Civil Rights Movements and the Assertion of Equal Protection of the Laws

Background/Review 1 (Late 19th / 20th Century)

  • After the Civil War (1865-1876), formerly enslaved people experienced democracy and political power for the first time during Reconstruction.
  • The economic and cultural structure of Southern society heavily relied on racism and the exploitation of Black individuals.
  • African Americans faced a progressive loss of post-Civil War citizenship protections during Reconstruction.
  • After Reconstruction ended in 1877, Southern Whites established a new legal order of racial discrimination known as Jim Crow.

The Jim Crow Era

  • Discrimination at a societal level constituted institutional racism.
  • The rise of the Sharecropping System led to neo-slavery.
  • Black Code Laws were enacted.
  • Disenfranchisement occurred, denying voting rights.
  • Lynchings were prevalent.
  • The Separate But Equal Doctrine was established (Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896).

Racism as a Justification for Jim Crow

  • Social Darwinism and Scientific racism gained prominence in the 1800s.
  • Claims arose that African Americans were not biologically suited for self-governance.
  • Plessy v. Ferguson Ruling: “If one race be inferior to the other socially, the constitution of the United States cannot put them upon the same plane.”
  • There was a deep fear of miscegenation (intermarriage) diluting bloodlines.

Background/Review 2 (Late 19th / 20th Century)

  • Native Americans experienced a decline in sovereignty and loss of land rights, with forced citizenship aimed at ending tribal governance.
  • Mexican Americans faced loss of land rights and political marginalization, hindering their ability to exercise substantive citizenship guarantees.
  • Asian Americans were denied citizenship and faced statutory exclusion.
  • White ethnics experienced increasing immigration restrictions, with a declining significance of race among Whites of different ethnicities.

Building Black Citizenship (1900-1940)

  • Organization:
    • The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was founded in 1909.
    • African Americans shifted from the Republican to the Democratic party.
  • Mobilization:
    • The NAACP became membership-driven in the 1920s.
  • Litigation:
    • Legal challenges were mounted against the foundations of segregation.
  • Representation:
    • Some African Americans were elected in the North.
    • Legislative gains were slowed by White Southern Congressional committee chairs.

Changing Black Population Dynamics (1945-65) Spurring Mass Mobilization

  • Migration north increased.
  • Education opportunities expanded.
  • The black middle class experienced slow expansion.
  • World War II and the G.I. Bill of Rights provided access to benefits, though limited by race.
  • Unionized jobs and public employment offered new resources for mass organization.
  • Churches, unions, and colleges/universities played a significant role.

Changing Political and Legal Environments

  • Political
    • Northern “race moderates” confronted Southern segregationists.
    • Changing notions of federalism emerged.
  • The Courts—Legal challenges to Black exclusion focused on:
    1. Equalization
    2. Professional access
    3. “Separate, but Equal”
  • Brown v. Board of Education (1954) led to school integration.

Building Black Citizenship 2: Mass Mobilization (1940-1965)

  • Protest:
    • 1956 – 18 peaceful demonstrations
    • 1960 – 173 peaceful demonstrations
    • 1965 – 387 peaceful demonstrations
  • Organizations:
    • 1957-Southern Christian Leadership Conference
    • 1960-Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

Direct Confrontation (1960-1965)

  • Sit-ins at Woolworth lunch counters (1960)
  • Project C-Birmingham (1963)
  • March on Washington (1963)
  • Freedom Summer (voter registration) (1964)
  • Selma-Montgomery march (1965) led to nationally televised violence.

Political Victories Slow

  • Civil Rights Act of:
    • 1957 – Established the Civil Rights Commission (monitoring)
    • 1960 – Established the principle that the federal government can monitor voting (monitoring and limited enforcement)
    • 1964 – Barred discrimination in public accommodations and in employment (enforcement)
  • The 1964 Act was similar to the 1875 Civil Rights Act (held to be unconstitutional in 1883).

Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965

  • Largely Modeled on 1870s/80s Legislation
  • It took the civil rights movement and the changed political atmosphere it inspired to ensure sufficient white support and to change the judicial reaction.

Lessons of the African American Civil Rights Movement

  • The objective remained consistent – the right to exercise full and equal citizenship.
  • Success depended upon active support throughout the African American community.
  • It was the most successful social movement in U.S. history.
  • Federal government institutions came to support the objectives of the movement.
  • It overcame institutional obstacles of Southern whites in Congress.

Civil Rights Struggles and Latino Communities

  • 1960s civil rights struggles
  • Demands for equal citizenship followed African American victories.
  • A new generation of leaders demanded more radical change.
  • National Latino civic institutions and the foundation for contemporary “Latino” politics were created.

Civil Rights Struggles and Asian Americans

  • Youth movements of the late 1960s and 1970s emerged.
  • “Yellow power” gained traction.
  • Anti-discrimination efforts increased.
  • Rediscovering history led to Asian American Studies on college campuses.
  • Balancing achievement and civil rights demands became a focus.
  • The Asian American Civil Rights struggle primarily focused on California.

White Ethnicity in the Civil Rights Era

  • Coalesced in the post-World War II era
  • Perceived ethnic differences among Whites declined.
  • Political and economic opportunities for Southern/Eastern Europeans and White Catholics increased.
  • “Non-zero sum mobility” was observed.
  • Policies to create a robust middle class created opportunities for previously-excluded Whites
    • G.I. Bill of Rights
    • Education
    • Homeownership
  • White racial resentment emerges as a powerful political force in the North.

Significance of Civil Rights Organizing to Contemporary Ethnic Politics

  • The African American Civil Rights Movement united African Americans; other groups were more divided.
  • Questions arose about whether unity can appear when the state no longer sanctions discrimination and when groups are more heterogeneous.
  • It was questioned whether the civil rights era resonates with immigrants and descendants of immigrants who arrived after 1965.
  • It was a period of learning across groups.
  • The question was raised whether the Black role in the fight for equal citizenship will be recognized in the future.
  • Courts enforced equal citizenship.
  • It was questioned whether any federal institution will assume this role.

Decline of Black Civil Rights Movement

  • Strong racial inequality remained after victories.
  • Urban riots/rebellions occurred.
  • The movement splintered over goals and tactics.
  • SNCC changed its name to Nationalist.
  • The Black Panthers emerged.
  • Malcolm X rose to prominence.
  • The Federal Government targeted Black Leaders through COINTELPRO.
  • Martin Luther King became unpopular and faced White backlash.