GCSE MODERN WORLD HISTORY

CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE USA

INTERACTIVE1920-1970How successful was the Civil

Rights Movement in achieving its aims?

Bus station waiting

rooms and ticket

windows.

Railroad cars or coaches.

Restaurants and lunch counters.

Schools and public parks.

Restrooms and water fountains.

Sections of movie

theatres.

There were even

separate cemeteries.

Some areas that were segregated:

The Jim Crow LawsThe most common types of laws ordered business owners and public buildings to

keep Blacks and Whites separated. Across the whole of the South, many states (and cities, too) could punish people for talking with members of another race. These laws

enforced the strict segregation of the races and rigidly maintained the inferior

status of Black citizens.

Jim Crow LawsImage 2

A rest stop for bus passengers from Louisville, Kentucky to Nashville, Tennessee, with separate

entrance for Blacks,1943

Jim Crow LawsImage 3

A segregated bus station in Durham, North Carolina, May

1940.

Jim Crow LawsImage 4

A Black American going in the coloured entrance of a

movie house, Belzoni, Mississippi.

Jim Crow LawsImage 5

An all Black segregated school, common across most of the Southern

states of America.

Jim Crow LawsImage 6

Signs of segregation still existed well into the 1960s. A

sign in a Florida restaurant window, read “No Mexicans, Niggers, or Dogs Allowed.” 7GCSE Modern World History Black Civil

Rights USA

Jim Crow LawsImage 1

A Black American drinking from a segregated water fountain in

Oklahoma City 1939.

GCSE Modern World History Black Civil Rights USA

Segregation requiredNo SegregationSegregation optionalSegregation forbidden

School segregation by state 1954

In 1953, there were 21 states with

segregated schools. Some Black children

had to travel lengthy distances to

get to a Black school.

“Separate but not equal”Blacks and

Whites were forced to attend

different schools.

There was little that was equal in the

quality of education

between the schools.

White schools were bigger with better resources.

Black teachers were paid

significantly less than their

White counterparts.

Black students often had to

use old textbooks previously

used in White schools. An all-White

school, North Carolina.

An all-Black school, North

Carolina.

Challenging School Segregation

Carolina state spent $179 per year

educating White children.

Carolina state spent $43 per year

educating Black children.

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Southern states reject school integration

In 1954, 21 states had laws segregating public schools. There was a mixed reaction to the

Brown decision in these states. In Virginia, for example, several White officials blocked school integration and closed any school that tried to

integrate. In 1955, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered public schools to desegregate “with all

deliberate speed”.

The first real test of the Federal governments determination to

enforce the law came in 1957 at Little Rock, Arkansas.

Central High School, Little Rock

President Eisenhower, forced

Faubus to remove the troops but about

1000 White people protested outside the

school.

The State Governor, Orval Faubus,

stopped the Little Rock Nine by

surrounding the school with state

troops.

GCSE Modern World History Black Civil Rights USA

In 1957, out of 75 bright African American students who applied to enter

Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas only 9, were selected. The 9 students, who were known as the Little Rock Nine, met much resistance as they

tried to enter the school.

Orval Faubus speaking to a crowd protesting against

the integration of Little Rock schools.

Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division escort the

Little Rock Nine students into the all-White Central High School in Little Rock,

Ark.

President Eisenhower sent 1000

paratroopers to protect the Black

students for the rest of the school year.

Governor Faubus was so against

integration that he closed down all the

schools in Little Rock but the Supreme

Court ordered him to reopen them.

This famous photograph shows Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Little

Rock Nine as she walks to Central High School in September1957. The girl shouting at her is Hazel Massery.

It showed that the

President was

willing to get

involved and

support Black

Americans.

There was

worldwide publicity for the

civil rights campaign and a lot

of sympathy

for the Black

students.

Although the

Supreme Court got involved, in 1964,

only 2-3% of Black

children in the USA attended

desegregated

schools.

Why was Little Rock important to the Civil

Rights Movement?

24

The Impact of the Selma to

Montgomery MarchThe Selma to

Montgomery March was a huge victory for the

Civil Rights Movement. President Johnson

watched the violent images of the march and this made the politicians

in Washington take action.

President Johnson pressed Congress to pass

a Voting Rights Act (1965) which finally

removed all restrictions against Black people

voting in the Southern states.

President LB Johnson

GCSE Modern World History Black Civil Rights USA

39

% OF BLACK POPULATION REGISTERED TO VOTE

State 1964 1968AlabamaFloridaGeorgiaMississippiSouth Carolina

1426224

11

5662565956

How successful was the Voting Rights Act?

Within 3 years, most of the Black population of the

South were registered to vote.

White politicians now needed Black votes to stay

in power.

Some Blacks saw an

opportunity to became

politicians themselves.

The Voting Rights

Act 1965

Eliminated literacy tests if Blacks wanted to register to

vote.

Federal officials could

register voters if city

officials refused.

400,000 Black Americans

registered to vote in the

Deep South.

By 1968, Black voters

had a significant impact on Southern politics.

Malcolm X

He was a member of the Nation of

Islam.He believed in the

idea of Black Power.

He rejected Black/White integration.

Described himself as a ‘Black Nationalist

Freedom Fighter’.

He said that White racism must be

tackled with force.

He was very critical of Martin

Luther King.

What did Malcolm X believe?

Why did some Blacks turn to

Malcolm X?

He recruited thousands of young African Americans to the Nation of

Islam. He was a brilliant

speaker who attracted a

lot of publicity.

He encouraged

Blacks to take

responsibility for

themselves and be proud

of being Black.

Malcolm X raised

awareness of the hardships in the Black

ghettos.

Some Blacks believed that White racism could only to

be tackled with force.

Martin Luther King versus Malcolm X

Malcolm X’s views differed from those of Martin Luther King.

Malcolm X wanted the separation of races, not integration. He spoke of

King’s non-violence as ‘the philosophy of the fool’ and called for

a ‘Black revolution’ to overthrow White power. Martin Luther King

seemed to offer the people of the Northern Black ghettos nothing. So they looked to new leaders such as Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael.

Martin Luther King and Malcolm X briefly meet in

1964 before going to listen to a Senate debate about civil

rights in Washington.GCSE Modern World History Black Civil Rights USA

43

Malcolm XThe most famous supporter of Black

Power was Malcolm X. When he met Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam,

he changed his name to X. He believed that even after 1965 nothing had really

changed for Black Americans. He criticised Martin Luther King and believed

that King’s methods would never gain equality. His ideas were very popular amongst young Blacks and Malcolm X

helped set up education and social programmes for young Black Americans.