A DIVIDED UNION:
CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE USA, 1945-74
TOPICS:
THE RED SCARE AND MCCARTHYISM:
• Reasons for the Red Scare including the Cold War 1945-50, Hiss and
Rosenberg Cases, the FBI, the HUAC and the Hollywood Ten
• Methods used by McCarthy and the growth of opposition
• Reasons for his downfall
• Overall impact of McCarthyism on the USA
CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE 1950’s:
• Segregation and discrimination
• The influence of the Supreme Court and Congress
• The importance of: Brown versus Topeka (1954), the death of Emmett Till
(1955), the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-56) and Little Rock (1957)
• The significance of the Civil Rights Act (1957)
• Revival of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK)
THE IMPACT OF CIVIL RIGHTS PROTESTS (1960 – 74):
• Freedom riders, Anniston fire bombing, sit-ins, voting rights, the Meredith
Case
• The methods and activities of Martin Luther King
• The Birmingham and Washington Peace Marches and the ‘Dream Speech’
• The impact of protests on civil rights legislation of the 1960’s
• Selma and voting rights
• The Nation of Islam and the work of Malcolm X
• Reasons for the growth of Black Power and it’s impact
• The impact of race riots especially in the Watts District
• The Black Panther movement and the roles of Bobby Seale and Huey
Newton
PROTESTS MOVEMENTS:
• Reasons for the growth of protest movements
• The student movement and link to the war in Vietnam (the Anti-War
Movement)
• The Berkeley Free Speech movement
• Students for a Democratic Society and ‘hippies’
• Betty Friedan, Eleanor Roosevelt, NOW, women’s liberation movement and
abortion
, • Phyllis Schafly and opposition to the women’s movement
NIXON AND WATERGATE:
• Reasons for and key features of the Watergate Scandal
• Impact of Nixon, US politics and new laws, including War Powers Act
(1973), the Election Campaign Act (1974), the Privacy Act (1974) and the
congressional Budget Control Act (1974)
• General Ford and the presidential pardon
2
, THE RED SCARE AND MCCARTHYISM:
BACKGROUND:
• The American Political System is CONSTITUTIONAL (set of basic laws
that a country is governed by. It is made a three main parts:
o LEGISLATIVE – makes laws – congress – senate and house of
representatives
o EXECUTIVE – carries out laws – president – vice president, cabinet
and departments
o JUDICIAL – evaluates laws – supreme court and other federal courts
REASONS FOR THE RED SCARE:
• People in America felt communism went against the ideas of the
AMERICAN DREAM – people felt it would threaten their way of life it
spread – THE RED SCARE (the fear of communism). Reasons included:
o THE COLD WAR (1945 – 50) – created an intense fear and hatred of
communism – “better red than dead” became a popular slogan
o BERLIN BLOCKADE/CRISIS – the USSR cut off access to West
Berlin, showing that Stalin was prepared to risk war with American’s
o USSR’S FIRST ATOMIC BOMB (1949) – made them just as powerful
as the USA – seemed intimidating
o COMMUNIST WORLD TAKEOVER – communism seemed to be
spreading throughout the world:
- 1945 – communist govt. was set up in some of the liberated
governments (post-WW2), many in the West saw this as the USSR
trying to take over Europe
- 1946 – communists tried to take over the government in GREECE
and Soviets did encourage – this added to American fear of
communist takeover of Europe – the US govt. sent money to the
Greek government to remove communists – this worked
- 1947/8 – remaining countries under soviet influence in east Europe
became communist, either through force or election
- 1949 – Chairman Mao and Chinese communists won the civil war
and took control of China
- 1949 – there were many other communist uprisings in Malaya,
Indonesia, Burma and the Philippines
- 1950 – communist North Korea invaded South Korea – North
Korea was supported by the USSR
3
CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE USA, 1945-74
TOPICS:
THE RED SCARE AND MCCARTHYISM:
• Reasons for the Red Scare including the Cold War 1945-50, Hiss and
Rosenberg Cases, the FBI, the HUAC and the Hollywood Ten
• Methods used by McCarthy and the growth of opposition
• Reasons for his downfall
• Overall impact of McCarthyism on the USA
CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE 1950’s:
• Segregation and discrimination
• The influence of the Supreme Court and Congress
• The importance of: Brown versus Topeka (1954), the death of Emmett Till
(1955), the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-56) and Little Rock (1957)
• The significance of the Civil Rights Act (1957)
• Revival of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK)
THE IMPACT OF CIVIL RIGHTS PROTESTS (1960 – 74):
• Freedom riders, Anniston fire bombing, sit-ins, voting rights, the Meredith
Case
• The methods and activities of Martin Luther King
• The Birmingham and Washington Peace Marches and the ‘Dream Speech’
• The impact of protests on civil rights legislation of the 1960’s
• Selma and voting rights
• The Nation of Islam and the work of Malcolm X
• Reasons for the growth of Black Power and it’s impact
• The impact of race riots especially in the Watts District
• The Black Panther movement and the roles of Bobby Seale and Huey
Newton
PROTESTS MOVEMENTS:
• Reasons for the growth of protest movements
• The student movement and link to the war in Vietnam (the Anti-War
Movement)
• The Berkeley Free Speech movement
• Students for a Democratic Society and ‘hippies’
• Betty Friedan, Eleanor Roosevelt, NOW, women’s liberation movement and
abortion
, • Phyllis Schafly and opposition to the women’s movement
NIXON AND WATERGATE:
• Reasons for and key features of the Watergate Scandal
• Impact of Nixon, US politics and new laws, including War Powers Act
(1973), the Election Campaign Act (1974), the Privacy Act (1974) and the
congressional Budget Control Act (1974)
• General Ford and the presidential pardon
2
, THE RED SCARE AND MCCARTHYISM:
BACKGROUND:
• The American Political System is CONSTITUTIONAL (set of basic laws
that a country is governed by. It is made a three main parts:
o LEGISLATIVE – makes laws – congress – senate and house of
representatives
o EXECUTIVE – carries out laws – president – vice president, cabinet
and departments
o JUDICIAL – evaluates laws – supreme court and other federal courts
REASONS FOR THE RED SCARE:
• People in America felt communism went against the ideas of the
AMERICAN DREAM – people felt it would threaten their way of life it
spread – THE RED SCARE (the fear of communism). Reasons included:
o THE COLD WAR (1945 – 50) – created an intense fear and hatred of
communism – “better red than dead” became a popular slogan
o BERLIN BLOCKADE/CRISIS – the USSR cut off access to West
Berlin, showing that Stalin was prepared to risk war with American’s
o USSR’S FIRST ATOMIC BOMB (1949) – made them just as powerful
as the USA – seemed intimidating
o COMMUNIST WORLD TAKEOVER – communism seemed to be
spreading throughout the world:
- 1945 – communist govt. was set up in some of the liberated
governments (post-WW2), many in the West saw this as the USSR
trying to take over Europe
- 1946 – communists tried to take over the government in GREECE
and Soviets did encourage – this added to American fear of
communist takeover of Europe – the US govt. sent money to the
Greek government to remove communists – this worked
- 1947/8 – remaining countries under soviet influence in east Europe
became communist, either through force or election
- 1949 – Chairman Mao and Chinese communists won the civil war
and took control of China
- 1949 – there were many other communist uprisings in Malaya,
Indonesia, Burma and the Philippines
- 1950 – communist North Korea invaded South Korea – North
Korea was supported by the USSR
3
