Ch.18 The Civil Rights Movement

Jim Crow Laws and Segregation

• In the late 1800s, Jim Crow laws in the South legalized segregation.
• African Americans were disallowed from using the same facilities as others.
• They were mandated to use separate drinking fountains and sit at the back of buses.
• Black children were required to attend underfunded all-Black schools instead of the same schools as white children.
• Churches were also segregated.
• African Americans suffered bullying, humiliation, and taunts.
• Many African Americans in the South could not vote.
• Segregation affected the South the most, but discrimination existed in other states.
• Segregation is setting someone or something apart from other people or things.

Civil Rights Movement

• The Civil Rights movement aimed to achieve freedoms and equality for African Americans.
• The movement gained momentum in the 1950s and 1960s.
• African American war veterans were determined to fight discrimination upon returning home.

Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott

• In 1955, Rosa Parks began a "revolution" after sitting in an empty seat in the middle of a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.
• When the bus driver ordered her to give up her seat to a white man, she politely declined.
• The driver had her arrested.
• The African American community responded by boycotting the buses, a move of significant impact as they made up 75% of the bus system's ridership.
• Boycott organizers arranged carpools, and African American taxi drivers offered rides at bus rates, reducing prices.
• Pro-segregation white citizens tried to stop the boycott by firing African American employees and arresting carpoolers on trivial charges.
• Some African Americans even had their homes bombed.
• Despite the opposition, the boycotters stood their ground and refused to ride the buses.
• Segregation on city buses was outlawed 381 days later.
• This Montgomery Bus Boycott was the first major organized protest for civil rights, inspiring civil rights activists throughout the 1950s and 1960s.
• Despite progress, African Americans still were not treated equally.
• Desegregation of the bus system did not extend to schools, restaurants, movie theaters, and bathrooms, which remained segregated.
• Fear of violence prevented many from registering to vote.
• The violent Ku Klux Klan (KKK) remained a powerful force because people feared local law enforcement.

Martin Luther King Jr. Comes to the Forefront

• Martin Luther King Jr., an organizer of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, emerged as a civil rights leader during this period.
• He was respected by both blacks and whites for his eloquence and gentle but firm demeanor.
• King spoke out against the mistreatment of fellow black citizens.
• King's "I have a Dream" speech, advocating for racial equality, is one of the most renowned speeches in American history

Marches and Protests

• The initial 600 protesters grew as 25,000 people marched from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital, Montgomery.
• The National Guard was sent for protection.
• The civil rights movement made progress through the 1960s but remained dangerous to those participating in it.

Malcolm X and Racial Separatism

• New leaders argued that African Americans would never achieve civil rights through non-violent means.
• Malcolm X called on blacks to fight for their freedoms.
• Malcolm X's family was harassed by the KKK during the 1920s.
• While he acknowledged the place of peaceful protest, he advocated for black people to fight back if met with violence.
• He urged African Americans to fight for racial separation.
• Malcolm X supported racial separation and believed African Americans should gain power.
• Malcolm X was assassinated in February 1965; after his death, his views grew in popularity.

Integration and Violent Riots

• Many people wanted integration between the two races.
• Integration can be defined as blacks and whites interacting together in the same neighborhoods, schools, and businesses.
• The mid-to-late 1960s experienced violent riots across the country.
• The suppressed rage had finally boiled over.
• The violence was like a seething river of hatred.
• Demonstrations were not peaceful, and the advocates were willing to use violence.

Racial Division and Assassination

• The nation became two separate races.
• Unrest was constant.
• Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in 1968.
• Riots broke out nationwide following the assassination.

Civil Rights Victories

• African Americans were able to procure the right to vote in the 1960s.
• Legislation was passed to ban discrimination.
• African-American leaders began to win government positions.
• Gradually, African Americans began to hold positions at local, state, and federal levels.