the civil rights movement there were two phases to the civil rights movement: one phase between...
TRANSCRIPT
THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
There were two phases to the Civil Rights movement: one phase between 1945-1965 and the other after 1965.
I. Why Did the Civil Rights Movement Take Off After 1945? Black equality became a significant
political issue for the Democratic Party WWII had been fought against racism
abroad—hard to keep harboring it at home Black veterans came home dedicated to
change Increasing number of White Americans
condemned segregation Discrimination in the United States hurt
our propaganda battle against the Communists
II. The Truman Years Truman’s 1948
election year agenda No significant Civil
Rights congressional legislation
Truman moves on his own to do what he can for Civil Rights--Desegregation of the military (1948)
Jackie Robinson’s breakthrough (1947)
II. The Truman Years (cont.)
Split at the 1948 Democratic convention
Energized Truman hits the campaign trail hard
Republican Dewey runs a boring, conservative campaign
Truman’s stunning election
Truman’s “Fair Deal” (1949)
III. The Battle in the Courts
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)-- “separate but equal” facilities = legal
Smith v. Allwright (1944)
First attack = “separate is not equal”
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954)-- Chief Justice Earl Warren
III. Battle in the Courts (cont.)
Eisenhower disapproves of Brown decision
Desegregation “with all deliberate speed”
Other Warren Court Civil Rights decisions
Popular opposition to the Brown decision
No real progress on desegregation at first
IV. The Eisenhower Years Eisenhower’s
philosophy related to Civil Rights laws
First Civil Rights Acts passed since the Civil War (1957 and 1960)
Opposition to the integration of Little Rock Central High School (1957)--Governor Orville Faubus
V. Out of the Schools and Into the Buses
The arrest of Rosa Parks (December, 1955)
The Montgomery, Ala. Bus Boycott
The leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr.
The “Montgomery” model for Civil Rights activism: boycott, publicity, courts
SCLC formed (1957)
VI. A Mass Movement Takes Shape
Lunch counter “sit-ins” begin: Greensboro, NC (February, 1960)
SNCC created (April, 1960)
CORE “Freedom Ride” (May, 1961)
VI. A Mass Movement Takes Shape (cont.)
Demonstrations in Birmingham, Alabama (April, 1963)--Eugene “Bull” Connor
“Letter from Birmingham City Jail”
Governor George Wallace tries to block integration of the University of Alabama (Fall, 1963)
VI. A Mass Movement Takes Shape (cont.)
JFK finally begins to campaign for Civil Rights legislation
Continued violence even in the face of some progress
Martin Luther King, Jr. and the March on Washington (August, 1963)-- “I Have a Dream”
VI. A Mass Movement Takes Shape (cont.)
Mississippi Freedom Summer Project (1964)
MFDP Protests at the 1964 Democratic convention
Voter registration in Selma, Alabama (1965)--Sheriff Jim Clark
By the mid-1960’s, substantial success in the South had been achieved
VII. The Kennedy and Johnson Years
JFK’s initial reluctance to push for Civil Rights laws
The integration of Ole’ Miss (1962)
--James Meredith JFK finally decides to
push past better enforcement to new congressional Civil Rights legislation
VII. The Johnson Years (cont.)
The role of Kennedy’s assassination in the Civil Rights movement
Civil Rights Act of 1964 Anti-poll tax
Amendment (24th—1964)
Voting Rights Act (1965)
Impact of the Voting Rights Act
VII. The Johnson Years (cont.)
The tone of public political discourse changed after 1965
Johnson appoints first Black cabinet secretary: Robert Weaver of HUD (1966)
Much more needed to be done for Civil Rights outside of the South, so 2nd phase began
VIII. The Era of Disillusionment: 1965 On
Early to mid-1960’s were a hopeful time for Civil Rights advocates
Goal of Assimilation
A “Spoiled Utopia” after 1965—things would not be that simple
A. New Problems Residential
Discrimination-- “Red Lining”
The Challenges of School integration in the North
The historical, traditional segregation of northern cities
The resurrection of the KKK once again
More effective White opponents in the North
B. Race Riots
Watts Riots in Los Angeles (Summer, 1965)
Riots each summer from 1965-1969
--Chicago and Cleveland (1966)
--Newark and Detroit (1967)
--Washington, D.C. (1968)
B. Race Riots (cont.) Riots as an expression
of grievance against the White American consumer society
Riots shocked the White American public
Frustration and self-destruction expressed in these riots
Unlike earlier race riots, these riots were not started by White mobs
C. “Black Power”
Growing tension between SNCC and Martin Luther King, Jr.--Stokely Carmichael
“Black Power” Carmichael
succeeded by H. Rap Brown as head of SNCC (1967)
C. “Black Power” (cont.)
The formation of the Black Panther Party in Oakland, CA (1966)--Huey Newton--Eldridge Cleaver
Resurrection of the philosophy of Marcus Garvey
C. “Black Power” (cont.) The leadership of
Malcolm X--Black Muslims--Assassinated in 1965
Cultural expressions of “Black Power”:--Afro Hairstyles--Black-studies programs-- “Negro” no longer used--1968 Olympics
D. Decline of the Civil Rights Movement
Economic contraction works against Civil Rights concessions
Northern phase not as successful
Resistance from White Unions
Vietnam replaces Civil Rights as the liberal crusade
Martin Luther King, Jr. loses influence with LBJ