Defacto v. Dejure Segregation

• De Facto Segregation:

  • Definition: Segregation that occurs in practice, even if not legally sanctioned.
  • Examples include housing patterns and social situations that result in racial separation.
  • Characteristics: Often results from societal norms, residential patterns, or personal choices rather than laws.

• De Jure Segregation:

  • Definition: Segregation that is enforced by law.
  • Examples include laws that enforce racial segregation in schools, transportation, and public facilities.
  • Characteristics: Explicit legal frameworks dictate terms of separation among races.

Jim Crow Laws

• Definition: State and local statutes enacted in the Southern United States that legalized racial segregation.
• Historical Context:
  • Enforced after the Reconstruction Era (late 1800s) until the civil rights movement of the 1960s.
• Key Features:
  • Laws mandated the separation of races in public facilities, schools, transportation, and even restrooms.
  • Included provisions that denied African Americans basic civil rights and subjected them to institutionalized discrimination.

NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People)

• Founded in 1909, the NAACP is one of the oldest civil rights organizations in the United States.
• Primary Focus:
  • To eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the rights of African Americans.
  • Advocacy for equality through legal challenges and public campaigns.
• Key Achievements:
  • Played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement, including landmark legal cases such as Brown v. Board of Education.
  • Utilization of litigation as a strategic tool for social change.

Brown v. Board of Education

• Landmark Supreme Court case decided in 1954.
• Key Facts:
  • Addressed the issue of racial segregation in public schools.
  • Consolidated several cases challenging the constitutionality of state-sponsored segregation.
• Decision:
  • The Supreme Court unanimously declared that de jure segregation in public education violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
  • Conclusion: "Separate but equal" has no place in public education.

Thurgood Marshall

• Notable figure in the civil rights movement; first African American Supreme Court Justice.
• Role in NAACP:
  • Served as chief legal counsel and argued several critical cases, including Brown v. Board of Education.
• Legacy:
  • Helped dismantle legal segregation through strategic litigation.
  • Advocated for social justice and civil rights throughout his career.

Little Rock Nine

• A group of nine African American students who enrolled at Little Rock Central High School in 1957.
• Historical Context:
  • Their enrollment was part of the implementation of the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education.
• Key Events:
  • Initially blocked from entering the school by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, who opposed integration.
  • Intervention by President Eisenhower and federal troops to ensure their safe entry into the school.
• Significance:
  • Their bravery in facing violent opposition became a symbol of the struggle for civil rights in the United States.

Purpose of the March on Washington

• Event Date: August 28, 1963.
• Objective:
  • To demonstrate the civil rights movement’s demands and to advocate for economic and civil rights for African Americans.
• Historical Importance:
  • Featured prominent leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., who delivered his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech.
  • Highlighted issues such as jobs, freedom, and racial equality, bringing national attention to the civil rights movement.