Studied by 8 people
Black American civil rights 1917-1980
What percentage of black Americans lived in the south?
1917- 80%
What segregation and discrimination did black people face in the south? (5)
Impoverished sharecroppers
All aspects of life (schools, restaurants, prisons) were segregated (Jim Crow laws)
‘Separate but equal’- but black facilities inferior
Black people had to pay expensive poll taxes and pass literacy tests to vote
Fear of being lynched
Who was Booker T. Washington?
Regarded economic imporvement and education as the first necessary step for blacks- until this was achieved he believed they should accept segregation
Who was W.E.B. Du Bois?
Aimed at legal and political equality- established the NAACP which promoted black equality and desegregation through the law courts
When was the NAACP created? (2)
1909
1945- 450,000 members
What was the Great Migration?
1910- 2 million AAs migrated to northern cities
What caused the Great Migration? (3)
Better paid jobs in the north
Would be able to vote
Unlikely to be lynched
Where did black Americans live in the north?
Ghettos- hard to get out due to discrimination and limited education
What was the impact of the great depression on black Americans?
Last hired, first fired- white Americans moved into jobs previously dominated by black Americans
What riots happened in Chicago?
Race riots after WW1 (1919)- 40 killed
Who was Marcus Garvey?
Founded the UNIA in 1914 to make blacks proud of themselves- established in Harlem. He supported separatism
How did the KKK recruit?
Increased recruitment after 1915- helped by Birth of a nation. By 1925- they had 5 million members
In what ways did the New Deal fail to help black Americans? (3)
Roosevelt was reliant on southern Democrats, so failed to support anti-lynching bills
AAA removed black tenants from land
Social Security Act didn’t apply to farm or domestic work
In what ways did the New Deal succeed in helping black Americans? (4)
Disproportionate number of poor kids were black so New Deal programmes helped greatly
1 million black Americans obtained jobs
Promoted black Americans to senior positions in government (black cabinet)
1/3 of black Americans received FERA aid
What were the positive effects of WW2? (4)
Many black servicemen were based in Britain where they experienced less prejudice
The fight against Nazi Germany inspired more black Americans to campaign against their own lack of freedom and equality
1942- CORE established
Able to take advantage of GI Bill
What were the negative effects of WW2? (3)
American forces remained segregated
Trade unions continued to exclude black Americans
Many white workers resented black workers- race riots
What committee did Truman set up?
1946 To Secure These Rights- called for an end to segregation
When were the armed forces desegregated?
1948
What methods did Walter White use in the NAACP? (3)
Worked with trade unionists, churches and white liberals to promote anti-lynching bills
Mobilised southern blacks for the abolition of the poll tax
Thurgood Marshall
What was Smith v Allwright?
1944- easier for black Americans to vote in the south
What was Brown v Board?
1954- schools should be desegregated, reversing Plessy v Ferguson, but no time limit was given
What did CORE organise?
Sit-ins at segregated Chicago restaurants
‘Freedom Rides’ 1961
What was the Montgomery bus boycott? (4)
1955
Rosa Parks refused to give up her ‘white’ seat
Boycott lasted over a year
75% of bus users were black- 90% stayed away from buses
SOUTHERN
Who was murdered in 1955?
Emmett Till- his murderers were acquitted, so his mother held an open casket funeral
SOUTHERN
How did urbanisation help the civil rights movement?
Increased black consciousness
Harlem Renaissance
How quickly did states react to Brown v Board?
70% of northern states had desegregated within a year
1% of black children in integrated schools in the deep south
What happened in Little Rock? (4)
1957
9 black children sent to attend Central High
Governor of Arkansas stopped this
Eisenhower sent in federal troops
SOUTHERN
When were civil rights acts passed?
1957 (voting) and 1964 (discrimination)
What was Martin Luther King’s organisation?
1957- Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), influenced by Gandhi
What were sit-ins? (5)
1960
Greensboro
Sat in at Woolworths lunch counter in North Carolina
Copied across the South
SNCC created shortly after
SOUTHERN
What was the march on Washington?
1963
250,000 people
‘I have a dream’ speech
Good publicity
What was in the 1964 civil rights act? (4)
Equal Employment Commission
Desegregation of schools
Outlawed segregation in public facilities
Strengthened black American voting rights
What was in the 1968 civil rights act?
Banned discrimination in housing
What were the Northern Riots? (3)
1964-68
Riots in ghettos over poverty and de facto segregation
1965 LA- 34 killed and 900 injured
Who was Malcom X? (2)
Important voice in black power movement
Nation of Islam
Stressed the evil nature of white people
How many people were in the NOI?
40,000
When was Malcom X assassinated?
1965 by members of the NOI
Who was Stokely Carmichael? (3)
Leader of SNCC
Popularised slogans such as ‘Black Power’ and ‘Black is beautiful’
Didn’t think that non-violence was working
Who were the Black Panthers? (5)
Founded by ex-criminals in 1966
Sought confrontation with the police
Only had around 5,000 members
Emphasised self-help
Established clinics to advise on health, welfare and legal rights
How did King stress economic justice?
Demanded a fairer distribution of wealth
Why did white Americans oppose King’s northern strategy?
Didn’t want to pay more taxes
Didn’t want to live next door to black Americans
When was King assassinated?
1968
What were the consequences of King’s assassination 1968? (4)
125 ghettos erupted in rage
70,000 troops were needed to end the riots
$70 million of property damage
20,000 arrested
What did the Civil Rights movement manage to achieve? (6)
Segregation and most forms of discrimination came to an end
Most white supremacists were removed from office
Increase in their political power
Affirmative action programmes
Bussing introduced
1980- 1/3 of black Americans categorised as middle class
Why was the Civil Rights campaign successful? (5)
US presidents (like Johnson) helped a lot
Supreme Court verdicts were crucial
Media coverage
NAACP, CORE, SNCC, SCLC
Individuals
How did the Civil Rights movement face white backlash? (3)
Lost white sympathy following the Northern riots
Whites disliked affirmative action programmes and bussing
Nixon cut back on Johnson’s Poverty programmes
Note 
Flashcard (65)