History Study Guide

USII Honors: Civil Rights Test Study Guide (Chapter 29)

Test Date: Tuesday 3/17 (Block F)
Block: F

Part 1 - The Movement Begins

Terms

  • Jim Crow Laws: Laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States. They segregated public facilities, including buses, trains, schools, restaurants, swimming pools, parks, and various other public services.

  • Emmett Till: A 14-year-old African American boy who was brutally lynched in Mississippi in 1955 after allegedly whistling at a white woman, an act that highlighted the extreme racial violence of the era.

  • Southern Manifesto: A document signed in 1956 by a group of Southern members of Congress, which opposed the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) that declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional.

  • Little Rock Nine: A group of nine African American students who volunteered to integrate Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas in September 1957, becoming a focal point for the struggle against segregation.

Questions

  1. Supreme Court Case of 1896: The 1896 court decision, Plessy v. Ferguson, legalized racial segregation in the United States by declaring segregation constitutional. This ruling established the "Separate but Equal" doctrine, which allowed laws segregating African Americans as long as the facilities provided were purportedly equal.

  2. Preventing African Americans from Voting in Southern States: Southern states implemented various discriminatory practices such as Jim Crow laws, poll taxes, literacy tests, and understanding clauses. Additionally, intimidation tactics were used, including violence from white supremacist groups to scare African Americans away from voting.

  3. Supreme Court Case on School Segregation: The 1954 case, Brown v. Board of Education, ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. It proved that separate educational facilities were inherently unequal, leading to a push for desegregation across America.

  4. Little Rock Crisis: In Little Rock, Arkansas, Governor Orval Faubus deployed the National Guard to prevent the Little Rock Nine from entering the integrated Central High School, as white mobs sought to intimidate and harass the students. This violent response led President Eisenhower to intervene, sending U.S. Army troops to protect the students and enforce federal law.

  5. Eisenhower's Vision for Desegregation: Initially, President Eisenhower favored gradual, state-led desegregation and aimed to avoid federal intervention. However, during the Little Rock crisis, he recognized the need to uphold federal law, which led him to deploy the 101st Airborne Division to assist the integration of Central High School.

  6. Experience of the Little Rock Nine: The Little Rock Nine faced severe physical and verbal abuse, including instances of being pushed down stairs, burned with acid, and verbally harassed by white students. Elizabeth Eckford, one of the students, encountered this violence alone due to miscommunication about meeting with her peers, facing a hostile mob and armed National Guardsmen by herself.

  7. Trial after Emmett Till's Death: Emmett Till's murderers, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam, were acquitted by an all-white jury after a very brief deliberation. A fair trial was not possible due to systemic racial injustice, biased legal frameworks, and the prevalent extreme racial prejudices of the time.

  8. Emmett Till's Funeral: Emmett Till's funeral was held in Chicago and featured an open casket, as his mother, Mamie Till, wanted to reveal the extent of racial violence. By displaying her son's mutilated body, the gesture compelled the public to confront the harsh reality of racial brutality, prompting a new generation to rise against injustices.

Part 2 - Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK)

Terms

  • SCLC: The Southern Christian Leadership Conference, founded in 1957, aimed to eliminate segregation in American society and encourage African Americans to register to vote.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1964: Enacted on July 2, 1964, this landmark legislation outlawed segregation in most public accommodations and ensured equal access for all citizens, regardless of race or ethnicity.

  • Voting Rights Act of 1965: This act authorized federal examiners to oversee voting practices, especially in the South, and eliminated discriminatory voting methods like literacy tests.

Questions

  1. Montgomery Bus Seating Arrangements: On Montgomery buses, seating was segregated such that front seats were reserved for white passengers and African Americans were required to sit at the rear. Rosa Parks violated this system by refusing to give up her seat to a white man, which led to her arrest when the bus driver called the police.

  2. Civil Rights Leaders' Response to Rosa Parks' Actions: Civil rights leaders aimed to harness Rosa Parks' defiance by organizing a year-long bus boycott that lasted for 381 days and creating a legal test case to challenge segregation. These efforts severely impacted the bus company’s profits, promoted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a national leader, and culminated in a 1956 Supreme Court ruling that deemed bus segregation unconstitutional.

  3. Dr. King's Role in Birmingham: Dr. King and the SCLC were invited to Birmingham to combat the city’s strict segregation laws. They employed nonviolent tactics, including sit-ins and boycotts, leading to the desegregation of downtown businesses and contributing to the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

  4. March on Washington: The March on Washington, held on August 23, 1963, was a massive peaceful protest that drew approximately 250,000 participants advocating for civil rights and equality. The major themes of Dr. King's “I Have a Dream” speech included a call for equality, the importance of nonviolence, the need for interracial unity, and the urgency for civil rights action.

  5. Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama: On March 7, 1965, around 600 nonviolent civil rights demonstrators attempted to march from Selma to Montgomery to demand equal voting rights, spurred by the violent death of Jimmie Lee Jackson. Upon reaching Edmund Pettus Bridge, they encountered a blockade formed by state troopers and local law enforcement; when they refused to disperse, they were met with brutal violence, including the use of tear gas and billy clubs.

  6. Media Coverage of Bloody Sunday: The media coverage of Bloody Sunday shocked the American public by broadcasting the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators directly into homes nationwide. This led to public outrage and increased pressure on President Johnson to address voting discrimination, ultimately resulting in his proposal for the Voting Rights Act just days later.

Part 3 - Challenging Segregation

Terms

  • Sit-in: A nonviolent form of protest in which individuals refuse to leave a location, such as a restaurant, when denied service, thereby highlighting the issue of segregation in public spaces.

  • Freedom Riders: Integrated groups of African Americans and whites who traveled into the deeply segregated Southern United States to draw attention to violations of Supreme Court rulings that banned segregation in interstate bus terminals.

Questions

  1. SNCC: The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee formed in 1960, comprised of college students who aimed to coordinate and enhance the civil rights movement’s direct action, playing a crucial role in the desegregation of public facilities.

  2. Greensboro Sit-ins' Impact: The Greensboro sit-ins represented a shift in the civil rights movement from legal battles to active grassroots protests, facilitating a wave of activism that spread to 55 cities in 13 states within two months.

  3. Importance of Freedom Riders' Actions: Freedom Riders significantly impacted the civil rights movement by forcing the federal government to enforce Supreme Court rulings against segregation in interstate travel. Their commitment to nonviolence and direct action drew international attention to the brutality of Jim Crow laws and helped initiate changes within the Interstate Commerce Commission regarding desegregation.

Part 4 - Changes in the Movements

Terms

  • De Facto Segregation: Segregation that occurs based on customs and traditions rather than laws; it describes societal segregation that persists even without legal backing.

  • Stokely Carmichael: Leader of SNCC in 1966, who popularized the phrase "Black Power" and adjusted the civil rights movement's focus towards self-determination and Black nationalism, advocating for more independent political organization.

  • Black Power: A movement emphasizing racial pride, self-determination, and economic and political independence for Black Americans, often advocating for cultural distinctiveness rather than assimilation.

  • Redlining: The discriminatory practice by financial institutions and federal agencies which involved denying mortgages and loans to residents in certain neighborhoods based on perceived risk, often racially motivated, and marked as "hazardous" on maps.

  • The Fair Housing Act of 1968: Legislation that made it illegal to refuse to sell or rent homes based on race, sex, religion, or nationality, aiming to alleviate housing discrimination.

Questions

  1. Shift in Civil Rights Movement Away from Nonviolence: The shift resulted from frustration with the slow pace of desegregation and persistent violence against African Americans. Organizations like SNCC and CORE began advocating self-defense and Black nationalism as responses to systemic oppression.

  2. Malcolm X's Evolving Message: Initially, Malcolm X espoused messages of Black separatism and self-defense, viewing integration as an act of weakness. After his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1964, his stance evolved towards advocating for human rights and voter registration, emphasizing broader inclusivity and mutual respect among all individuals.

  3. Black Panther Party: Founded in 1966 by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, the Black Panther Party aimed to combat police brutality and systemic racism against Black Americans. Their objectives included armed self-defense, community empowerment, and advocating for revolutionary change through structured programs reflecting socialist principles, marking a departure from previous nonviolent methods.

  4. Persisting Inequities Despite Legal Victories: African Americans continued to face significant economic, educational, and housing inequalities due to systemic racism and practices like redlining, which perpetuated a wealth gap and structural barriers that persisted long after the cessation of legal segregation.

  5. Boston Busing Crisis of 1974: The Boston busing crisis occurred after a federal court mandated the desegregation of public schools via busing students between predominantly Black and white neighborhoods, leading to widespread racial violence and civil unrest, including large-scale protests from the white community resisting the integration efforts.

  6. Contribution of Housing Access Inequality to Racial Wealth Gap: Inequalities in housing access curtailed the ability of Black families to accumulate home equity, which in turn created significant disparities in homeownership rates and property values. This lack of access has long-term ramifications as it obstructs intergenerational wealth transfer, leaving a lasting financial disparity between racial groups.