CIVIL SOCIETY PROTESTS
, CIVIL SOCIETY PROTESTS 1950s TO 1970s
Reasons & Origins of Civil Rights Movement in USA
• towards end of the Civil War (btw 1861 & 1865) in the USA, the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution
abolished slavery
• BUT, the former slave-owning states in the South weren’t prepared to accept former slaves as equals &
many passed the so-called ‘Black Codes’ to ensure African Americans did NOT have = rights
• these laws, & many that followed in the yrs after the Civil War ended, ensured segregation btw black &
white Americans continued
• they became known as the Jim Crow Laws
Reasons for the US CRM:
• After the American Civil War (1861–1865), the US gov passed the 14th and 15th Amendments, granting US
citizenship & equal rights to former black slaves.
— 14th granted citizenship to all former slaves, giving them same rights & privileges as white citizens
— 15th ensured voting rights for former slaves
• Despite constitutional amendments, their rights remained unequal to white Americans.
• In 1866 a white supremacist group called the Klu Klux Klan was set up.
- They were against any rights for African-Americans & wanted segregation to continue.
• As more civil rights were granted to African-Americans, the KKK became more vicious in its methods to
prevent desegregation & the extension of constitutional rights to all
- Violent attacks on houses were carried out, dragging them out & torturing & often murdering
- approx 175 African-Americans were lynched per year in the South btw 1890 & 1900 for
violating the ‘rules’ of the segregated society
• In 1896 the US Supreme Court ruled that separate, but equal, public facilities for white & black Americans
was constitutional, despite various Constitutional amendments that had occurred - This law remained until
1954.
• Thus, driving reason for the CRM was to provide African-Americans w a strategy to fight against the
flagrant (obv wrong & offensive) disregard for their constitutional & civil rights.
- Aim was to achieve a situation in which all Americans enjoyed same rights that were equally
protected by the law
, Origins of the US CRM:
• 1909 the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) was set up.
- In 1935 they challenged segregation in higher education in the nation’s courts &
won significant rights for African-Americans in universities across the country.
- After WW2 the movement gained momentum as the pressure for civil rights inc due to
many reasons:
During 1950s & 1960s, many African-Americans
moved Northern & Western States to take defence-
1 related jobs. They had the vote in these regions,
which inc the voting strength & potential for
African American community organisation
African-Americans serving in the US army
2
abroad experienced less racial discrimination
than in the South which fuelled the movement
for equality & civil rights
Soldiers had fought for democracy against
3 totalitarianism & upon returning home fought
against racism & their own democratic rights.
Responses in the Southern States
• The Southern States responded by taking away African-American rights.
• The activities of the KKK inc in the 1950s.
• Many Southern States refused to comply with laws and court rulings, e.g.
- the 1954 landmark case ruling desegregation should take place in school, won by the NAACP.
Contributed to the growing CRM.
, CIVIL SOCIETY PROTESTS 1950s TO 1970s
Reasons & Origins of Civil Rights Movement in USA
• towards end of the Civil War (btw 1861 & 1865) in the USA, the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution
abolished slavery
• BUT, the former slave-owning states in the South weren’t prepared to accept former slaves as equals &
many passed the so-called ‘Black Codes’ to ensure African Americans did NOT have = rights
• these laws, & many that followed in the yrs after the Civil War ended, ensured segregation btw black &
white Americans continued
• they became known as the Jim Crow Laws
Reasons for the US CRM:
• After the American Civil War (1861–1865), the US gov passed the 14th and 15th Amendments, granting US
citizenship & equal rights to former black slaves.
— 14th granted citizenship to all former slaves, giving them same rights & privileges as white citizens
— 15th ensured voting rights for former slaves
• Despite constitutional amendments, their rights remained unequal to white Americans.
• In 1866 a white supremacist group called the Klu Klux Klan was set up.
- They were against any rights for African-Americans & wanted segregation to continue.
• As more civil rights were granted to African-Americans, the KKK became more vicious in its methods to
prevent desegregation & the extension of constitutional rights to all
- Violent attacks on houses were carried out, dragging them out & torturing & often murdering
- approx 175 African-Americans were lynched per year in the South btw 1890 & 1900 for
violating the ‘rules’ of the segregated society
• In 1896 the US Supreme Court ruled that separate, but equal, public facilities for white & black Americans
was constitutional, despite various Constitutional amendments that had occurred - This law remained until
1954.
• Thus, driving reason for the CRM was to provide African-Americans w a strategy to fight against the
flagrant (obv wrong & offensive) disregard for their constitutional & civil rights.
- Aim was to achieve a situation in which all Americans enjoyed same rights that were equally
protected by the law
, Origins of the US CRM:
• 1909 the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) was set up.
- In 1935 they challenged segregation in higher education in the nation’s courts &
won significant rights for African-Americans in universities across the country.
- After WW2 the movement gained momentum as the pressure for civil rights inc due to
many reasons:
During 1950s & 1960s, many African-Americans
moved Northern & Western States to take defence-
1 related jobs. They had the vote in these regions,
which inc the voting strength & potential for
African American community organisation
African-Americans serving in the US army
2
abroad experienced less racial discrimination
than in the South which fuelled the movement
for equality & civil rights
Soldiers had fought for democracy against
3 totalitarianism & upon returning home fought
against racism & their own democratic rights.
Responses in the Southern States
• The Southern States responded by taking away African-American rights.
• The activities of the KKK inc in the 1950s.
• Many Southern States refused to comply with laws and court rulings, e.g.
- the 1954 landmark case ruling desegregation should take place in school, won by the NAACP.
Contributed to the growing CRM.
