Unit 1 - Civil Rights

Question 0

Social, economic and political position of African Americans in different parts of the USA (1945)

Answer 0

Jim Crow laws:
- segregated facilities such as schools, parks and transport. This meant that black people had to drink from separate water foundations, eat at separate restaurants and use separate toilets. On buses they were required to sit at the back of the bus and give up their seats to white passengers of no seats were free.
- facilities for the black were under funded and poor quality
- many black people accept this inequality and felt that they couldn’t challenge it. People who did challenge it faces arrest, lost their jobs and faces violence from the Kkk
- in the North, segregation laws were less common and black peoples could legally live, work and vote. However, they had poor houses were overlooked for jobs and were prevented from joining trade unions.
Voting:
- black people were prevented from voting by a range of methods such as expensive poll taxes, intimidation and literacy tests
Education:
- education followed the principle of ‘separate but equal’
- on average southern states spent less than half as much on educating black children than white

Question 1

Did the position of African Americans change or improve during the Second World War

Answer 1

In the years 1945-55 there were big changes in the position of African Americans… (Economic)
Because of the executive order of fair employment practices commission 1941 (this meant that industries in the war effort couldn’t discriminate)
- during the war many african Americans left the southern countryside to work in towns and cities in the south
- more than half a million migrated to the north to work in new factories (50% of African Americans lived in towns and cities)
- agriculture and factory work had the most demand
- North had higher pay than South for factory workers but not had prospect of working in higher skilled jobs
- those who migrated developed their own communities and cultural life. NAACP, churches, trade unions. (Social)
- over 1.2 millions black men joined the USA army -> segregated canteens, transport to battlefields and trained in different rural camps.
The attitudes of many white soldiers changed and fighting in the war boosted the self esteem of many black people. As a result, soldiers came back more determined to challenge racial injustice.
However…
- approx one million African Americans served in Second World War. they were motivated as they saw nazi racism be defeated in Europe.
- black soldiers returning from war were often treated with disrespect by white people - some even beaten for wearing uniforms or lynched
- many ex soldiers found it difficult to get a job, despite having served the country
- they did however benefit from the 1944 GI Bill of rights, which provided education grants for ex servicemen. Truman helped as he later expressed disgust to how they were being treated also (to secure the rights)
Politics…
- South: before the war less than 2 per cent of black population could vote. By 1945 approx 14 percent had been registered

Question 2

The influence of Truman in 1947

Answer 2

Background:
-in private Truman was known to be quite racist to non whites however as a president he tried to improve the status of African Americans
- Truman became president in 1945 and he made civil rights an issue. This is probably because he wanted more votes
- however Truman knew it would be difficult as many members of congress were opposed to civil rights legislation. They even used tactics like filibustering to block civil rights legislation such as, the incident of the attempt to introduce the anti lynching lawn
Actions:
- in 1946 Truman signed an executive order announcing the creation of a presidential commission that would investigate the ways in which the rights of African Americans were being violated. As a result, in 1947 ‘to secure these rights’ was released
- this document states that racism was harmful to the country and not in keeping with what america should stand for… Freedom and equality. The report called for anti lynching laws, fair employment rights, voting rights and the abolishment of police brutality. It also expressed that racism has caused a negative effect of the economy as two sets of facilities have to be made which is costly, also less disposable income for black Americans which affects sales.
- over a million copies of the report were printed and it was widely discussed
- in 1948 Truman expressed all these views to congress
Result:
- congress was opposed to many of the reforms so nothing happened
- Truman remained in office till 1953 but later in his presidency his attention went to foreign affairs, Korean War.
- however, Truman used executive Orders to force change:
- executive order 9980 - equal opportunities
- executive order 10308 - defence contracts of firms which practised discrimination
- executive order 9981 - racial equality in armed forces

Question 3

NAACP orgins and aims + CORE

Answer 3

• thurgood Marshall was a leading civil rights lawyer
• the NAACP was founded in 1909 by racial group activists. They aimed to challenge segregation in the courts and to secure legal equality for african Americans so that they couldn’t be treated different from white U.S. citizens. They did however allow white members aswell. Membership of the NAACP grew significantly during the Second World War, and the organisation had about 45000 members by 1945.
• they used the U.S. constitution to advance. For example, the tried to the government to honour the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments.

CORE:

• created in 1942.
• set up to oppose segregation
• they advocated direct action in contrast to the NAACP
  e. g in 1947, core members undertook the journey of reconciliation in which black and white members travelled together on interstate buses in the south to show that the supreme court’s ruling on Morgan v Virginia wasn’t being enforced. The NAACP denounced this as they said it would lead to violence. Two core black members were sentenced to thirty days in jail and two of the white members were sentenced to three months in jail f.

Question 4

Smith v Allwright - 1944

Answer 4

Lonnie smith wanted to vote in the democrats primary election in Texas, but was denied the charge to vote because he was black.
A primary election is where a political party’s members choose their candidate for an election. Primary elections were important in Texas because the Democratic Party was often the only party with a chance of winning, so the primary was the only meaningful election in the state.
Thurgood Marshall argues smith’s case and Supreme Court ruled that white only primary elections violated the fifteenth amendment

Question 5

Morgan v Virginia 1946

Answer 5

Irene Morgan refused to give up her seat to a white passenger while travelling on an interstate bus in Virginia. She was fined
Marshall argues her case and the Supreme Court declared that segregation on interstate buses broke the fourteenth amendment

Question 6

Sweatt v Painter 1950

Answer 6

Herman sweatt, a black student, was refused admission to the law school at the university of texas. The NAACP and Marshall room his case to the Supreme Court.
Before the case was heard a separate law school for african Americas was hurriedly built. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the new law school provided inferior education and poor facilities and that sweatt should be admitted to the university of Texas law schoolZ

Question 7

De Jure

Answer 7

Legal change

Question 8

De facto

Answer 8

Real change

Question 9

Brown v Board of Education of Topeka

Answer 9

Oliver brown lives in Topeka, a town where more facilities, including schools, were segregated. He lives just a few blocks from an all-white school which refused to admit his 7 year old daughter Linda. As a results Linda has to travel across town on her own, crossing railways and busy streets to go to school.
Marshall and the NAACP decided to take the Browns case to the Supreme Court

Result:

• in May 1954 the Supreme Court made a judgment that segregated schools violated the fourteenth amendment. The court rules that all children Shiism have access to their local school, regardless of their colour. The court rejected the ‘separate but equal’ principle.
• earl warren played a key role in convincing the other Supreme Court members to agree
• the court rules that black schools were not equal to white schools, offering lower standards of education, which ensured that they would go on to be low skilled and have poorly paid jobs

However..
- de Jure change as many states simply refused to accept the ruling and progress was slow. Also, white parents wanted schools segregated and resisted the ruling. The court also didn’t set any timescale to ensure that it was being obeyed.

Question 10

Opposition to brown v board of education

Answer 10

The white citizens’ council:

• a white supremist organisation that attracted membership among the leading members of white communities. The council organised a propaganda campaign in the south against the integration of education and pressures employers to sack civil rights activists. Formed in 1054, they had over 250,000 members
• the southern manifesto, written in 1956, rejected the supreme court’s ruling in brown c board of education and called for lawful opposition to desegregation. It was signed by 101 southern congress men
• by the end of 1956 six southern states had blocked any attempt of desegregated schoolsZ
• the 1950s saw a rise in members of the Kkk. They used terrorism and violence to attack civil rights campaigners.
• > murder of emmett till, 14, on 1955 who was beaten, shot and abducted for allegedly flirting with a white woman. This sparked media attention and people realised civil rights was worth fighting for. His murderers not convicted

Eisenhower:
President from 1953 to 1961. He believed that desegregation would come with time and didn’t want to use federal power to force desegregation. He also regretted appointing earl warren.

Question 11

Background of Martin Luther King

Answer 11

• he grew up in a segregated society and went to black schools
• he came from a middle class family
• son of a baptist Minster and NAACP activist.

Aims:

• he was heavily influenced by his Christian faith and Gandhi. He had the ideology of love and forgiveness which lead him to wanting peaceful solutions to the problems in society. He didn’t want to use violence and hate.
• he did however recognise the importance of direct action through the Greensboro sit ins and bus boycott

Criticism:
- civil rights groups such as the SNCC thought he was too moderate and too willing to work with White prople. The more moderate NAACP Felt that king was too radical and endangered the civil rights movement.
E.g…
- king using children in Birmingham campaign was seen as too confrontational
- in 1967 when he spoke out on the Vietnamese war this was seen as unpopular
- some claimed that he was arrogant and self promoting

Question 12

Montgomery bus boycott (1955-56)

Answer 12

• buses throughout the South were segregated. Normally, this meant that the front rows of the bus were reserved for white people whilst black people were forced to sit at the back
• NAACP turned to rosa parks, a long standing member, in order to challenge it
• parks refused to leave her seat and allow a white man to take her place. She was arrested and fined $14
• local buses were boycotted by most black people until desegregation were abolished. As a result 65% of bus revenue was lost. On the 21st of December the boycott desegregated

Result:
The boycott showed that black people could work together and achieve significant results
The highlighted the economic power of the Africans Americans
King emerged as a leading figure in the civil rights struggle

Question 13

Greensboro sits ins 1960

Answer 13

• students organised the site in. The first one was on the 1st of February 1960 when 4 students sat down at white only seats and ordered coffee. when they weren’t served and asked to leave, they refused and stayed seated till the shore closed. More students joined and the protest was copied throughout the South. Roughly 70,009 students participated in the sit ins across the South
• in July 1869 Woolworth desegregated their lunch counters and within a year, over a hundred cities in the south had taken steps to desecrate their facilities.

Result:
The civil rights movement gained momentum. They showed that black people could work together
A new phase in peaceful protests
The students acted independent on both im the NAACP and kings sclc so some black people criticised him
Showed that non violent direct action could achieve quick and widespread change

Question 14

Freedom rides 1961

Answer 14

ORGANISED BY CORE - they had achieved little since the journey of reconciliation in 1947 and were inspired so..
Freedom rides attempted to end segregation in interstate buses and other forms of travel
- in 1960 the supreme court ruled that segregation of interstate bus terminals was unconstitutional , so in 1961 core and sncc activists went on freedom rides to prove that it was de Jure not de facto change
- black people say on white only seats on the buses and attempted to use white only restaurants and facilities at bus terminals
As a result…
Buses were firebombed, it’s tyres slit and the rides were beaten. Bull Connor allowed the kk to attack the bus occupants
- the Kennedy administration ordered the bus companies to comply with Supreme Court rulings on the desecration of buses and bus terminals. The bus companies agreed and the freedom rides ended in September 1961

Effects
A triumph for direct action
Core faints respect and sncc participants
It was clear that Kennedy would be more supportive than Eisenhower

Question 15

Albany Movement 1961-62

Answer 15

The SNCC members organised sit ins in segregated facilities in Albany that were still segregated despite supreme court’s ruling (boynton v Virginia)
boycotts were also used to put pressure of the city’s authorities, but they refused to compromise
King went to Albany and became heavily involved in the protests there. He ended up leading them which led to division as MLK realised that his tactics weren’t successful

Result
After a year of protests, the Albany movement had largely ended in failure. The interstate buses facilities were desegregated, but instead of integrating its facilities the city sold off its swimming pool and closed all its parks. Albany’s city officials also refused to desegregate its schools

Effect
Many civil rights activists questions MLK’s leadership
SNCC became increasing disillusioned with king’s methods of peaceful protest, and began to consider more violent tactics
He was critiqued for not uniting the SNCC and sclc to ensure they worked together effectively
The NAACP wanted no part in the Albany movement as they saw it as confrontational, they didn’t like the sclc and sncc’s tactics

• Laurie Pritchett studied tactics of blacks so when they went it would flop. She treated them w respect and this meant no media attention

Question 16

Birmingham campaign 1963

Answer 16

Following the failure of the Albany campaign, MLK knew he needed a comeback. King hoped that a new campaign would provoke bull Connor and the ensuing of violence would lead to the desegregation of the city.
Birmingham was one of the worst examples of segregation in the southern states. Only 10% were registered to vote.
Aims:
To focus on the desegregation of the city’s major shopping areas, administrative buildings, schools and public parks: also, an end to facial segregation in employment.
Effect:
Civil rights protestors were released from jail without charge
Large department stores were desegregated
Racial discrimination in employment was to be ended
King became recognised nationally and internationally as a leader of the civil rights movement
It pushed Kennedy to propose a civil rights bill to congress

Question 17

The March of Washington 1963

Answer 17

The March was designed to put pressure on the president and congress to pass a civil rights bill
The March presented the civil rights movement to be a United front. The March also solidified support for new civil rights legislation which would give the government the power to force southern states to desegregate
On the 28th of August 1963 around 250000 people, including whites 20%listened to speeches by civil rights leaders. I have a dream

Question 18

Freedom summer 1964

Answer 18

The SNCC organised it to try and increase voter registration
In Mississippi less than 7% of black people were eligible to vote. Approximately 1000 volunteers from the north came to the state to run freedom schools, with classes on politics and health education, and to take black people to voter registration offices/
Most of the White people were hostile towards it. Volunteers were attached and their homes were bombed. Some even killed by the kkk 2 white 1 black
Despite their actions, it daily to register many black voters due to the opposition but the police and the klan

Question 19

Chicago campaign 1966

Answer 19

King chose Chicago to highlight problems in the north because the city had a large, oppressed black community
Chicago had a mayor, Richard Daley, who was unwilling to take positive action to ease racial discrimination in areas such as housing
MLK organised marches in white neighbourhoods to get a reaction
King’s marches forced mayor Daley to negotiate but he never carried it out and made further marches illegal
King’s campaign failed because it was unfocused
Northerners were more interested in the black power movement

Question 20

Selma 1965

Answer 20

King chose Selma because less than 2% of the town’s black people were registered to vote
Kings sclc and SNCC joined forces to demand reforms in Selma. They believed that sheriff Jim Clark would react violently to any protest in the town and would therefore create the publicity needed to ensure that a voting rights act was passed by congress
Jim clark’s police responded with brutality and he personally attacked a black woman/
However it didn’t not generate as much media attention as they had hoped

Question 21

Little rock campaign 1957

Answer 21

Since the brown v board of education case most southern states had refused to desegregate their schools. The NAACP decided to act in the little rock
Due to the lawsuit, 9 black students were allowed to enrol at a high school in little rock. The NAACP prepared them for the violence and intimidation they might face
A day before the school opened the governor of Arkansas stats ruined the local national guard outside the school to prevent the black students from entering
Faubus’s actions created a crisis as Eisenhower had to intervene to enforce he law. He ordered the guards to withdraw and sent soldiers to protect the students

Effect:
Proved that desegregation was as a long way off as Eisenhower never spoke out locally about the judgement and was unwilling to intervene in the little rock.
Eisenhower took no action to promote school desegregation after the little rock incident. By 1964, less than 2% of black children in the south attended desegregated schools.

Question 22

The forces opposed to civil rights and how they expressed themselves

Answer 22

Federal:
Objectives were not opposed but methods were
Eisenhower (53-61) believed campaigns did more harm than good, only causing resentment amongst white people. He believed patience would bring change.
Kennedy (61-63) did not agree with the violent methods. He was horrified by the violence in the freedom rides. However he worked with black people until the Vietnamese war.
Congress:
Staged filibuster by Thurmond to kill the 1957 bill
- fbi: cointelpro set up to investigate racial groups
Local politicians:
Did anything to resist change. Faubus eg used a combination of violence, propaganda and legal measures to stop the integration of little rock central high school
Local politicians in the north were also opposed especially Daley who tried to oppose Chicago campaign on 1966
Local police:
We’re one of the main obstacles to racial equality in the 1950s and 1960s
Bull Connor authorities use of water cannons as a weapon against protestors. Poolside also used tear gas and batons in Memphis 1968. This attracted media attention which in effect was good for the civil rights movement

Question 23

The aims, methods and effectiveness of the civil rights movement (mainly peaceful methods)

Answer 23

Education: 
Achieved: 
- sweatt v painter 
- brown v board of education
- brown 2 and cooper v Aaron - attempted to speed up desegregation
- Johnson higher education act
Limitations:
Despite all of these legal victories progress towards desegregation was slow. In 1957, only two years after brown 2, only 750 out of 6300 school districts in the south had been desegregated. Consequently, 97% of black students remained in segregated schools.

Transport 
Achieved:
- Morgan v Virginia 
- freedom rides 
- Montgomery bus boycott 
Limitations: 
No de factor change across the south. This is because the federal government needed power to enforce it. 

Public places
Achieved:
- Greensboro sit ins 1960: 161 restaurants and canteens desegregated
Limitations:
Local authorities often room measures to avoids rather than enforce desegregation. For exmaple, local authorities often took measures to avoid rather than enforce desegregation

Voting rights
Achieved: de Jure
Limitations: civil rights act of 1957 and 60 were ineffective in guaranteeing black voting rights. Consequently: as late as 1963, only 800,000 of south’s 20 million black citizens were registered to vote

Employment and income
Achieved: levels of employment and income of black Americans had seen a definite improvement during the 1960s but full equality with white Americans was not achieved.
Fair employment practices for government jobs

Question 24

Civil rights act of 1957

Answer 24

Eisenhower:
The act focused on the rights of African Americans
The act proposed the establishment of a commission on civil rights - a committee designed to monitor the voting rights of america’s black citizens
Limitations: not as effective because voters would face small fines of 1000 dollars so did not act as a deterrent.

Question 25

Civil rights act of 1960

Answer 25

This act narrowly extended the powers of the commission on civil rights by requiring local authorities to keep records of voter registration. This allowed the commission to monitor black voter registration more accurately. By 1960, Eisenhower’s two acts increased the number of black voters by 3 per cent.

Question 26

Civil rights act of 1964

Answer 26

Johnson: This outlawed the segregation of any facility or public places it gave the commission on civil rights the power to enforce desegregation and it made the fair employment practices commission permanent

Question 27

Civil rights act of 1965

Answer 27

The act explicitly outlasted all tests that prevented any african American citizen from voting. It also gave the federal government the power to oversee voting registration across America. Consequently, it ended the ability of local government s to deny black citizens their right to vote. Again, this was far more effective than previous legislation

Question 28

Elementary and secondary education act 1965 and higher education act 1965

Answer 28

These acts increased the finding given to education. Money was targeted to help the poorest dates, the poorest schools and the poorest students. Consequently the acts helped southern states, school with a high proportion of black students and individual black students at college or university

Question 29

Civil rights act of 1968 (fair housing act)

Answer 29

This outlaws discrimination of any form in sale or rental housing. It addressed the issue of ghettoisation.

However Impact was limited.

Question 30

Discrimination in the North

Answer 30

Background:
the black population in the north grew rapidly
- throughout most of the 20th century, conditions for african Americans were better in the north than in the south, because there was less segregation. Jobs were better paid and there was freedom to vote. As a result, millions of black people migrated to the north.
- unlike in the south, where the black population was spread across each state, black people were concentrated in large cities and towns. The growth in the urban black population led to the creation of the ghettos.
Discrimination:
Although the it wasn’t as bad as the south, people still experienced prejudice and discrimination
V. Few black people in the north managed to get skilled jobs or managerial positions
Many black men trained to work in construction, they couldn’t get work because they needed to be members of the trade unions, and many unions refused them membership
- schools in the ghettos were underfunded
- rate of unemployment in the 1960s was twice of white Americans

Question 31

Splits in the civil rights movement

Answer 31

Reasons:

• the tactics that should be used to achieve civil rights: legal, violent or non violent direct action
• whether black and white peoples should work together in the same organisations
• whether black people should be integrated into american society.
• how far can de Jure change bring about de facto change

Result:
-Sncc and sclc joined due to fustration about the naacp’s legal challenges which they felt were too slow. They are both similar, having black and white members and advocating non violent protests and civil disobedience
- growing disillusionment with king’s non violent tactics. Sncc and core, which were heavily influenced by Malcolm x, became increasingly radical and militant as they promoted black nationalism and self defence as ways of achieving civil rights.
ULTIMATELY - the civil rights organisations split into three camps, moderates (NAACP), radicals such as sncc and core and the in between king’s sclc
- king reputation was damaged because he appeared as not a spokes person for black people as people were beginning to branch out
- the groups had difficulty organising campaigns due to clash of aims etc

Question 32

Malcolm x’s background

Answer 32

Malcolm little born in 1925 in a poor background. His father died when he was 6. Malcolm became heavily involved in petty crime and in 1946, he was imprisoned by burglary. In prison he joined the Nation of Islam. He was influenced by them, a small separatist organisation which was inspired by islam, but which has its own beliefs and practices.

Nation of Islam:
Led by Elijah Muhammad
A black supremacist group, believing their race was superior and that white people are ‘Devils’
Malcolm was made mister after being released from prison in 1952
Malcolm later left the NOI (1963)

Question 33

Malcolm v king. Differences in philosophy

Answer 33

Malcolm x’s upbringing meant that he could identify with poor african Americans in the north and understand their anger. Malcolm’s powerful rhetoric in black nationalism seemed to suggest a solution to the injustices that poor, angry african Americans faced, and it formed the basis of the black power movement

King wanted to end racial discrimination peacefully and to integrate white and black people. In contrast, Malcolm agreed with Elijah Muhammad’s view that the races should be kept separate. He also disliked king’s peaceful protests. He also believed that black people should control the economy of their own countries.
However, after malcolm left the left the NOI and went to Mecca in 1964, he realised that Islam embraces people of all races and didn’t discriminate. This changed his views

Question 34

The effect of the Vietnam war in widening the split in the civil rights movement

Answer 34

In 1965 president Johnson increased the U.S.’ commitment to Vietnam by deploying nearly 200,000 combat troops to fight communist forces in the region
Many black peoples opposed the vietnam war. Opponents argued that the Vietnamese were victims of white racism, and that the war had nothing to do with black people
Black people also resented the fact that while 13% of us personnel in Vietnamese were black people, they compromised about a quarter of military casualties in 1965
The opposition of Vietnam war by civil rights organisations seemed unpatriotic by the majority of Americans. This made Johnson less inclined to support civil rights

Result:
Vietnam war led to collapse of fragile coalition of civil rights organisations
SNCC and core strongly opposed the war and became increasingly radical and militant
King spoke out about it and was criticised by the naacp for harming the civil rights movement as It would harm johnson’s foreign policy and makes it less likely for him to support civil rights

Question 35

The roots of the black power movement

• influences
• divisions it creates
• background
• successes and failures

Answer 35

Background:
The black power movement began when SNCC and core developed a more radical strategy. They felt the improvements in the legal status of African-Americans achieved by 1965 weren’t enough and that there needed to be major changes in America’s economy and society.

black power became the slogan for those he wanted bigger changes at a quicker pace
SNCC and core underwent a change of leadership to reflect this new ideology. Floyd McKissick as head of core and stokely Carmichael as SNCC chairman. They adopted Malcolm’s x’s ideas on black nationalism, black separatism and self defence
In the March against fear 1966 Carmichael used the SNCC slogan black power in media coverage. It the became popular

Influences:
Malcolm X was the influence as his beliefs about black nationalism and self defence were contributed. Malcolm was influenced by NOI and they were influenced by marcus Garvey a black nationalist
There was also an emphasis on violence in the black power movement which was influenced by the philosopher fratz fanon he wrote about the struggle colonised people to overthrow the colonial masters

Devisions it created:
SNCC expelled its white members in 1966 as some members believed that black people should determine their own destiny and that the presence of senior white members in the SNCC led to the feeling of white supremacy
Carmichael’s expressing of beliefs about black paper and domination led to divisions between organisation
Moderate civil rights campaigners argued that true civil rights activists couldn’t support black power because it was opposed to integration and peaceful cooperation
White liberals were opposed to black power

Successes:
Black power lead to an increasing emphasis on the study of black history and culture. African-Americans began to embrace the African heritage and some even adopted African names others that sported Afro hairstyles to draw attention to their cultural identity

Black power increased black people’s self respect and pride. the terms negro and coloured fell out of fashion and due to the popularity of black power African-Americans referred to themselves as black
Black Power gave African Americans the right to control communities they live in - Washington, D.C. Blacks given more say in their affairs. Marion Barry 1965, head of SNCC later became mayor
The black panthers also helped black communities by organising survival programs to address the economic, medical and social problems facing poor African-Americans
Black actors and musicians had more recognisation in this period of African-Americans began to assert themselves
African-Americans on television and film were less likely to be betrayed as slow witted and subservient, instead being giving leading roles and the characters were often professional and intelligent

Failures:
After SNCC expelled its white members and proclaimed the slogan black power, it scared off any support it had from african Americans and white people. Critics labelled it a call for violence
King was worried by black power, which he called a slogan without a programme. He didn’t want black people to turn to hatred and violence. The head of the NAACP thought it was racism in another form, no better than the racism of white supremacists the result of this was that SNCC lose most of its funding and its ability to function as an effect civil rights organisation.
Sncc’s unrealistic aim of black separatism and its increasing support of violence caused many people to distance themselves from it. SNCC faded into insignificance and dissolved altogether in the 1970s

Question 36

The Black panthers

• background
• ten point programme
• success + Criticism

Answer 36

The black panther party for self defence was founded in 1966 Huey Newton and Bobby seale. it originated in California are rapidly spread across America
The Panthers where never a large organisation as they never reached 10,000 members but, their statements and actions earned them respect
The Panthers believe in self defence and the rights to carry guns.
The Panthers use strong abusive language. It gave them a tough image and made them seem very different from the traditional civil rights organisations like the NAACP

Ten point programme: 
The black panthers ideology was influenced by Malcolm X, who championed violent self defence. the Panthers believed in arming themselves to defend their communities against police violence and it opposed King's aim of peaceful protest and corporation with white politicians 
The idea of philosopher Karl Marx, equal society idea, was a key part of their ideology. They wanted a revolution of working class in american and an end to racial inequality 
Several points referred to the improving of the economic and social inequalities that african  Americans faced. For example, they wanted free health care, full employment, decent housing and educations
The panthers also wanted an end to police brutality and for african Americans in prison to be released. 

Programmes they organised:
Patrol of the pigs : where panthers patrolled the ghettos in order to deter police harassment
Survival programmes : these were very popular, such as the free breakfast programme which provided meals for thousands of children in the ghettos
Free health clinics : set up by the panthers to test out for sickle cell anaemia - a conditions that affect many african Americans. Also drug and alcohol awareness programmes
Liberation schools : they taught black history and the achievements of black people
Voter registration drives

Criticism:
The head of the FBI J Hoover, in 1969, states that the panthers were the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.
Roy Wilkins, head of NAACP, was opposed to the violence advocated by the panthers. They believed that it was african Americans who ultimately suffered from black militancy because it damage their communities
The panthers were often accused of sexism

They were also targeted from the government…
The fbi’s cointelpro, believed that the panthers were a dangerous group so they began to illegally disrupt their activities. They also tapped and buffed the offices and homes of the black panther part
The black panthers split internally, with one focus on survival programmes and another on violence

Successes:
The notoriety of the Panthers meant that People took notice of them and the ideology of black nationalism strongly appeal to many black people. for example, support for the Panthers among black soldiers in Vietnam was widespread
The Panthers helped many young black people to develop a sense of identity and the Panthers were regarded by some as the embodiment of black power
The Panthers ultimately rejected black nationalism, condemning it as black racism. they believe that they should lead a revolution of all races
The survival programs were successful and the free breakfast and free clinics programs helped thousands of people
They also have a major influence on radical elements of the Hispanic and Native American civil rights movements

Question 37

The protest culture associated with youth and the Vietnam war

Answer 37

Important changes took place in the U.S. after 1945…
From 1945 the U.S. Economist grew rapidly and many white Americans bf and very affluent
Highway building programmes in the 1950s led to the growth of suburbs, and by the 1960s most Americans owned their own homes. Many Americans had well paid jobs which enables hem to love comfortable lives surrounded by new possessions, such a televisions, washing machines and cars
President Kennedy and Johnson both developed policies to improve us society. Kennedy’s new frontier programme sought improvements in education and health care, while johnson’s Greg society programme provided billions of dollars for schools, housing and health care
After Second World War there was a bang boom in the U.S., which meant that by the 1960s, there was a large population of teenagers

The youth in American was active
The privilege of the economic position of many young Americans meant that they didn’t have to get a job straight after school, they could go to university. this gave them the ability to become involved in campaigns
- the 1969, students in Michigan formed the students for democratic society (ads) who wanted economic equality . They led high profile campaigns against the Vietnam war
* in March 1965 john escalated the U.S. Involvement in Vietnam, sending thousands of American men to fight the communists
* in April 1965 the ads led an anti war protest of around 20000 people in Washington, D.C.
* the ads were also involved with several other anti war protests including teach ins where teachers are students debated the war rather than having lessons
Students formed a strong opposition to the war - many feared being conscripted into the army to fight in Vietnam. SNCC and core opposed the war too
* The Vietnamese war led to the deaths of millions of people

A counterculture developed in America
- some young Americans rejected the conformity of the American society, which expected people to act in a certain way (get married, kids ect). These people formed the counterculture movement
- the counterculture movement included groups like hippies, anti war campaigners and feminists. They had different beliefs and aims, but they all challenged the social and cultural norms of 1960s america
Music and drugs were also a big part of it. Bob Dylan (singer) and jimi Hendrix using lsd

Question 38

Issues relating to ethnic minorities such as native Americans and Hispanic Americans

Answer 38

Hispanic:
Many Mexicans settles in America in the early 20th century. During the early 20th century many farmers in the south and west of the US relied on large-scale immigration from Mexico, which provided men and women to work as agricultural labourers. by 1930 around 1.5 million ethnic Mexican were living in the US.
Labour shortages in World War II increased the flow of unskilled immigrants. Mexican labourers worked long hours in the fields and were paid less than the American counterparts. however wages in America were better than they were in Mexico and immigration grew rapidly between 1945 and 1968
Mexican American found it hard to integrate into US society because they speak Spanish and had a different cultural identity to most Americans.

Hispanic Americans demanded better treatment
From the early 1950s Hispanic-Americans began to organise themselves to demand better working and living conditions, and to secure basic civil rights. In 1951 the American Council of Spanish-speaking people (ACSSP) were formed to combat discrimination in areas such as housing employment and education. After the brown v board of education ruling, the ACSSP and the NAACP occasionally worked together to desegregate schools
Cesar Chavez campaigned for the rights of farm workers who were poorly paid and had few labour rights. From 1952, he can to organise voter registration drives and campaigned against racial discrimination towards Hispanic Americans. He also fined the national farm workers association (NFWA) which later became United farm workers (UFW) to campaign for the improved rifts for farmers. They did this through prolonged strikes
The Mexican American political association (MAPA) was also formed in 1960

By 1960s …
The Hispanic organisations became more radical using similar tactics of the black panthers. This group were the brown berets. They wore army style uniform and monitored the police to make sure they didn’t harrass hispanic Americans. They also worked on community programs to improve housing, education, employment and health care
However the brown berets suffered from a lack of clear aims, police harassment and in fighting. They dissolved in 1972.
Also the young lords was made. Similar thing but also campaigned for women’s equality.

Native Americans:
In 1945 most of the Native American population of the US Lived on reservations. during the Second World War thousands of Native Americans left the reservations to work in factories and experience American life and culture for the first time. After the war many Native American continued to leave and move to new cities. However it was still a struggle to get well-paid jobs or get a good education for their children.
The national Congress of American Indians was formed in 1944 to fight for Native American rights. The NCAI followed the NAACPs tactics of challenging discrimination in the courts
The Indian claims commission was established by the government in 1946 in provided Native Americans with some compensation for the land they lost to the government. the commission awarded $800 million in compensation between 1946 and 1978.

President Eisenhower’s policy:
Termination was introduced to tackle poverty among Native Americans. the government pushed individual tribes take me to give up the legal existence so that Native Americans would be like any other US citizens.
the government offered to buy reservations and redistribute the money to the Native Americans. the government also helped Native Americans integrate into US society - a relocation program was offered which included financial incentives to encourage them to move to towns and cities.
however like african Americans, the Native Americans experienced discrimination and hardship in the cities. many native Americans struggled to adjust to urban life, and suffered due to unemployment and Alcoholism.
Many Native Americans felt that termination threatened their cultural identity, and so the NCAI campaigned against it. in 1970 President Richard Nixon ended the termination policy

1960s:
In 1961 the National Indian youth council (NIYC) was established. the National union youth council was more radical than the NCAI and following the example the Civil Rights movement, decided that direct action was more likely to be successful than the NCAI’s legal tactics. for example the NIYC organised fish-ins as a way of asserting their right to fish in certain rivers
In 1968 the American Indian movement (AIM) was founded. It adopted the same aggressive approach used by The black panthers and used the slogan red power inspired by the Panthers. AIM patrolled neighbourhoods wearing red jackets and Berets, and monitored police harassment of native Americans
In 1969 a group called the Indians of all trials (IAT) occupied the disused prison in California. they claimed the island belonged to Native Americans not the US government. the remaining protesters were removed in 1970 by US government.

In 1945 and 1968, native Americans made some progress in challenging racial discrimination. But many Native American still faced a great deal of poverty. however, despite the policy of termination, Native American still maintained their separate languages and cultural identities.

Question 39

Protest movement associated with women’s liberation

Answer 39

During the Second World War, millions of women worked in factories for the first time in their lives. In addition, women served in the armed forces
US propaganda highlighted the important of women’s contribution to the war effort
After 1945, many women lost their jobs as millions of ex servicemen returned to the workplace
Most women who wafted to continue working had limited job opportunities, and could often only find low paid work as shop assistants and secretaries.
However by 1956, 35% of adult women were in paid employment.
- the media in the 1950s showed women as mothers and housewives. Marriage was shown as the more important thing for women to achieve and as a result early marriage was very popular. However by the end of the 1950s, many women were unhappy with their lower status in society and their dull everyday routine.
- women were also discriminated against in the workplace. There women who worked for a living were paid less than male colleagues/ women were usually confined to professions such as secretarial work, nursing, waitressing and teaching . President Kennedy highlighted this in the commission on the status of women 1961 which stated that only 7% of doctors and 4% of lawyers were workmen. He also passed the equal pay act 1963, and 1964 civil rights act. Only de Jure tho

Betty Friedan led the campaign for equality. She published the influential book the feminine mystique it claimed that women were suffering because of the media’s perceptions.
In 1966 she set up the national organisation for women (NOW) which was termed an NAACP for women. Using the same techniques(legal). They campaigned against discrimination in employment and managed to press Johnson to sign the executive order 11375 in 1967. This made sexual discrimination illegal. Also they successfully appealed to the equal employment opportunity commission (Eric) which was formed in 1965, to stop airlines from sacking female cabin crew members when they are married or turn 32.

1960s
Loads of women began to identify as feminists and were engaged in the political issues of the era. Women were influential in demonstrations against the Vietnam war and in favour of african American civil rights
However women were often treated unequally in organisations such as the SNCC and the SDS which were often sexist. Female activists argued that they showed empathy for blacks and Vietnamese but not white american women
When SNCC expelled its white members in 1966, many of its former White female members joined either NOW or the more radical feminist organisations

Late 1960s
Radical feminists rejected what they saw as a male dominated society and he insitutiitions of society, such as marriage and family. They felt that women should lead their own society.
In 1967, feminists in New York former the New York radical women. In 1968, nyrw organised a demonstration against the miss america pageant in Atlantic City.
However, ingrained attitudes towards women, especially their role at home, were slow to change. Many women were uneasy about feminism and some opposed it.

Feminists made some progress by the end:
Men and women were treated more equally at work.
NOW campaigned for the legislation of abortion in the US, and in 1973, the Supreme Court ruled again state bans on abortion