP and selected for their academic success, were enrolled at the white school in little rock, central high school. segregationists requested that governor orval faubus prevent implementation of integrating, citing potential violence. governor faubus took action and ordered the arkansas national guard to central hs to prevent violence, not by ensuring the safety of the black students but by surrounding the school and preventing their entry

Question 18

how did president eisenhower respond to the little rock crisis?

Answer 18

on 14 september, eisenhower met faubus in washington and ordered him to not challenge the ruling of the supreme court. things escalated so much that a judge ruled that the national guard had to be replaced by the arkansas police - the black students still had to evacuated when they tried to enter the school though. eisenhower called the rioting ‘disgraceful’ and sent the 101st airborne of the us army to protect the students. this was significant because it was the first time a president had intervened with civil rights since lincoln

Question 19

what did governor faubus do in 1958?

Answer 19

in 1958, governor faubus closed all public schools and tried to lease them privately to organisations who would teach pupils in a segregated environment. members of the arkansas school board lodged a claim with the district court, hoping to postpone the process of desegregation for two and a half years. the district court granted the request but the supreme court immediately reversed it

Question 20

what were the consequences of little rock on the public’s view of the usa?

Answer 20

nationally, the events at little rock caused shock when tv news bulletins showed black children being spat on, sworn at and screamed at by aggressive white adults. this showed the usa in an unfavorable light, as well as the governing republican party. in 1958 mid term elections, the republicans lost on a huge scale

Question 21

what civil rights acts were enacted after little rock?

Answer 21

1957 civil rights act caused for a bipartisan civil rights commission and the establishing for a division in the justice department to examine civil rights abuses in fields such as voting
1960 civil rights act allowed judges to make special appointments of those who might help black people to get on the voting register and also introduced national penalties for bombing and actions by mobs