The Civil Rights Movement Background WWII and

The Civil Rights Movement

Background WWII and the affluence of the Post-WWII era raised the expectations of many African Americans, Hispanics, and women Several million African Americans, Hispanics, and women assisted the war effort in military service or production Expectation of racial and gender equality

Jackie Robinson Served in WWII College educated Broke the “color barrier” in Major League Baseball in 1947 Became an immediate star, but suffered harassment Rookie of the year, MVPs, Hall of Fame Number is retired by all teams Baseball was America's Pastime. Integration?

Meanwhile. . . Armed Forces desegregated in 1948 Presidential Committees on Civil Rights NAACP bringing court cases Precursors to the Brown case

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Background: 1953 Eisenhower appoints Earl Warren to Supreme Court Earlier court cases brought by NAACP set certain precedents Sweatt v. Painter allowed black students into UT Law School, but upheld Plessy Floods of lawsuits came to the Supreme Court and many were answered by Brown

The Brown Case Segregation in Kansas schools Rev. Oliver Brown, with the NAACP, sued the Board of Education Daughter should be able to go to the closer white school Court was divided, but Warren was able to get a unanimous 9 -0 decision

Brown Decision 1954 – The Supreme Court overruled Plessy v. Ferguson Separate is inherently unequal Schools had to desegregate “with all deliberate speed. ” Southern Senators and white supremacist groups defied the ruling. Violence Eisenhower remained silent

African American life in the Deep South Segregation of public facilities Noblesse oblige Grassroots civil rights movements and NAACP partnerships Emmett Till murder

Rosa, MLK, and Montgomery Bus Boycott On Dec. 1, 1955 Rosa Parks, a 42 yo. seamstress, refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger Parks was arrested A bus boycott, led by a young minister named Martin Luther King began MLK was harassed. House burnt down Car pools, free repairs, gas collections The boycott nearly bankrupted the Montgomery Bus System and severely hurt city merchants Boycott lasted 381 days until the segregation on bussing was struck down by the federal courts in late 1956 Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Reaction to Brown v. Bo. E in Little Rock, Arkansas Opposition to Brown was spreading throughout the South Eisenhower refused to address the debate Southern Manifesto – Southern Congressmen called for fighting Brown through all legal means 1957, in Arkansas, Gov. Orval Faubus refused a court-order to integrate Central High School in Little Rock. Gov. Faubus called in the National Guard to keep the black students out Eisenhower nationalized the National Guard to escort the 9 black students to class First time since Reconstruction to protect Civil Rights through military force

The 1960 s Civil Rights Movement

Freedom Riders In 1961 the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) tested the federal ruling prohibiting segregation in interstate transportation They wanted to provoke the Southern authorities into arresting them to bring down federal assistance 9 black and 6 white “freedom riders” traveled to New Orleans from D. C. . Ignored segregation in the towns In Alabama their bus was bombed and the riders were beaten Kennedy forced to send in federal marshals to protect them and banned interstate carriers from using segregated terminals

Ole Miss and Violent Opposition James Meredith, a black air force veteran, received federal orders to be admitted to University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) in 1962 Gov. Ross Barnett opposed and said Mississippi would ignore all federal rulings Fighting between armed federal marshals and a large mob. 2 dead, hundreds injured including federal marshals hit by gunfire Kennedy federalized the National Guard and 23, 000 soldiers entered the campus Meredith registered for classes

MLK in Birmingham and Washington MLK and the SCLC sponsored sit-ins and voter-registration drives throughout Birmingham, AL from 1962 -63 Kennedy sent federal marshals in to enforce integration Medgar Evers assassinated Civil Rights Bill, failed Congress “I Have a Dream” Speech at the Lincoln Memorial

LBJ and the Civil Rights Bill LBJ assured black leaders of his commitment to Civil Rights Proposed the Civil Rights Bill which outlawed discrimination in public accommodations and withheld federal funds from segregated public programs Filibuster in the Senate, but eventually passed Became law on July 2, 1964

Struggles Continued Fannie Lou Hamer & the Freedom Democratic Party College students murdered in Mississippi Selma Demonstrations and voting rights Watts Riots Further riots in Detroit & Newark

Black Power By the mid-1960 s MLK's leadership of the Civil Rights Movement came under increasing attack by other members of the African American community Stokely Carmichael helped begin the Black Power Movement Black Power was multifaceted It stressed black unity, strength, and black pride African clothing, afro haircuts, and “Black is Beautiful” campaigns To many, Black Power meant separation

Malcolm X Born Malcolm Little, but changed his last name to X Member of the Nation of Islam Popular and controversial Preached self-esteem, self-defense, and separation (at first) Left Nation of Islam After a trip to Mecca, changed his separatist stance to integration Organization of Afro-American Unity Assassinated by Nation of Islam in 1965

Black Panthers Militant organization of the Black Power movement Often violent organization Demanded the release of all blacks from prison, slave reparations, and fought against police brutality Community work, including food kitchens and preschool programs

1960 s Assassinations The tensions of the 1960 s are most clearly summed up by the political assassinations Martin Luther King – April 4, 1968 by James Earl Ray Robert Kennedy – June 6, 1968 by Sirhan Malcolm X – Feb. 21, 1965 by Talmadge Hayler, Norman 3 X Butler, & Thomas 15 X Johnson John F. Kennedy – Nov. 22, 1963 by Lee Harvey Oswald

Feminist Revival The African American quest for civil rights possessed a strong female strain, e. g. Rosa Parks, Ella Baker, women in churches This helped reignite the women's rights movement Women still played a small role in government. No governors, cabinet members, SC justices, and 1 senator in the early 60 s. Most jobs were lower paid and in service or clerical roles

Early Changes Presidential Commission of the Status of Women – Eleanor Roosevelt Executive Order banning federal sex discrimination Equal Pay Act of 1963 Betty Friedan – The Feminist Mystique

N. O. W. Dismayed by the slow progress in women's rights, feminist activists formed the National Organization for Women in 1966 Sought an Equal Rights Amendment and sexual equality in the workplace Mostly white, middle-aged, middle-class women Female solidarity; Sisterhood Many came from the Civil Rights Movement and anti-war protests, but saw that discrimination ran through those movements as well Women's liberation Mixed results and reception

Equal Rights Amendment August 1970 feminists launched a nationwide rally to celebrate the 50 th anniversary of the 19 th Amendment and to highlight women's rights Sought passage of the Equal Rights Amendment Launched by Congress but not enough states ratified Women enrollment in college & military increased Still behind in wages and public officials

Hispanic Rights The Hispanic and Chicano Rights Movement came later than the African American and Women's Movements La Raza Unida – Pushed Chicano candidates in government Sit-ins and demonstrations for Hispanic studies and rights Migrant worker reform

Cesar Chavez Naval veteran of WWII Worked in strawberry and plum orchards Organized other Hispanic migrant laborers United Farm Workers of America

Civil Rights Movement Moving Forward The 2 decades of the 50 s and 60 s saw an intense and somewhat successful struggle for minority and women's rights Nonetheless, large areas of society had not adapted or changed The new Civil Rights Movement is more focused on social issues rather than political issues