The Civil Rights Movement: Brown v. Board to the Freedom Riders

Essential Questions for Study

• Defining Events: What were the defining events of the Civil Rights Movement?

• Strategic Arguments: What were the arguments for and against the use of nonviolence in the movement?

• Context: These notes correspond to LAP $8$, Class $6$.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954–1955)

• Core Cases:

  • Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, KS ($1954$): The primary Supreme Court ruling addressed in these notes.

  • Brown II ($1955$): A follow-up ruling concerning the implementation of the original decision.

• Visual Documentation: Historical context provided by photographers like Gordon Parks (courtesy of The Gordon Parks Foundation).

• The Supreme Court's Reasoning (Verbatim Quote):

  • The central question presented to the court was: "Does segregation of children in public schools solely on the basis of race, even though the physical facilities and other 'tangible' factors may be equal, deprive the children of the minority group of equal educational opportunities?"

  • The Court's Conclusion: "We believe that it does… To separate [students] from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone… Segregation of white and colored children in public schools has a detrimental effect upon the colored children."

  • The Power of Legal Sanction: The impact of segregation is considered greater when it is sanctioned by law, as the policy of separation is typically interpreted as denoting the inferiority of the Negro group.

  • Educational Impact: A sense of inferiority is recognized to negatively affect a child's motivation to learn.

  • Judicial Doctrine: The court concluded that in the field of public education, the doctrine of "separate but equal" has no place. Separate educational facilities are fundamentally and inherently unequal.

  • Constitutional Violation: The court held that the plaintiffs and others similarly situated were deprived of the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Backlash to the Brown Decision

• Executive Branch Resistance: President Eisenhower refused to endorse or enforce the Supreme Court's ruling.

• Eisenhower’s Critique: He stated that "the Supreme Court decision set back progress in the South at least fifteen ($15$) years."

• Regional Hostility: Hostility mounted significantly in the lower South and in Virginia.

• Legislative Nullification: The Alabama state senate and the Virginia legislature passed resolutions aimed at "nullifying" the Supreme Court’s decision.

• Dual Impact of the Ruling: The decision served as both a catalyst for white resistance and a source of inspiration for activists, as it signaled that the federal government was finally taking action to confront racial discrimination.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–1956)

• The Inciting Incident: On December $1$, $1955$, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white man.

• Organizational Planning: The boycott was planned at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

• Leadership: A $26$-year-old pastor named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was chosen as a leader for the movement.

• Duration and Unity:

  • The boycott lasted for $381$ days.

  • The movement achieved remarkable unity among African Americans.

• Logistics and Tactics:

  • To avoid the bus system, African American men and women utilized carpools, called black-owned taxis, hitchhiked, or simply walked.

  • Some white supporters also provided rides to boycotters.

• Opposition and Backlash: The mass protests were unprecedented and faced severe retaliation, including:

  • Police harassment.

  • Issuing tickets to black carpools.

  • Attacks on black pedestrians by white thugs.

  • KKK members burning black churches.

• Legal Victory: On December $20$, $1956$, the Montgomery boycotters won a federal case they had initiated against racial segregation on public buses.

Integration of Little Rock Central High School (1957)

• The Little Rock Nine: Included nine black students attempting to integrate Central High School.

• State Resistance: Governor Orval Faubus called out the National Guard specifically to prevent the nine black students from entering the school.

• Individual Bravery: Elizabeth Eckford ($15$ years old) famously attempted to enter the school alone.

• Federal Intervention: President Eisenhower reluctantly dispatched $1000$ army troops to protect the students as they entered the school.

• Ongoing Obstruction: Following the initial integration, schools in Little Rock were closed until $1959$ in a continued effort to prevent integration.

Growth and Organizational Momentum

• Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC):

  • A civil rights organization formed by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

  • Championed nonviolent direct action as the primary means of ending segregation.

  • Functioned as a coordinator for activities on behalf of various individual churches and community groups.

• Student-Led Activism:

  • Greensboro Four: Initiated the Sit-in Movement.

  • Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC): A key organization for young activists.

• Freedom Riders: Activists who worked toward the integration of interstate transportation facilities.