Civil Rights Movements Development (1945-1960)

Overview of Civil Rights Movements (1945-1960)

  • The video examines the development and expansion of civil rights movements in the U.S. from 1945 to 1960.

Historical Context

  • Promised Rights Post-Civil War:
    • Following the Civil War, constitutional amendments were enacted to secure voting rights and equal protection for black Americans during the Reconstruction Era.
    • Many promises were unfulfilled due to Jim Crow laws and methods to obstruct voting, such as poll taxes and literacy tests.
    • Key legal precedent: Plessy v. Ferguson, which upheld racial segregation as constitutional.

Government Efforts Toward Civil Rights (1940s-1950s)

  • Civil rights activists pressured the federal government to uphold civil rights promises.
  • Truman Administration:
    • President Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order 9981 in 1948, which banned segregation in the armed forces, influenced by a committee on civil rights established in 1946.
    • Truman's enforcement of the order was delayed until the Korean War (1950), highlighting his political constraints regarding Southern Democrats.
    • Recommendations from the civil rights committee included abolishing poll taxes and promoting federal protection against lynching.
  • Congressional Action:
    • By 1962, Congress responded with the 24th Amendment, abolishing poll taxes in federal elections.

Landmark Supreme Court Case: Brown v. Board of Education

  • Background of the Case:
    • The case was about racial segregation in public schools, with the most notable case involving Oliver Brown's daughter who was denied entry to a nearby white school.
    • The argument: Segregated schools violated the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal protection under the law.
  • Decision and Impact (1954):
    • The Supreme Court unanimously overturned Plessy v. Ferguson, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."
    • Mandated that schools integrate with "all deliberate speed": a phrase that led to stalled efforts in desegregation due to its vague interpretation, especially in Southern states.

Southern Resistance to Integration

  • Following the Brown decision, there was significant opposition from Southern states:
    • Creation of the Southern Manifesto, which condemned the Supreme Court's ruling as an abuse of power.
    • Some Southern states closed public schools rather than integrate them.
    • Little Rock Nine Incident (1956):
    • Arkansas Governor Orville Faubus attempted to prevent black students from entering Little Rock High School by deploying the National Guard.
    • In response, President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent federal troops to ensure the students' safely attended school.

Conclusion

  • The 1940s and 1950s were marked by significant advancements in civil rights, but these efforts faced considerable backlash, leading to slow progress in integration and equality for black Americans.