What was the US civil rights movement?
Reasons and origins of the civil rights movement in the USA?
What is a civil right?
- Civil rights are the that are (or should be) enjoyed by all citizens of a country and they
revolve around the basic freedoms:
• Freedom of speech
• Freedom of worship
• Freedom from want (basic needs such as water, food, clothing and shelter)
• Freedom from fear
• Freedom of assembly
• Freedom to vote
What is a civil society?
- Civil society is a grouping that is separate from government and business.
- The state and civil society are in opposition to one another.
- Civil society include NGOs such as trade unions, civic organizations and student
movements, along with social and political movements that protect civil rights.
- Civil society protest happens when ordinary people (grass-root level) take action against
government policies they see as unjust.
- Civil society protesting usually involves non-violent action undertaken to put pressure on
authorities or influence public opinion.
To what extent did the African American achieve equality in civil rights in 1950s & 1960s?
- After American Civil war (1861-1865), former slaves thought they would be able to re-enter
American society as equal citizens.
- Congress passed a number of amendments to the constitution that protected these new
freedoms:
• The 13th Amendment (1865) abolished slavery
• The 14th amendment (1868) made black Americans full US citizens (guaranteed full and
equal protection under the law)
• The 15th Amendment (1870) guaranteed that the right to vote could not be denied on the
account of race, colour or previous conditions of servitude.
- However, discrimination against black Americans continued, particularly in southern states.
• Southern states used violence and introduced literary and income qualifications to stop
black people from voting
- In 1880s to 1960s, most American states (17 states) enforced Jim Crow laws which
segregated blacks and whites in terms of schools, housing, jobs and public gatherings.
• These laws intended to limit social contact between black and white Americans and to limit
freedom and opportunities.
, - African American lives were dominated racial prejudice and discrimination from the early
1900s through to the 1950s.
Examples of discrimination:
• Black people were given the right to vote, but they were prevented due to the threat of
violence, intimidation or lynching.
• Police officers failed to prevent attacks on black people and often joined in.
• White juries acquitted whites accused of killing blacks.
• Black people faced official and legal discrimination in education and employment – some
universities were closed to black students
- This encouraged those trying to win equality for black people, seek to change these
conditions and from this the CRM was born.
In 1960’s, African Americans were a minority and segregation was experienced in all spheres of life,
even though the US government ruled against it 1954 (brown vs board of education) but
government did nothing to enforce it.
US Govn Policy of “sperate but equal’ - first followed by President Harry S Truman
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court
issued in 1896. It upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities as long
as the segregated facilities were equal in quality – a doctrine that came to be known as "separate
but equal".
- 1946: Truman set up presidents’ committee meeting on civil rights
- 1947: presidents committee made proposals to end segregations laws and to outlaw
lynching but US congress did not accept
• Already in the 1930s, the NAACP’s lawyers brought cases to court showing that school were
unequal and this impacted negatively on the educations of black people.
In 1952, Brown vs Board of education of Topeka (Kansas) was heard by supreme court and it
argued against the “separate but equal” mindset and in 1954, the judge agreed with the NAACP
lawyers and declared that segregation in school was against the law.
What did Black people challenge discrimination so actively from 1960s?
1. Education: Black people realized important of education and Howard University in
Washington DC became a symbol of academic success as many black graduates went on
to be leaders in various fields. Eg:
Thurgood Marshall – led legal campaigns against segregated schooling in 1940s & 1950s.
2. Organization: Black people realized they needed to be organized in order to fight
discrimination. The National Association for The Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
which was supported by the church, was form in 1909 to challenge cases of segregation
and to spread awareness among black Americans.
3. Leadership: A number of people provided direction but they all had the same aim: to end
discrimination and inequality.
The role and impact of MLK:
, - Born on 15 July 1929, in Atlanta Georgia.
- Awarded a doctorate by Boston university in 1955
- He became a pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptists church in Montgomery Alabama in 1954.
- When the Montgomery bus boycott started in December 1955, King was asked to be
spokesman for the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA).
• This led to him being a symbol of resistance of segregation and injustice throughout the
country.
- He became President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SLCP) -
organization formed to provide new leadership for the CRM.
- Between 1957 and 1968:
• he led a massive protest in Birmingham, Alabama that caught the attention of the world and
inspiring his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”,
• he planned drives in Alabama for the registration of voters,
• he directed a peaceful march on Washinton DC, where he delivered his “i have a dream”
speech,
• He conferred with president John F. Kennedy
• And campaigned for president Lydon B. Johnson.
- He was assaulted and arrested countless times, awarded 5 honorary degrees and named
time magazine’s man of the year in 1963, awarded Nobel peace prize in 1964 in Oslo (at
age 35).
- He called for the redistribution of wealth and power = criticized the gap between rich and
poor.
- By 1967, he became an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam war, arguing money should
sent to the poor of America.
- He lobbied for federal assistance to the poor, insisting that the misery of poverty knows no
racial distinctions and became involved in trade union struggles.
- On 4th April, while standing on the balcony of his hotel room in Memphis, Tennessee, he
was assassinated.
Influence of Passive resistance (Gandhi) on Martin Luther King:
- MLK’s policy of non-violent resistance for social change was influenced by the philosophy
of Mahatma Gandhi in India.
- Gandhi developed his theories during a 20 year stay in South Africa, where he led non-
violent protests against the discrimination against the Indian community.
- When he returned to India, he showed the power of this tactic in the struggle against the
British rule. In 1947, India became independent using tactics such as strikes, marches and
refusing to obey unjust laws.
- Like Gandhi, king became a firm believer in passive resistance and civil disobedience
because he believed if black people were prepared to suffer, their oppressors would see the
error in their ways and change.
• This reconciliation would be done through love and their oppressors would have no reason
to become violent.
MLK Involvements:
- Montgomery bus boycott (1955)
Reasons and origins of the civil rights movement in the USA?
What is a civil right?
- Civil rights are the that are (or should be) enjoyed by all citizens of a country and they
revolve around the basic freedoms:
• Freedom of speech
• Freedom of worship
• Freedom from want (basic needs such as water, food, clothing and shelter)
• Freedom from fear
• Freedom of assembly
• Freedom to vote
What is a civil society?
- Civil society is a grouping that is separate from government and business.
- The state and civil society are in opposition to one another.
- Civil society include NGOs such as trade unions, civic organizations and student
movements, along with social and political movements that protect civil rights.
- Civil society protest happens when ordinary people (grass-root level) take action against
government policies they see as unjust.
- Civil society protesting usually involves non-violent action undertaken to put pressure on
authorities or influence public opinion.
To what extent did the African American achieve equality in civil rights in 1950s & 1960s?
- After American Civil war (1861-1865), former slaves thought they would be able to re-enter
American society as equal citizens.
- Congress passed a number of amendments to the constitution that protected these new
freedoms:
• The 13th Amendment (1865) abolished slavery
• The 14th amendment (1868) made black Americans full US citizens (guaranteed full and
equal protection under the law)
• The 15th Amendment (1870) guaranteed that the right to vote could not be denied on the
account of race, colour or previous conditions of servitude.
- However, discrimination against black Americans continued, particularly in southern states.
• Southern states used violence and introduced literary and income qualifications to stop
black people from voting
- In 1880s to 1960s, most American states (17 states) enforced Jim Crow laws which
segregated blacks and whites in terms of schools, housing, jobs and public gatherings.
• These laws intended to limit social contact between black and white Americans and to limit
freedom and opportunities.
, - African American lives were dominated racial prejudice and discrimination from the early
1900s through to the 1950s.
Examples of discrimination:
• Black people were given the right to vote, but they were prevented due to the threat of
violence, intimidation or lynching.
• Police officers failed to prevent attacks on black people and often joined in.
• White juries acquitted whites accused of killing blacks.
• Black people faced official and legal discrimination in education and employment – some
universities were closed to black students
- This encouraged those trying to win equality for black people, seek to change these
conditions and from this the CRM was born.
In 1960’s, African Americans were a minority and segregation was experienced in all spheres of life,
even though the US government ruled against it 1954 (brown vs board of education) but
government did nothing to enforce it.
US Govn Policy of “sperate but equal’ - first followed by President Harry S Truman
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court
issued in 1896. It upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities as long
as the segregated facilities were equal in quality – a doctrine that came to be known as "separate
but equal".
- 1946: Truman set up presidents’ committee meeting on civil rights
- 1947: presidents committee made proposals to end segregations laws and to outlaw
lynching but US congress did not accept
• Already in the 1930s, the NAACP’s lawyers brought cases to court showing that school were
unequal and this impacted negatively on the educations of black people.
In 1952, Brown vs Board of education of Topeka (Kansas) was heard by supreme court and it
argued against the “separate but equal” mindset and in 1954, the judge agreed with the NAACP
lawyers and declared that segregation in school was against the law.
What did Black people challenge discrimination so actively from 1960s?
1. Education: Black people realized important of education and Howard University in
Washington DC became a symbol of academic success as many black graduates went on
to be leaders in various fields. Eg:
Thurgood Marshall – led legal campaigns against segregated schooling in 1940s & 1950s.
2. Organization: Black people realized they needed to be organized in order to fight
discrimination. The National Association for The Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
which was supported by the church, was form in 1909 to challenge cases of segregation
and to spread awareness among black Americans.
3. Leadership: A number of people provided direction but they all had the same aim: to end
discrimination and inequality.
The role and impact of MLK:
, - Born on 15 July 1929, in Atlanta Georgia.
- Awarded a doctorate by Boston university in 1955
- He became a pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptists church in Montgomery Alabama in 1954.
- When the Montgomery bus boycott started in December 1955, King was asked to be
spokesman for the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA).
• This led to him being a symbol of resistance of segregation and injustice throughout the
country.
- He became President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SLCP) -
organization formed to provide new leadership for the CRM.
- Between 1957 and 1968:
• he led a massive protest in Birmingham, Alabama that caught the attention of the world and
inspiring his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”,
• he planned drives in Alabama for the registration of voters,
• he directed a peaceful march on Washinton DC, where he delivered his “i have a dream”
speech,
• He conferred with president John F. Kennedy
• And campaigned for president Lydon B. Johnson.
- He was assaulted and arrested countless times, awarded 5 honorary degrees and named
time magazine’s man of the year in 1963, awarded Nobel peace prize in 1964 in Oslo (at
age 35).
- He called for the redistribution of wealth and power = criticized the gap between rich and
poor.
- By 1967, he became an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam war, arguing money should
sent to the poor of America.
- He lobbied for federal assistance to the poor, insisting that the misery of poverty knows no
racial distinctions and became involved in trade union struggles.
- On 4th April, while standing on the balcony of his hotel room in Memphis, Tennessee, he
was assassinated.
Influence of Passive resistance (Gandhi) on Martin Luther King:
- MLK’s policy of non-violent resistance for social change was influenced by the philosophy
of Mahatma Gandhi in India.
- Gandhi developed his theories during a 20 year stay in South Africa, where he led non-
violent protests against the discrimination against the Indian community.
- When he returned to India, he showed the power of this tactic in the struggle against the
British rule. In 1947, India became independent using tactics such as strikes, marches and
refusing to obey unjust laws.
- Like Gandhi, king became a firm believer in passive resistance and civil disobedience
because he believed if black people were prepared to suffer, their oppressors would see the
error in their ways and change.
• This reconciliation would be done through love and their oppressors would have no reason
to become violent.
MLK Involvements:
- Montgomery bus boycott (1955)
