Civil Rights

End of Reconstruction:
- Following the conclusion of the Civil War, the Reconstruction era is significant for political and civil rights advancements for African Americans.
- Election of Rutherford B. Hayes:
- There are allegations of electoral fraud and accusations regarding the legitimacy of Hayes's presidency.
Backlash from Southern Whites:
- After Reconstruction ends, there’s intense backlash from white Southerners, who feel anger and resentment towards the changes brought about by the war.
- Many former Confederates are particularly upset about their loss in the war and the newly bestowed rights on African Americans.
Use of Government Control:
- White Southerners begin to leverage state governments to punish African Americans and assert control over political power.

Supreme Court Case: Plessy v. Ferguson:
- This landmark case addresses segregation, particularly in schools.
- Ruling Summary: As long as the state provides approximately equal services, it is lawful to segregate individuals based on race, establishing the "separate but equal" doctrine.
- Example of Segregation:
- The Memphis zoo had signs indicating it was “whites only” on certain days (indicative of segregation).
Jim Crow Laws:
- These laws emerge to enforce racial segregation throughout the South, creating separate facilities for different races.
- The Supreme Court, during this time, does not intervene to stop these laws, effectively allowing their implementation without repercussions.

Concern of White Southerners:
- A significant worry among white Southerners is the potential voting power of freed slaves, who in many states could outnumber white voters.
White Primaries:
- Definition: Primary elections held where only white individuals could vote or run, effectively excluding African Americans from any political process.
- This exclusion was upheld by the Supreme Court as political parties were deemed private organizations and thus could discriminate.
Grandfather Clause:
- This law allowed those whose grandfathers could vote before the Civil War to vote without restrictions.
- This arrangement disproportionately affected immigrants and African Americans, ensuring voting rights favored long-standing white families.
- Technically outlawed in 1915, by then it had little impact since African Americans’ grandfathers had gained the right to vote post-Civil War.
Literacy Tests:
- Designed to assess literacy and thereby limit voting rights.
- The tests were applied selectively, with white individuals facing simpler tasks compared to non-whites or immigrants, who faced rigorous assessments meant to exclude them.
Poll Taxes:
- Fee paid to vote, theoretically applied to all voters, but with enforcement practices designed to exempt white voters while burdening non-white voters with upfront cash payments.
- White voters could use IOUs that were not collected, while non-whites had to pay upfront.

Comparison of Voter Turnout:
- During Reconstruction, regions with higher African American populations had a voter turnout of approximately 70-80%.
- Post-Reconstruction, following the implementation of suppressive laws, this turnout dramatically dropped to around 35%, with some districts showing virtually no African American voters.
Intimidation Tactics:
- The Ku Klux Klan (Klan) played a primary role in voter suppression by intimidating voters and activists threatening violence, even lynching individuals who attempted to assert their voting rights.

Definition of Gerrymandering:
- The strategic drawing of electoral district boundaries to favor one group over another, whether by race or political affiliation.
- Example from Atlanta, Georgia where district boundaries were manipulated to dilute African American voting power.
Gerrymandering and Partisan Politics:
- Though historically associated with race, gerrymandering can also be used to benefit one political party over another.
- Recent legal decisions have upheld gerrymandering based on partisan lines as constitutional, allowing practices to continue without significant legal hurdles.

Impact of Legal Framework:
- Extensive laws were established to obstruct African Americans from voting and to ensure that even if they could vote, their votes would have little influence.
Brown v. Board of Education:
- This landmark case challenges segregation laws in schools, arguing that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal, thus unconstitutional.
- Thurgood Marshall represents the plaintiffs, emphasizing the undue burden placed on African American families.
Supreme Court Ruling:
- The Court, led by Chief Justice Earl Warren, decisively rules against segregation, stating that segregated educational facilities can never be equal.
Consequences and Implementation:
- The ruling requires all states to desegregate schools “with all deliberate speed,” leading to varying implementations and persistent legal challenges over the ensuing decades.

Civil Rights Act of 1964:
- This landmark legislation prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin, reinforcing the judicial progress established through cases like Brown.
- Businesses engaged in interstate commerce must adhere to these non-discrimination policies, effectively desegregating many public services across the country.
Voting Rights Act of 1965:
- Follow-up legislation aimed directly at protecting African American voting rights by prohibiting discriminatory voting practices (like literacy tests and poll taxes).
- The federal government gains authority to ensure compliance in states with historical practices of voter suppression.

Legacy of Legislative Changes:
- The Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act transformed racial and voting dynamics within the United States, providing new legal avenues for combating discrimination.
- The civil rights movement, supported by these laws, leads to significant progress over subsequent decades, though challenges remain, especially in the face of ongoing discrimination and political manipulation.