Life for African Americans

• Types

  • Social: 

    • Segregation of public facilities

    • Plessy vs. Ferguson’s law 

      • Separate but equal 

      • But people don't follow the equal part, just separate 

  • Economical: 

    • African Americans making less money even if they are doing the same job as someone else, they cant get the job, no promotions 

  • Political: 

    • voting and registering to vote 

  • Education 

    • Impacts people in all of the areas (socially, politically, and economically)

• Two Types of Segregation 

  • De Facto 

    • Segregation by nature 

    • It is not a law, just a practice of segregation

  • De Jure 

    • Segregation by law 

  • De jure is easier to combat because it is by law 

• Song: “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday

  • A song that talked about the issue of civil rights

  • At this time there were no federal lynching law, so she will bring to light that lynching was a major issue 

  • Between 1880 and 1965, there is 5k lynching that were reported 

    • 10% were in Mississippi 

  • Strange fruit: the people who were lynched 

  • 2nd Verse: It shows the juxtaposition of idealistic vision of the south vs AA lives in the south

Experiences as an AA: Events that lead civil rights to be spread on a national scale

• Killing of 14 year old boy 

  • Emmett Till

    • 14 year old kid that grew up and lived in Chicago 

    • He will go down to Mississippi to stay with his uncles and cousin for the summer 

  • Emmet Till one day goes into a store with his cousins to buy something

  • The woman they meet in the store accused Emmet for flirting with her by saying “bye baby” when she leaves 

  • In the middle of the night later that day, two men with a gun and flashlight, go to his house and bring him to a barn where beat and shoot him and tie him to van that will make him drown 

    • They knew it was him because he was wearing a ring that his mom identified 

  • The uncle saw the two men so this went to trial 

  • The Trial

    • The jury was all white for the case 

    • The courtroom was segregated that his mom has to sit on the other side 

    • The uncle says that those were the two men, and the jury talks 

    • The jury talks, but then two men get released no charge 

  • A guy who owned a magazine came up to them and they both told him the whole story but they couldn't get in trouble for this because of double jeopardy

  • The Funeral 

    • His mom makes the funeral an open casket because his mom wants to show people the horror 

    • This brings national attention to this issue of lynching

• Children’s Crusade: Birmingham, Alabama 

  • “Let us rise to the call of freedom loving blood that is in us and send our answer to the tyranny that clanks its chains upon the SOuth. In the names of the greatest people that have ever trod this earth…” - George Wallace , Alabama Governor 1963

    • This shows that he is a big racist 

  • Kids who are going to be protesting for civil right cases 

  • May 1963 

    • Kids will be organized by many civil rights groups 

    • They protest 

    • 2,000 kids will get arrested as apart of this children’s crusade 

      • It gets worse when the police gets brutal with the kids 

        • Spraying them with high water pressure and using dogs on them 

  • This brings attention to the state government vs the federal government

    • Conflicts with fed govt and state govt 

• 16th Street Baptists Church (1963)

  • Widows of the church is broken

  • A bunch of girls are getting ready for choir in the basement of the church 

  • A bomb goes off outside of the church 

    • 4 girls (ages 11-14) are killed 

      • It is believed that members of the KKK did this but it never went to trial because no one will speak 

        • White people were not going to give this info up, and AA did not speak because they were scared that they were going to get killed next 

  • 1977: First time KKK gets convicted 

  • 2001: Second time KKK gets convicted 

  • This not only shows kids getting hurt, but also kids getting killed bringing more national attention to these problems

Education

• Social

  • Learning about other people and cultural elements 

  • Also learning how to socially interact

• Economic

  • School is to make you a productive member of the workforce 

• Political

  • When it comes to teachers we have, what we learn, it is decided by an elected body 

  • All decisions are made at a political level 

• Brown V. Board of Education

  • Direct challenge to plessy vs. ferguson 

  • Fact: 21 states have segregated schools by law in 1954 and many others practice de facto segregation of schools 

  • Schools for AA 

    • Shorter school year for AA 

    • Less education 

    • Teachers are paid less 

  • State governments are working against the schools for AA 

    • “I do not believe in Negroes and whites associating with each other socially or in our school systems, and as long as I am governor, it won't happen here.” - Gov. Herman Talmadge, Georgia 

  • A little girl has a segregated school so instead of 4 blocks she has to walk a lot further

• 1954: they decided to desegregate schools 

• Gradual Desegregation: start with one school in one city and then see how it was and go from there 

  • Little Rock Nine 

    • 9 black students will be handpicked to go to an all white schools 

    • Safety: all 9 girls meet up to walk together 

      • Elizabeth Eckfort did not meet up with the group 

        • Adults were verbally harassing her while going to school 

          • Now the fed government will get involved 

  • Esienhower will use the military to integrate these policies 

    • Federal military will escort AA into school 

• Southern Manifesto: a document that will stop the integration of schools (or Gradual Desegregation)

  • Ole Miss(issippi) University Integration

    • James Meredith

      • Served in the air force for 9 years 

      • Tries to enroll in 1961

      • Ultimately he will be stopped enrolling by the prez of school and govt of mississippi 

        • The federal government will get involved to force them to let him enroll 

          • A riot will break out in Ole Miss University that will attack federal marshals 

          • 27 get shot, 2 die 

Social Discrimination

• Montgomery Bus Boycott 

  • Montgomery Bus Laws: 

    • AA sitting in the front of the bus and a white person gets on, AA has to move to the back 

    • AA has to use the back of the bus exit and not the actual stairs to the buss 

  • Because of these segregation, people want to protest 

    • MLK creates groups for protests 

  • Rosa Parks is the immediate spark for this bc she sits at the front of the buss

  • Boycotts work because they force the person to lose money 

    • In this case, the city will lose money because they own the busses

    • 75% who ride the busses are AA 

    • Because MLK and other leaders are able to give 100% boycott form everyone, 1.1 Million dollars are lost from the buss rides 

  • People still needs to get to work so people carpool or walk 

  • Southern Christian Leader Conference (SCLC) 

    • Get made from the Montgomery Bus Laws 

    • Headed by MLK until he dies 

    • Major Civil rights group

• Greensboro Sit-ins 

  • This was over policies and practices over department stores 

  • In these department stores there were a lot of rules

    • AA couldn't try on clothing 

  • But now this changes, and AA are not allowed to be served or sit at a lunch counter 

    • 4 college students are going to one of the lunch counters (in greensboro, north carolina) and they will stage a non-violent protest

      • They don't demand to be served 

      • They don't cause a problem 

        • They sit down and do their hw and read books 

      • First day they do it, nothing happens

      • 2nd day, they get mobbed 

      • AA who participated in these got arrested 

  • This first started in NC, then Tennessee 

  • Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

    • Gets made from the Greensboro Sit ins 

    • Headed by John Louis 

      • College student who is an influential AA leader 

        • He becomes a congressman in the US 

• Freedom Rides 

  • 1946: SCOTUS said “you cannot segregate interstate busses” 

    • Problem: federal government can’t enforce the law 

      • South of DC, lots of these busses were segregated 

        • ex) AA tried to get on one of these busses and they couldn't get inside the bus stop because they weren't allowed

  • AA + white people boycott 

    • They board busses 

    • This was an interracial group + different religious backgrounds 

  • They will ride these busses across the states to get Federal Government to enforce these laws 

  • They get so much hate that one person bombed a buss

    • No one got hurt because they all escaped 

  • James Peck 

    • Was one of the riders 

    • His buss was mobbed and he got almost murdered 

  • Because of James Peck, Federal Government started to enforce federal troops to make sure there was interracial buss rides 

Economic Discrimination

• Job opportunities were different for AA

• March on Washington 

  • MLK speech was during this 

    • A number of people will speak other than MLK

  • The official name March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom 

    • They also protested for housing 

    • They also included white people in this movement

  • This was all in support of a civil rights bill 

  • They want to force Kennedy to back the bill in hopes that it will get passed 

  • 250k + people will show up to washington DC (some people from southern states walked to DC) 

• Civil Rights Act of 1964: Bans discrimination based on race, sex, and other stuff like that 

  • When it comes to hiring and firing, you cannot base it on race 

  • President Johnson signed this 

• Redlining: maps that determine how good the area is 

  • Formal practice from 1930-1970s 

  • Determines where people live 

  • They will create maps that will show the areas where there is good access to everything

    • They will color code it to least to worst favorable to live in 

      • Red areas were the worst place to live 

  • They will only give you loans based on what you look like (African Americans) 

  • Now, you just need money; then you needed to be a certain color or how you look like 

  • Federal government makes these maps 

  • Generational effect of Redline: it will make the next generation worse or better depending on the price or location of the house because if they are in a worse area, less money will come in to fund the public works/police and vice versa for those areas who have more income. It also makes an impact on education because based on the amount of money the town has will fund education as well 

• Civil RIghts Act 1968: Cannot refuse to sell, rent, or negotiate because of their Race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, disability

Political Discrimination 

• Selma March 

  • A way to tackle political discrimination (voting AND registering to vote)

  • It will get massive media attention and National attention

  • Multiple organizations will come together on this issue 

  • Edmund Pettus Bridge 

    • John louis: leader of march 

      • He will stand at this bridge 

    • The will march from Selma to montgomery 

    • Police will use tear gas on women and children/men that are marching

      • They also use police horses to chase them away 

• Chart in GC:

  • After the civil war, there is a high amount of AA legislators during the reconstruction era 

  • After, there are zero AA legislators 

  • Why?

    • Amount of blacks registered to be able to vote is low 

      • ex) mississippi: 6% of blacks are registered to vote 

    • During this time, you could only register to vote in person 

      • The place was only open 9-4pm on weekdays 

        • People are working during this time and if AA skipped work to register, they will be fired

    • They also at this time needed literacy tests to register to vote and many of the AA during this time were not well educated

• Voting Rights Act of 1965: It gives the federal government the ability to oversee elections

  • Normally it was overseen by the states, but now the fed govt makes sure that AA can register to vote and eliminate literacy tests to allow for AA voting rights from the start (registering to vote) 

    • This works well 

• Changes to the Movement 

  • It used to be non violent (everything in the notes up to here were non violent protests) 

  • But now there is integration of violence 

  • MLK and Malcolm X

    • MLK

      • He lived a stable life 

      • He didn't see much racial segregation in his own life but knew it was going on 

      • He was educated 

        • PhD

    • Malcolm X 

      • He winds up on the streets 

      • He goes to jail 

    • Non-Violence Vs Violence 

      • Harlem 

        • AA gets arrested and gets beat up by the cops 

        • People protest this in LA to the point where there were riots and burning down buildings 

      • 1967 Newark, NJ

        • AA gets arrested 

        • Protests start because he gets arrested 

        • There was an rumor that this AA gets killed in custody (rumor not true) 

        • There were riots that took place in Newark so much that the Federal government had to intervene 

        • The military got involved to calm down these riots 

  • Stokely Carmichael 

    • He was one of the freedom riders who rode busses into the south to get fed government to force no segregation on bus 

    • 1966: he is the head of SNCC 

    • He will coin a phrase (Black Power) and work alongside MLK 

      • James Meredith: AA who tried to go to Ole Miss Uni and integrate the school 

        • At this point James is out of college 

        • Stages a march along Mississippi 

        • He gets shot, but not killed 

        • SNCC led by Carmichael and SCLC lead by MLK joined forces 

    • Black Power: be proud of who you are 

      • MLK does not like this term because he does not want people to higher than other but to be equal 

      • Black power makes it so one party is higher than the other

  • Black Panther Parties: political party 

    • Forms in late 1960 because of the assassination of Malcolm X 

    • It was formed to protect AA civil rights leaders 

    • They are known for having guns because of self defense 

      • Americans are fearful because AA have guns, so it is seen as radical 

    • Seen as a radical group because they have guns but it really isn't because they are using their 2nd american rights 

    • 10 Point plan: seen as radical, but it's just really wanting their basic rights 

      • Full employment for their people

        • End economic equality 

      • Decent housing 

      • Education for our people that exposes true nature of society 

        • Reality of education then: america is the best society and whites are better than blacks

      • Want to have a jury that is their own people (ex. Because of Emitt Till trial) 

    • Kids + Free meals 

      • They want people to provide free breakfast for school aged kids 

      • They give kids all over free meals 

      • Back then the government did not provide meals to those who couldn't afford it (like we do now) 

        • Black panthers start this

Nixon: Drug Policy 

• Nixion believed that public enemy #1 is Drug Abuse 

• They want to eliminate drug abuse 

  • The make a Schedule Chart

• Comprehensive Drug Act: this categorize drugs 

  • Which one is used for medical use (prescribed dosage) 

  • How addictive the drug is 

  • Marijuana is Schedule 1

• Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA): going after people using drugs, distributing drugs, or making drugs 

• During this time, there were many more drug arrests for AA than white people

  • This was more because of Reagan 

    • He increased funding for DEA and FBI drug enforcement 

      • Before he funds them: 8 million 

      • After: 95 million dollars 

    • His wife, creates “Just Say no” Campaign 

• Glen Bais 

  • #1 basketball player 

    • He gets drafted for the NBA 

    • 22 yrs kid goes out and party the night he gets drafted 

    • He dies from a drug overdose 

    • This gets national attention and this is a call for attention to drugs and getting them off the streets 

  • This creates the drug laws to become even more strict 

• This creates the Mandatory Minimum 

  • Crack cocaine: mixed with other drug, so not as strong and cheaper 

    • Because it is cheaper, poorer people will buy it and this was mainly AA 

    • Crack cocaine, you only needed 5 grams to get 5 years but for powder you need 500 grams (1 lbs) to get 5 years so people who were at an economic disadvantage were usually getting in more trouble/jailed.

  • Powder cocaine: plane drug and more money so wealthier people would buy this (white people) 

• Federal Prison Population increased

  • They thought that if they put them in jail, it will help them rehabilitate from the addition of jobs 

  • The US had the most jailed people 

• Systemic Racism: a system in which creates Racism 

  • The drug list and how much you needed for each to go to jail 

  • If you wanted to get into the legal drug business, you couldn't if you got a record on you 

Rodney King 

• 1991

• Goes out and parties 

• Going home, gets pulled over, but he will try to escape by speeding away from them

  • They thing it is DUI 

  • He actually is drunk 

• This would have not gone viral if he didn't get pulled over right next to the filmers house 

• Outcome: he is hit 57 times by a batton 

  • They accused him for being high on PCP

  • He gets a broken leg 

  • He was tasered 

• Higher police gets involved and this goes to trial

  • The 4 police officers that went to trial get acquitted 

    • People are outraged that the police get let off so easily 

• This event really showed how LAPD really treated African Americans during this time 

Millions Man March

• Multiple civil right organizations working together to put this together 

• Those who could not go, they told them to just take off from work to show AA unity 

• Statistic for AA

  • Poverty rate for AA 40% 

  • Murders at a rate of 72:100,000, white people 9:100,000

  • AA made 60% of what white people made in the workforce

• Federal funding gets cut for head start programs, inter-city hospitals (mostly served for people of color)

• Goal: bring light to the 3 strikes that AA are born with (so the speakers at the Million Man March said) 

  • Insufficient Prenatal care 

  • Inferior education opportunities 

  • Jobless parents 

• Maya Angelou 

  • She wrote a poem

  • Wanted to be in unity, wanted there to be better opportunities for children 

Trayvon Martin 

• 16 year old kid lives in florida 

• Suspended from school for a week because they found marajuana residue in his backpack 

• He goes in the convenient store that night to buy ice tea and skittles, he the walks back home 

  • He walks back in these community 

• George Zimmerman 

  • See suspicious (Trayvon Martin) AA kid with a hood 

  • He calls the police 

    • They tell him not to follow trayvon 

  • But he does follow Martin 

  • Martin runs away → Zimmarman shoots him  

  • Martin was UNARMED 

  • Stand Your Ground Law 

    • You can defend yourself 

    • Trayvon does not get arrested because he claimed self defense

      • Judge says he can be judged by a judge, or go to a jury 

        • He chooses jury 

          • Jury finds him not guilty 

            • He walks away free 

Eric Garner 

• 2014 

• Long Island NYC 

• He was in trouble with the law previously for selling cigarettes 

  • It was against the law for selling cigarettes because they were unfazed cigarettes 

• One day these police officers show up and arrest him for selling cigarettes

• Eric is put in a chokehold and winds up dying from suffocation and pressure on his chest 

• There was an investigation taken place 

  • Outcome: there was no criminal offence filed against him 

    • NYPD are not allowed to choke hold them like this like this is not in their rules so they fire 

Black Lives Matter 

• Forms after Trayvon Martin 

• 3 women grows this through twitter 

• Message of movement: respect AA lives 

  • But at times, there were various forms of protests that are very violent 

• Minneapolis MN, storefront being burned down 

  • Owned by AA 

  • Winds up getting destroyed 

  • People claim that they were in the BLM accidentally burnt the store down