Civil Rights Movement

Flashcards about the Civil Rights Movement

Jackie Robinson

Definition: First African American MLB player in the modern era.

Significance: Broke the color barrier in professional sports and inspired civil rights progress.

Thurgood Marshall

Definition: NAACP lawyer; first Black Supreme Court justice.

Significance: Argued Brown v. Board, helping dismantle school segregation.

Earl Warren

Definition: Supreme Court Chief Justice 

Significance: Led major civil rights rulings including Brown v. Board.

Nonviolent Movement

Definition: Civil rights strategy using peaceful protest.

Significance: Gained public sympathy and moral high ground.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Definition: Supreme Court case that ended school segregation.

Significance: Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson; sparked civil rights activism.

SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee)

Definition: Student-led civil rights group formed in 1960.

Significance: Organized sit-ins, Freedom Rides, and voter registration drives.

Dixiecrats

Definition: Southern Democrats who opposed civil rights in 1948.

Significance: Reflected white Southern backlash to integration.

Sweatt v. Painter (1950)

Definition: Supreme Court ruling that “separate but equal” was inadequate in higher education.

Significance: Helped pave the way for Brown v. Board.

Massive Resistance

Definition: Southern campaign to block school integration.

Significance: Showed how entrenched opposition to civil rights was.

Rosa Parks

Definition: Civil rights activist known for refusing to give up her bus seat

Significance: Her actions sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and became a symbol of the fight against segregation.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Definition: Leader of the civil rights movement and advocate of nonviolence.

Significance: Guided major protests, gave “I Have a Dream” speech, won Nobel Peace Prize.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Definition: Protest against bus segregation after Rosa Parks' arrest.

Significance: Successful desegregation campaign; launched MLK’s leadership.

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

Definition: Civil rights organization led by MLK.

Significance: Coordinated nonviolent protests across the South.

Civil Rights Act of 1957

Definition: First civil rights law since Reconstruction.

Significance: Created a Civil Rights Commission; limited but symbolic step forward.

Civil Rights Act of 1960

Definition: Strengthened voting rights protections.

Significance: Gave federal courts more authority to intervene in voter discrimination.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Definition: Landmark law banning segregation and job discrimination.

Significance: Ended Jim Crow and gave legal power to enforce integration.

Little Rock Nine

Definition: Nine Black students integrated a white high school in Arkansas.

Significance: Faced national attention and forced federal intervention.

Freedom Riders

Definition: Activists who rode interstate buses to test segregation laws.

Significance: Met with violence, gained national support, pushed federal enforcement.

Sit-ins

Definition: Nonviolent protests by students at segregated lunch counters.

Significance: Spread nationwide and led to desegregation in public places.

Robert F. Kennedy

Definition: U.S. Attorney General and civil rights supporter.

Significance: Advocated for desegregation and protected civil rights activists.

James Meredith

Definition: First Black student to integrate University of Mississippi.

Significance: Required federal troops; symbol of federal backing of civil rights.

Eugene “Bull” Connor

Definition: Birmingham police commissioner known for violence against protesters.

Significance: His brutality shocked the public and built support for civil rights legislation.

March on Washington (1963)

Definition: Civil rights rally where MLK gave “I Have a Dream.”

Significance: Showed national unity and helped influence passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Immigration and Nationality Services Act of 1965

Definition: Ended immigration quotas based on national origin.

Significance: Diversified U.S. immigration, especially from Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Freedom Summer (1964)

Definition: Campaign to register Black voters in Mississippi.

Significance: Faced violence; highlighted resistance to Black political participation.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Definition: Banned literacy tests and enabled federal voting oversight.

Significance: Dramatically increased Black voter registration in the South.

Black Power Movement

Definition: Movement emphasizing Black pride and self-reliance.

Significance: Marked shift away from nonviolence; inspired cultural and political activism.

Malcolm X

Definition: Black nationalist and Muslim leader.

Significance: Challenged nonviolent tactics, promoted self-defense and Black pride.

Black Panthers

Definition: Militant civil rights group founded in 1966.

Significance: Fought police brutality and ran community programs; controversial approach.

George Wallace

Definition: Alabama governor known for pro-segregation stance.

Significance: Embodied Southern resistance; symbolized anti-civil rights backlash.