• Jim Crow Laws: Enforced segregation; literacy tests & other measures blocked Black voting & jury service.
• Segregation: ‘Separate but equal’ upheld by Supreme Court; Black Americans faced segregated schools, restaurants, buses.
b. Economic & Employment Inequality
• Wealth & Income: In 1950, white:Black wealth gap = 7:1; Black avg. income in 1957 = 57% of white households.
• Poverty & Jobs: 41% of Black Americans lived in poverty (1959); unemployment = 11% (2× white rate). Black workers confined to poorly paid jobs.
• Housing Discrimination: Housing Authorities blocked Black families from suburban homes, confining them to inferior areas.
c. Violence & Lynchings
• Lynchings: 12 Black Americans lynched (1946-50); beatings common.
• Emmett Till (1955): Murdered in Mississippi after allegedly whistling at a white woman. Killers acquitted but later confessed. Till’s open-casket funeral exposed the brutality worldwide.
d. Everyday Discrimination
• Humiliation: Black men called ‘Boy’; hotels/restaurants refused Black customers.
• Schools: Southern all-Black schools closed during harvest so children could work.
• Facilities: Black bathrooms poorly maintained; located inconveniently from workplaces.
e. Relocation to Northern Cities
• Great Migration: Millions moved North, forming cohesive communities, enabling activism & civil rights groups (NAACP, CORE).
• New Ideas: Exposed to Harlem Renaissance & racial pride.
• Voting Power: Could elect Black officials but still faced discrimination, poverty & violence.
f. Existing Civil Rights Organizations
• NAACP: Founded 1911; 450k members by 1945. Fought lynchings & segregation via legal challenges.
• CORE: Founded 1942 by James Farmer; pioneered sit-ins & integrated bus rides.
g. Double V Confidence (WWII)
• War Contributions: 1m+ Black soldiers served in WWII; campaigned for victory vs fascism & racism.
• Post-War Inequality: Faced attacks, job discrimination & denial of GI Bill benefits. Many Black veterans found themselves unemployed or forced into below-subsistence wages.
The Fight for Civil Rights, 1945–65
1946: Truman & Civil Rights
• Reforms: Truman desegregated armed forces, supported Black workers in civil service, denied contracts to discriminatory firms.
• Civil Rights Committee: Recommended anti-lynching laws, voting rights, & Fair Employment Board; BUT Congress blocked action.
1954:
• Case: NAACP challenged school segregation; Oliver Brown demanded his daughter attend a local white school.
• Outcome: Supreme Court ruled ‘separate but equal’ unconstitutional; declared segregated schools harmful to children.
1955: Revival of the KKK
• Impact of Brown Ruling: Sparked Klan resurgence; linked fears of desegregation, communism & interracial relationships.
• Outcome: Murders, bombings & voter suppression intensified; Klan members shielded by police & courts.
1955:
• Trigger: Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man. Arrest sparked boycott led by Martin Luther King (MIA).
• Resistance: White Citizens Council opposed boycott; KKK bombed King’s house.
• Outcome: Supreme Court ruled bus segregation unconstitutional. Demonstrated Black unity & power BUT boycott revealed depth of white racism. Parks lost her job & had to relocate.
1957:
• Legislation: Banned interference in voting & allowed Black Americans to serve on Federal juries.
• Outcome: King, encouraged, led ‘votes-for-all’ march in Washington, attended by 20k people.
1957:
• Background: Supreme Court did not enforce desegregation; many schools ignored Brown ruling.
• Event: Nine Black students faced violent mobs at Central High School, Little Rock. Army sent to protect them.
• Outcome: Highlighted resistance to integration; few schools desegregated by 1964.
1957: SCLC
• Formation: King founded Southern Christian Leadership Conference to register voters.
• Outcome: Poorly organised; added only 160k Black voters despite aiming for 3m.
1960:
• Event: 4 Black students protested Woolworth’s segregation by sitting at ‘whites-only’ lunch counter.
• Growth: Protests escalated to 50k students across South. Inspired direct-action tactics.
• Outcome: Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) emerged from sit-ins.
1961:
• Aim: CORE & SNCC tested interstate bus desegregation laws.
• Violence: Riders attacked by mobs; one bus firebombed in Alabama.
• Aim: SNCC targeted desegregation with sit-ins and freedom rides.
• Conflict: King joined but clashed with SNCC over leadership. Police avoided violence, arresting 1,000 protesters.
• Outcome: Failure: City closed public amenities rather than desegregate. HOWEVER, aftwards, a Black voter registration drive succeeded, and Albany desegregated in 1962.
1963:
• Aim: King sought desegregation in "America's most segregated city," demanding integrated dining and Black employment.
• Tactics: Sit-ins and marches; King arrested. Involved schoolchildren in protests to provoke police violence.
• Conflict: Police used hoses, dogs, and batons. KKK bombed King’s motel room.
• Outcome: Media outrage forced authorities to desegregate restaurants and later all city facilities.
1963: – "I Have a Dream" Speech
• Scale: King led 250,000 protesters (75,000 white supporters) to Washington’s Lincoln Memorial.
• Message: "I Have a Dream" speech highlighted aspirations for racial equality; ended with "Free at last!"
• Outcome: Speech televised live; King became Civil Rights Movement leader and gained moderate government support.
1963: Simkins v. Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital
• Case: Dentist George Simkins sued a Greensboro hospital for racial discrimination in treatment.
• Ruling: Court of Appeals declared segregated hospitals unconstitutional.
• Outcome: Ended "separate-but-equal" healthcare.
1964:
• Provisions: Banned discrimination based on race, religion, or gender in voter registration, schools, housing, and federal programs.
• Outcome: Landmark legislation in dismantling institutional racism; initial enforcement mechanisms were weak but improved over time.
1965:
• Provisions: Banned literacy tests; enforced voting rights for African Americans.
• Outcome: Massively increased Black voter registration and turnout.
1965:
• Tactics: King used Selma’s violent sheriff Jim Clark to provoke televised brutality.
• Bloody Sunday: On 7 March, police attacked non-violent marchers, sparking national outrage.
• Outcome: Contributed to the passage of the Voting Rights Act in August 1965.
Causes of the Civil Rights Movement
a. Segregation & Jim Crow Laws
• Jim Crow Laws: Enforced segregation; literacy tests & other measures blocked Black voting & jury service.
• Segregation: ‘Separate but equal’ upheld by Supreme Court; Black Americans faced segregated schools, restaurants, buses.
b. Economic & Employment Inequality
• Wealth & Income: In 1950, white:Black wealth gap = 7:1; Black avg. income in 1957 = 57% of white households.
• Poverty & Jobs: 41% of Black Americans lived in poverty (1959); unemployment = 11% (2× white rate). Black workers confined to poorly paid jobs.
• Housing Discrimination: Housing Authorities blocked Black families from suburban homes, confining them to inferior areas.
c. Violence & Lynchings
• Lynchings: 12 Black Americans lynched (1946-50); beatings common.
• Emmett Till (1955): Murdered in Mississippi after allegedly whistling at a white woman. Killers acquitted but later confessed. Till’s open-casket funeral exposed the brutality worldwide.
d. Everyday Discrimination
• Humiliation: Black men called ‘Boy’; hotels/restaurants refused Black customers.
• Schools: Southern all-Black schools closed during harvest so children could work.
• Facilities: Black bathrooms poorly maintained; located inconveniently from workplaces.
e. Relocation to Northern Cities
• Great Migration: Millions moved North, forming cohesive communities, enabling activism & civil rights groups (NAACP, CORE).
• New Ideas: Exposed to Harlem Renaissance & racial pride.
• Voting Power: Could elect Black officials but still faced discrimination, poverty & violence.
f. Existing Civil Rights Organizations
• NAACP: Founded 1911; 450k members by 1945. Fought lynchings & segregation via legal challenges.
• CORE: Founded 1942 by James Farmer; pioneered sit-ins & integrated bus rides.
g. Double V Confidence (WWII)
• War Contributions: 1m+ Black soldiers served in WWII; campaigned for victory vs fascism & racism.
• Post-War Inequality: Faced attacks, job discrimination & denial of GI Bill benefits. Many Black veterans found themselves unemployed or forced into below-subsistence wages.
The Fight for Civil Rights, 1945–65
1946: Truman & Civil Rights
• Reforms: Truman desegregated armed forces, supported Black workers in civil service, denied contracts to discriminatory firms.
• Civil Rights Committee: Recommended anti-lynching laws, voting rights, & Fair Employment Board; BUT Congress blocked action.
1954: BROWN V TOPEKA
• Case: NAACP challenged school segregation; Oliver Brown demanded his daughter attend a local white school.
• Outcome: Supreme Court ruled ‘separate but equal’ unconstitutional; declared segregated schools harmful to children.
1955: Revival of the KKK
• Impact of Brown Ruling: Sparked Klan resurgence; linked fears of desegregation, communism & interracial relationships.
• Outcome: Murders, bombings & voter suppression intensified; Klan members shielded by police & courts.
1955: MONTGOMERY BUS BOYCOTT
• Trigger: Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man. Arrest sparked boycott led by Martin Luther King (MIA).
• Resistance: White Citizens Council opposed boycott; KKK bombed King’s house.
• Outcome: Supreme Court ruled bus segregation unconstitutional. Demonstrated Black unity & power BUT boycott revealed depth of white racism. Parks lost her job & had to relocate.
1957: CIVIL RIGHTS ACT
• Legislation: Banned interference in voting & allowed Black Americans to serve on Federal juries.
• Outcome: King, encouraged, led ‘votes-for-all’ march in Washington, attended by 20k people.
1957: LITTLE ROCK SCHOOL
• Background: Supreme Court did not enforce desegregation; many schools ignored Brown ruling.
• Event: Nine Black students faced violent mobs at Central High School, Little Rock. Army sent to protect them.
• Outcome: Highlighted resistance to integration; few schools desegregated by 1964.
1957: SCLC
• Formation: King founded Southern Christian Leadership Conference to register voters.
• Outcome: Poorly organised; added only 160k Black voters despite aiming for 3m.
1960: GREENSBORO SIT-INS
• Event: 4 Black students protested Woolworth’s segregation by sitting at ‘whites-only’ lunch counter.
• Growth: Protests escalated to 50k students across South. Inspired direct-action tactics.
• Outcome: Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) emerged from sit-ins.
1961: FREEDOM RIDES
• Aim: CORE & SNCC tested interstate bus desegregation laws.
• Violence: Riders attacked by mobs; one bus firebombed in Alabama.
• Aim: SNCC targeted desegregation with sit-ins and freedom rides.
• Conflict: King joined but clashed with SNCC over leadership. Police avoided violence, arresting 1,000 protesters.
• Outcome: Failure: City closed public amenities rather than desegregate. HOWEVER, aftwards, a Black voter registration drive succeeded, and Albany desegregated in 1962.
1963: BIRMINGHAM CAMPAIGN
• Aim: King sought desegregation in "America's most segregated city," demanding integrated dining and Black employment.
• Tactics: Sit-ins and marches; King arrested. Involved schoolchildren in protests to provoke police violence.
• Conflict: Police used hoses, dogs, and batons. KKK bombed King’s motel room.
• Outcome: Media outrage forced authorities to desegregate restaurants and later all city facilities.
1963: WASHINGTON FREEDOM MARCH – "I Have a Dream" Speech
• Scale: King led 250,000 protesters (75,000 white supporters) to Washington’s Lincoln Memorial.
• Message: "I Have a Dream" speech highlighted aspirations for racial equality; ended with "Free at last!"
• Outcome: Speech televised live; King became Civil Rights Movement leader and gained moderate government support.
1963: Simkins v. Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital
• Case: Dentist George Simkins sued a Greensboro hospital for racial discrimination in treatment.
• Ruling: Court of Appeals declared segregated hospitals unconstitutional.
• Outcome: Ended "separate-but-equal" healthcare.
1964: CIVIL RIGHTS ACT
• Provisions: Banned discrimination based on race, religion, or gender in voter registration, schools, housing, and federal programs.
• Outcome: Landmark legislation in dismantling institutional racism; initial enforcement mechanisms were weak but improved over time.
1965: VOTING RIGHTS ACT
• Provisions: Banned literacy tests; enforced voting rights for African Americans.
• Outcome: Massively increased Black voter registration and turnout.
1965: SELMA MARCH
• Tactics: King used Selma’s violent sheriff Jim Clark to provoke televised brutality.
• Bloody Sunday: On 7 March, police attacked non-violent marchers, sparking national outrage.
• Outcome: Contributed to the passage of the Voting Rights Act in August 1965.
