Civil Rights Movement: Key Tactics and Legal Milestones

  • Civil Rights Movement Tactics Overview

    • Focus on strategies used by activists in the 1950s and 1960s.

  • Double V Campaign

    • African Americans fought for victories abroad and at home during WWII.
    • Key achievements:
    • Tuskegee Airmen and Red Ball Express service.
    • Fair Employment Practices Committee improved hiring for blacks.
    • Executive Order 9981 initiated military desegregation.

  • Court Cases

    • Major legal victories established groundwork for civil rights:
    • Smith v. Allwright: Race-restrictive primaries are illegal.
    • Shelley v. Kraemer: Segregated housing covenants invalid.
    • Morgan v. Virginia: Interstate bus segregation illegal.
    • Sweatt v. Painter: Segregation at University of Texas law school ruled illegal.
    • Brown v. Topeka BOE: Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson.

  • Boycotts

    • Montgomery Bus Boycott led by Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks.
    • Other efforts: Birmingham businesses and Albany, GA shops against segregation.

  • Sit-Ins

    • Greensboro sit-ins sparked similar actions at lunch counters nationwide.
    • Demonstrations met with strong opposition from segregationists.

  • Freedom Rides

    • Fueled by planned bus trips challenging segregated transportation.
    • Multiple routes focused on integrating bus services in the South.

  • Marches

    • Bloody Sunday in Selma highlighted brutality against peaceful protestors.
    • Large marches such as Selma to Montgomery aimed at pressing for voting rights.
    • The March on Washington featured King's iconic "I Have a Dream" speech.

  • Leadership Perspectives

    • Martin Luther King Jr.: Advocate for non-violent resistance.
    • Voices like Malcolm X proposed armed self-defense and direct action post-King's death.

  • Civil Rights Acts and Legal Outcomes

    • 1964 Civil Rights Act: Ended racial discrimination in public places and employment.
    • 1965 Voting Rights Act: Eliminated discriminatory voting practices.
    • 1968 Fair Housing Act: Banned racially discriminatory housing practices.
    • Major cases bolstered civil rights legally, including Browder v. Gayle (bus segregation), Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg (busing for integration), and Loving v. Virginia (interracial marriage).
    • Thurgood Marshall became first black Supreme Court Justice in 1967 after significant legal successes.