USA - Civil Rights

Question 1

What was the key outcome of Brown vs Topeka?

Answer 1

Supreme Court declared that all segregated schools were illegal. NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) also helped 4 other students.

Question 2

What was so significant about little rock 1957?

Answer 2

They were stopped by the State Governor, Orval Faubus, who had the school surrounded by state national guard troop but Eisenhower sent federal troops to escort and protect the students

Question 3

Who started the montgomery bus boycott?

Answer 3

Rosa Parks (in Alabama,Montgomery)

Question 4

How did black people travel when the boycott was happening?

Answer 4

Car pools set up by MIA (Montgomery Improvement Associtation) and church groups.

Question 5

Long term effects of Brown vs Topeka

Answer 5

• Black students faced hostility
• More awareness of civil rights
• Black teachers lost their jobs

Question 6

Short term effcts of Brown vs Topeka

Answer 6

• Plessy was reversed (Jim crow)
• Led to further legal victories
• By 1957, 723 school districts had desegregated

Question 7

When was Kingg’s house bombed?

Answer 7

30 January 1956

Question 8

Did the montgomery bus boycott succeed?

Answer 8

Yes, in In 1956 the Supreme Court said that segregation on buses was also illegal.

Question 9

Importance of the bus boycott

Answer 9

• Brought MlK into spotlight
• Where rules of Non-violent dircet action were first clearly laid out
• Showed importance of publicity in fight for civil rights

Question 10

Significance of Civil rights act 1957?

Answer 10

• set up a commission to prosecute anybody who tried to deny American citizens their rights.
• Eisenhower had been reluctant to act as he believed the real change came from changing the way people think

Question 11

What was the SCLC

Answer 11

set up in January 1957. MLK and Ralph Abernathly were leaders.

• All segregation to be rejected.
• Non-violent tactics
• Broad-based black and white membership.

Question 12

Significance of Emmet till murder.

Answer 12

Gruesome attack and disfugered body got a lot of media coverage and exposed racism and injustice that existed in southern states.

Question 13

What was the Greenboro sit-in?

Answer 13

Woolworth in Greensboro North Carolina 85 students demanded to be served at a whites-only counter. When they were refused they organised a sit-in.

Question 14

Effect of sit-ins?

Answer 14

• 70,000 took part in sit-ins across the South and 3,600 went to jail.
• When whites turned violence there was widespread television coverage and support for Civil Rights.

Question 15

Who organised the student protests?

Answer 15

Student Non-violent Co-ordinating Committee (SNCC)

Question 16

Who were the freedom riders? And what was their cause?

Answer 16

The Freedom Riders were CORE campaigners rode buses to highlight that desegregation had not happened

Question 17

What happened to the freedom riders?

Answer 17

In 1961 the KKK firebombed a bus in Aniston, and buses were also attacked in Montgomery with little police protection, some riders arrested

Question 18

What effect did the freedom riders have?

Answer 18

Federal government said that they would send federal troops if states did not desegregate bus facilities

Question 19

What happened in Birmingham, Alabama 1963?

Answer 19

SNCC, SCLC & ACMHR (Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights) began Campaign ‘C’ (for confrontation)

Question 20

Why was Birmingham the main target?

Answer 20

They targeted Birmingham, Alabama because it was completely segregated and it was nicknamed ‘Bombingham’ due to the regular bombing of black churches, homes and businesses..

Question 21

Why was Eugene Connor (police chief) another reason why Birmingham was a main target?

Answer 21

It was believed that he could be easily provoked into using violence against peaceful protesters. Arrests, water cannon, dogs and baton charges were used to disperse the marchers all shown on television and many were sickened by the violence.

Question 22

When was the march on Washington 1963?

Answer 22

Immediately after events in Birmingham, 250,000 people (including 40,000 whites) took part Despite fears, the march was peaceful

Question 23

Significance of the march on Washington 1963?

Answer 23

Size, TV broadcast around the world, King’s emotive speech, black and white crowd with famous people involved too (e.g. Bob Dylan)

Question 24

What was freedom summer?

Answer 24

1000 volunteers went to Mississippi to work with local campaigners. Many white college students involved: Freedom Schools set up, helped many to pass voter registration tests.

Question 25

What was the reaction to Freedom summer 1964?

Answer 25

many blacks lost jobs, beatings and violence common, only 1600 of 17000 successfully registered to vote

Question 26

What were the Mississipi murders 1964?

Answer 26

three CORE workers (two white ,Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, and one black, James Chaney) were murdered by the KKK in June 1964. Another scandal that gained much media coverage

Question 27

What role did JFK play in the civil rights movement?

Answer 27

Appointed blacks to high level jobs, pressed for changes to laws, not afraid to intervene is south
with executive orders eg James Meredith case.

Question 28

What role did LBJ play in the civil rights movement?

Answer 28

Appointed blacks to high level jobs, Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act, Escorted marchers from Selma to Montgomery

Question 29

Why was a protest set to be held in Selma Alabama?

Answer 29

Only 1% of blacks in Selma Alabama were registered to vote

Question 30

What happened in the march from Selma ro Montgomery?

Answer 30

The marchers were stopped from crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge by state troopers with tear gas/cattle prods/clubs. This became known as ‘Bloody Sunday’.

Question 31

What was the reaction to ‘bloody sunday’?

Answer 31

prompted President Johnson to send federal troops to escort the marchers from Selma to Montgomery on 21-24 March where MLK gave a speech to 25,000 people.

Question 32

What did Civil rights act 1964 achieve?

Answer 32

Banned:

• Discrimination in voting, in public spaces and in jobs (Equal Opportunities Commission)
• Gave government power to:
• Enforce desegregation, remove funding from state projects that discriminated

Question 33

What were the limitations to civil rights act 1964?

Answer 33

• Still difficult to enforce in many states
• Equal Opportunities Council had limited staff
• Many in Deep South found ways around desegregation

Question 34

What were the achievments of the Voting rights act 1965?

Answer 34

Set up:

• One voter registration requirement
• Federal government officials ran registration in some states

Question 35

What were the limitations of the Voting rights act 1965?

Answer 35

• Although 79,593 had been registered by end of 1965 it was still a very slow process
• Even the federal officials faced opposition
• Many black Americans still frustrated

Question 36

What was the effect of Mexico 1968?

Answer 36

• Tommie Smith and John Carlos made Black Power salute on podium after 200m race.
• Seen across the world and had a massive impact.
• US papers condemned them, they received threats and were suspended from the team. -But this simple act inspired many black Americans to join the Black Power Movement

Question 37

What were the Black Panthers beliefs?

Answer 37

Black people needed black officials and police to protect them

Question 38

What were the main activities the Black panthers did?

Answer 38

street patrols, pressed local government officials to improve life for blacks, courses on black history

Question 39

Successes of the Black panthers?

Answer 39

local activities in ghetto communities, health clinics and breakfast clubs

Question 40

Negatives of the Black panthers?

Answer 40

some were involved in robberies and deliberately provoking police, e.g Newton charged with murder