the role of the US government in the development of civil rights Flashcards
who took office in 1865
president andrew johnson
why were state assemblies able to pass highly discriminatory black codes
- sympathetic president (andrew johnson)
- once southerners had sworn oath of loyality to union, they were able to elect state assemblies which could ratify 13th amendment
what did the black codes do
- restricted right of AA to compete against white americans for work
- gave states right to punish vagrants & unemployed former slaves
- gave states right to return vagrants & unemployed former slaves to forced labour
- allowed those who attacked AA to go unpunished, with state officials often participating
who were the radical republicans led by
- representative thaddeus stevens
- senator charles sumner
what did the radical republicans establish (with the help of congress)
freedman’s bureau (1865)
describe the freedman’s bureau
- care for formerly enslaved
- provided food, shelter, hospitals & education
- set up 2 universities
however, it’s 900 agents were subject to intimidation & voilence by hostile white southerners
what was established in dec 1865 to push through the 14th & 15th amendments
joint congressional committee of fifteen
–> also sanctioned military support for reconstruction measures in south (federal force wouldn’t be used this way again until 1950s)
what happened after 1877
southern states were allowed to deprive AA of their rights (not until 1960s anything radical done to help - 1964 & 1965 civil rights acts)
measures passed during reconstruction
- civil rights act 1866 = all persons born in USA had rights of citizens & full/equal benefit of all laws
- first reconstruction act 1867 = 11 confederate states divided into 5 military districts, new state constitutions made by elected delegates chosen by all males 21+
- fourteenth amendment 1868 = no state could deny any person full rights as an american citizen
- fifteenth ammendment 1870 = ensured ‘the rights of citizens… shall not be envied or abridged by any state on account of race’
- first enforcement act 1870 = banned discrimination based on ‘race, colour, or previous condition of servitude’
- second enforcement act 1871 = overturned state laws that prevented AA voting & provided for federal supervision of elections
- third enforcement act 1871 (klu klux klan act) = made it a federal offence for 2+ persons to conspire to deprive citizens of thier rights to equal protection of the laws
- civil rights act 1875
what was met with brutal opposition since the civil war ended
attempts to settle former slaves onto confiscated land & provide some education/awareness of rights of citizens
examples of brutality towards AA
memphis in may 1866, 46 AA killed in race riots & 35 died in new orleans
describe the effects of congressional reconstruction
- didn’t achieve equality
- remarkable number of AA sat in assemblies & took part in public life
- level of voter registration & political participation was not seen again after 1877 until 1970s
how did the role of federal institutions in promoting civil rights decline sharply after 1877
- congress didn’t defend changes it had made
- presidents didn’t generally fully support civil rights
- supreme court & state governments worked in opposite directions
what ended the period of congressional reconstruction in 1877
bargain between hayes (democrat) & representatives of south carolina/louisiana who would cast votes for him (he would give them right to control their own affairs)
= troops withdrawn & southern states able to ignore reconstruction legislation
= AA returned to position in 1865
what series of discriminatory measures did the southern states pass
jim crow laws = segregation became gradually legalised
examples of increasing legalised segregation
- tennessee segregated rail travel in 1881 which soon spread through south
- after 1899, laws segregated waiting rooms
- laws segregating streetcars in first decade of 20th century
what did segregation affect
transport, sports, hospitals, orphanages, prisons, funeral homes, cemeteries, education (etc.)
how were the south able to segregate politically
removed AA political representatives by intimidation & then measures which made it difficult for them to vote
measures to stop AA voting
- literacy tests
- ‘grandfather’ clauses = if a man’s family had voted before 1866 then they could vote (excluded AA)
- mississippi began process of vote registration tests in 1890 & other states followed
- if these didn’t work = voilence & intimidation
how many AA voters were there in louisiana in 1896 compared to 1900
1896 = 13,000
1900 = 5,000
what was a key element in ending the civil rights of AA
lack of action taken over voilence & lynching
statistic for frequency of AA killings
by 1890s, an AA was brutally killed every 2 days (on average)
contradiction between congress & state governments in helping/hindering AA civil rights
- congress had played major role in extending civil rights
- state governments played major role in restricting & weakened civil rights
how was the supreme court a barrier to civil rights
- united states v. harris (1883) = ruled civil rights act 1875 unconstitutional & held that private discrimination did not fall under federal jurisdiction
- williams v. mississippi (1898) = court declared discriminatory voter registration laws preventing AA voting weren’t unconstitutional (no specific mention of race)
- plessy v. ferguson (1896) = ruled separation did not imply inferior treatment of people of different race/colour (legalised segregation ‘separate but equal’)
how did the supreme court promote AA civil rights
- gradual change in legal rulings from 1890-1944 which marked change in attitudes
- smith v. allwright 1944 = led to rulings that it was unconstitutional for black voter to be excluded from primary party voting
- brown v. topeka board of education 1954 = ruled segregation was illegal (greatly encouraged political participation by AA & political organisation)
examples of greatly encouraged political participation by AA & political organisation (after brown v. topeka board of education 1954)
- boynton v. virginia (1960) = confirmed segregation on interstate bus transportation was unconstitutional, giving rise to freedom rides
- court maintained momentum of change in alexander v. holmes country (1969) = insisted more rapid desegregation of schools
- swann v. charlotte mecklenberg board of education (1971) = approved plans for enforced desegregation by busing children from white suburbs into inner-city areas with more AA children
- griggs v. duke power company (1971) = court protected AA from implicit discrimination by firms who insisted on high-school diploma qualifications for jobs which didn’t need them (many AA didn’t have these but had the skills, so were losing out on higher paid jobs to white workers)
–> high points of supreme court’s importance = gave legal backing to segregation (1896) & gave legal backing to integration (1954)
which elements of the post-1877 period remained in 1960
- AA still faced barriers whe registering to vote in many areas of the south
- still segregation
- considerable racial prejudice & outbreaks of voilence against AA
- southern congressmen stood against change (& southern state governments/legislatures)
- considerable gap between black & white people in terms of income, housing & opportunities
- facilities for AA were mostly inferior
- in many areas (north & south), there were distinct district which were either ‘white’ or ‘black’
when was the most progress made for AA civil rights
- years of reconstruction (until 1877)
- after 1963
what was the most radical of the administrations after reconstruction & under which president
- franklin d. roosevelt (1939-45)
- new deal of 1930s
examples of aid by roosevelt (1930s new deal) & limitations
eg.
- creation of civilian conservation corps (CCC) in 1933 = provided work for unemployed & had statement that ‘no discrimination should be made by account of race, colour or creed’
- many people benefitted from new deal legislation (eg. fair labour standards act)
- but it didn’t cover agricultural/domestic service = many AA excluded
impact of WW2 (1939-45) on rights of AA
- preparations for & onset of war brought change
- intense mobilisation of US manoiwer & economic resources = raised issues of equal treatment for AA workers/soldiers
- roosevelt passed executive order 8587 (nov 1940) which prohibited discrimination on basis of race, colour or creed
- device of he presidential order used in june 1941 = prevent discrimination in defence industries (executive order 8802)
limitation of legislation passed during/for WW2
- primary objective wasn’t to increase racial equality or extend civil rights
why was roosevelt under pressure to allow AA to contribute to war effort.
- under pressure to ensure supply of labour for defence
- influenced by threat of 100,000-strong ‘march on washington’ organised by AA labour organiser, philip randolph
how many AA were in the US armed forces 1941-45
1,154,720
how did racial segregation remain during WW2
- fought in segregated units
–> not until late 1945 (after war) that armed forces began to be desegregated
desegregation of armed forces
president truman (after pressure from AA organisations) signed executive order 9981 in 1948 ending segregation in the military
evidence for truman’s support from AA civil rights & limitations
- signed executive order 9981 in 1948 to end segregation in the military
- appointed committee on civil rights in 1946
–> but still no comprehensive civil rights legislation to return to position in early 1870s
limited civil rights progress for AA during eisenhower’s presidency (1952-60)
- executive order signed in 1955 which stated principle of equal opportunity in federal employment
- gave federal support for desegregation of schools
–> however, he was against ending ‘separate but equal’ principle
when did a civil rights act become a law
1957
what still happened in the south in 1950s
cases where AA rights were infringed & local juries didn’t enforce the law
how many southern AA of voting age were registered to vote in 1960
only 28%
why was there such limited progress until 1960s or AA civil rights
- issue of civil rights was peripheral compared to other issues facing USA (eg. depression, WW2, cold war) which distracted administrations
- influence of southern democratic senators & representatives presented barrier to passing civil rights legislation (eg. failed bills in 1938, 1946, 1948 & 1950)
- limited electoral support for civil rights as many AA couldn’t vote
- civil rights action would have meant huge federal government intervention in south, where racism was firmly established & supported by state/local governments
- in north, the influx of large numbers of AA from 1915 made racial hatred common & made issue of civil rights go beyond dealing with southern attitudes
what had changed by the 1960s
- continuing voilence & discrimination in south gave great opportunities to communist bloc in cold war to criticise USA & the propaganda of USSR showed USA as merely defending capitalist system
- better communications (eg. spread of television) brought racial voilence home to americans nationally
- murder of fourteen-year-old emmett till by 2 men in mississippi (1955) & acquittal of his killers by all-white jury after 1 hour deliberation, shocked the USA
- pictures of southern mobs abusing a black school girl at little rock in 1957 were bad for image of USA
- by 1960, AA were better organised & more skilful in making demands
benefits & limitations of kennedy administration
- sympathetic speeches
- appointment of more AA to positions of authority
- finally submitted civil rights bill to congress in june 1963
–> however, slow to make civil rights key element in his administration & decisive action was difficult due to influence of southern white bloc in congress
by 1963, civil rights had been forced to the forefront of national politics by 2 elements:
- ongoing voilence
- demonstrated by murder of civil rights leaders medgar evers in june 1962 - increasingly effective campaign by various civil rights organisations
- march on washington (28 august 1963) was the largest public demonstration seen in the capital with 250,000 people demanding civil rights & led to speech by martin luther king jr. (one of most effective speeches)
what made change possible in the 1960s
assassination of president kennedy (november 1963)
–> led to leadership of lyndon b. johnson where civil rights legislation became more extensive & effective than any time since reconstruction
measures passed under lyndon b. johnson 1964-5 (after assassination of kennedy)
- twenty-fourth ammendment (jan 1964) stated that right of citizens to vote shouldn’t be denied/abridged by failure to pay tax (eg. poll tax) = ended voting measures by many southern states
- civil rights act (july 1964) federal courts would hear cases involving discrimination in voting, public facilities & education = prevented local juries deciding on segregation cases
- supreme court upheld accommodation aspect of civil rights act (dec 1964) = heart of atlanta motel v. united states
- supreme court overturned mississippi law discriminating against AA voter registration (march 1965) = united states v. mississippi (backed by johnson & federal action taken)
- civil rights act (voting rights) (august 1965) = passed into law the 15th amendment
- executive order 11246 called for affirmative action to end under-representation of racial minorities in workplace (september 1965) = discrimination barred in all federal employment
- immigration act (october 1965) = ended immigration quotas based on national origin, race, religion or colour
attempts to resolve economic inequality
- president nixon’s executive order 11578 required all employers with federal contracts to draft affirmative action policies to actively promote AA
- act of 1972 extended equal employment legislation to all federal, state & local governments
- civil rights act of 1991 (employment) put burden on business to show any discrimination in employment didn’t stem from racial discrimination but based on genuine requirements of company
what led to race riots in summer of 1965
high unemployment, poverty, poor schools/housing & unfair treatment by police
–> worst riots in watts, LA where 34 people died
what caused the re-emergence of serious riots in LA in 1992 (triggered by events surrounding rodney king)
failure of federal governments to address underlying causes of racial tension
situation by early 1990s
- economic inequality remained (in 1989, 77% white people graduated from high school v. 63% AA)
- gap was bigger in college graduation (21% white people graduating v. 11% AA)
- in 1988, employment among AA was 5% higher than white people (higher than 1950s)
- AA occupied only half of managerial & professional occupations of white people
- AA family income doubled 1950-89 (to $16,800), but the gap between AA & white incomes increased far more ($7000 in 1950 to $12,000 in 1987)
- average hourly wage for AA men was $6.26 compared to $7.69 for white men
