USA: topic 2 religion and race

bible belt states

many southern states of america that are very religious, very rural, with small communities. contrasted with more urban, diverse northern states. lots of fundamentalists.

fundamentalism

very strong belief in the bible. they believe in everything the bible says, word for word.

what was the monkey trial

biology teacher john scopes taught his students evolution even though it was illegal, then he was put on a trial which ended up being a debate between fundamentalists and modernists. although he lost the trial, it was seen as a win for modernists because the media mocked the beliefs of those who opposed the theory of evolution.

bulter act

a 1925 Tennessee law that banned the teaching of evolution in schools.

when did slavey end in america and why is this important?

1865- pretty recent, views on the place of black people in society hadnt changed much.

jim crow laws

southern states in america created laws to restrict/ limit the lives of black americans. these laws created segregation.

e.g. segregation at taxis, race tracks and boxing matches.

what happened between 1915 and 1922?

more than 430 black americans were lynched.

what does lynched mean

hung by an angry mob/ crowd of people.

what was the ku klux klan?

a violent white supremacy organisation

what were the origins of the kkk?

• set up after the civil war in 1860 but died out.

• was revived after the release of the film “the birth of a nation”

what did the kkk believe in and what were their aims?

• WASPS, saw themselves as superior

• anti-communist, anti-black, anti-jewish, anti-catholic, and against all foreigners

• wanted to kill andyone “un-american”

• “the foreigners were ruining the country”

how did the kkk’s membership increase? (stat)

in 1920, the klan had 100,000 members

by 1925, it claimed to have more that 5 million

what was the birth of a nation film and why was it important to the kkk?

the birth of a nation (1915) was set in the south after the american civil war and portrayed the klan saving white families from gangs of black people. the film attracted huge audiences and increased the klans popularity.

what other factors led to an increase in the klans membership?

• industrialistaion- brought more workers to cities

• many workers from eastern+ southern erurope/ black americans migrating from southern states to cities in north

• southern white people resented arming of black soldiers during ww1.

what methods did the klan use to intimidate their enemies?

• carried out lynchings

• sometimes stripped their victims and put tar and feathers on them.

how was the kkk organised?

• organised by state, each state had its own kkk leader

• dressed in white robes and hats to symbolise white supremacy.

why were the kkk able to carry out their violent methods?

many members were people in power like politicians or head of states.

why did the kkk decline in the later 20’s?

the kkk declined after 1925 when one of its leaders, the grand wizard David Stephenson was sent to prison.

what was the NAACP’s purpose?

its purpose was to challenge white supremacy, end segregation laws, and make black people aware of their civil rights, including the right to vote.

what does NAACP stand for?

national association for the advancement of coloured people

who led the NAACP

W.E.B DuBois

when was the NAACP set up

1909

statistic for NAACP membership

by 1919, they had 90,000 members in 300 branches

what does UNIA stand for?

universal negro improvement association

who set up the UNIA

marcus garvey

when was the UNIA set up

1914

statistic on membership for the UNIA

by 1920 it had 2,000 members, and at its peak, it had about 250,000 members

beliefs of the UNIA

beliefs were that black people shouldnt try to be part of white society, but celebrate themselves and their african past.

main phrase for UNIA

back to africa

what did marcus garvey of UNIA encourage?

he encouraged people to set up their own businesses employing only black people, or even go back to africa to “establish a country and government of their own”.

what idea did the UNIA pass taken up by the b;lack power movement of the 1960s?

black is beautiful

why did the great migration happen

many balck americans were faced by racism and often living in extreme poverty, so many moved to the north to find a bettre life.

how many people moved in the great migration

between 1916 and 1920, almost 1 million black americans left the south ofr jobs in the north.

an example of some progress after the great migration

the ford motor company employed only 50 black people in 1916, but by 1926 it had employed 10,000.

what happened in 1919 due to the great migration

after northern white americans feared competition for jobs and housing, tension grew, leading to, in 1919, race riots, resulting in 62 deaths and hundreds of injuries. the worst were in chicago and washington DC.

what improvement for black people happened in 1930

there was a growing black middle class in chicago+ new york. in chicago in 1930, black people boycotted department stores until they agreed to employ black assistants.

one imporvement for black people relating to music

jazz brought fame to many black musicians- e.g. louis armstrong

improvement for black people: harlem, new york became a centre of…

harlem, new york became a centre of harlem renissance for black singers, musicians, artists, writers and poets

change in life expectancy for black people from 1900 to 1930

life expectancy for black people increased from 45 in 1900 to 48 in 1930

the eugenics project

created to manage native americans, in vermont+ new hampshire. it destroyed native american culture+ ways of life.

special boarding schools for native americans

special boarding schools were opened for native american children, encouraging them to not speak their own language and convert to christanity.

they were an attempt to bring cultural assimilation by education.#

thousands of native american children were taken away from their families.

1928 meriam report

stated that special boarding schools for native americans were a harsh, underfunded failure+ recommended supporting indigenous culture instead of forcing assimilation

native americans were only recognised by white societies when…

native americans were only recognised by white societies while demonstrating their crafts, speaking their languages, or performing in stereotypical costumes.

reservations (for native americans)

by the 20th centuary, Native American tribes were forced to move onto specific, restricetd pieces of land by the government, called restrictions.

1924 indian citizenship

granted Native Americans full american citizenship