Terms and People - Final Flashcards
Marcus Garvey
Born in Jamaica and comes to the U.S. in 1916. He was a founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and he formed “Liberty Halls” all over the country. He worked with a Nation Model (rather than a denomination model). He wanted African Americans to move to Africa in order to create a new nation. He was the then deported back to Jamaica in 1927.
Elijah Muhammad
Created the Nation of Islam and ran it from 1934-1975 He gained a great following because he promised worshipers food, clothing, and shelter. He preached that scientists made test tube devils (white people). He loosely based it on Islam, didn’t want to be exactly it.
The Nation of Islam
Established in the 1930’s with the idea that a race of scientists created a race of devils (white people). It equated whiteness with evil and blackness with good. The religion is loosely based on Islam but is not the same. Malcolm X becomes a spokesman for the organization and later Muhammad Ali takes over this position. The Nation of Islam stressed Americans during the high point of Civil Rights. It is headquartered in Detroit.
Holiness & Pentecostalism
An evangelical movement. It stressed the importance of conversion. Particularly Sanctification- The demonstrable gift that came after conversion (such as speaking in tongues, shaking, or healing powers). The Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles was the origin of the Pentecostal movement.
Martin Luther King Jr
Arguably the most famous Civil Rights proponent who preached non-violence as the morally superior method for achieving equality. His rise to fame occurred right after the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-56). He spoke out against the Vietnam War in 1967 and was assassinated in 1968.
Malcolm X
Was in jail from 1946-1952 and converted to Nation of Islam while serving time because he liked the reversal of power (black=good and white=bad). He was a proponent of segregation → He wanted a separate nation of blacks (but not in Africa). He becomes the spokesman for Nation of Islam in the late fifties but after commenting on JFK’s assassination, he is kicked out by Elijah Muhammed. In 1964 he goes on his Hajj and travels to Mecca. He affiliates the black struggle in the U.S. with human struggle all over the world. He then begins to identify himself as a Sunni Muslim. He is assassinated in 1965.
Black Power
A movement working to achieve self-determination for African Americans. It emerges in 1966 as a response to Los Angeles violence and assassinations (Malcolm X), the Black Panthers play a large role in promoting it.
Barry Goldwater
A staunchly anti-communist conservative who ran against Johnson in 1964. At the time the U.S. was extremely concerned about the Soviet Union (identified as communist and atheist). He made anti-communism a moral and religious issue and aligned conservative anti-communism with conservative protestantism at a grass roots level. Both Reagan and George H.W. Bush supported Goldwater. (Kept religion out of Politics)
Robert Kennedy (RFK)
A democrat who served under Johnson for a few months as Attorney General but publicly split with him because of his opposition to the Vietnam War. He was a front-running candidate in the 1968 election but was assassinated. After MLK was shot, he spoke that Civil Rights was still a possibility.
Vietnam War
More than 3.4 million soldiers served, fighting for Vietcong Rights, even black men who were fighting to give people rights when they didn’t have any themselves. It was a largely unpopular war and every candidate in the 1968 election campaigned against it. There was a lot of controversy surrounding the draft and the peak year of deployment was 1969. Contributed to the voting age being changed and brought politics closer to the homefront (was televised). First war in which U.S. was unsuccessful.
Campus and Urban Conflicts of the 1960s
Students became extremely involved in the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, Goldwater/Communism and the Sexual Revolution because the voting age changed. Increased media circulated news and brought issues closer to home. The greatest act of on-campus violence occurred at Kent State University in 1970 during a Vietnam War Protest.
Sexual Revolution
Revolution in manners and morals- concerning changes in the role of identity. Began in 1920s with the flappers and condoms were approved for use. There was resurgence in 1960 when birth control was approved for use. Most married women gained access to it in 1964 (KS) → Big deal because it made sex recreational. It caused a huge polarization between conservatives and liberals as well as in denominations (protestant churches began fracturing).
Ronald Reagan
Rose to prominence after giving a speech supporting Barry Goldwater in 1964. Later won the presidency in 1980 and Jerry Falwell contributed a lot to his campaign. He was seen as a way to regain masculinity after the Carter administration ( Carter had negotiated during the Iran hostage crisis when people had wanted him to use force.
Richard Nixon
Won the 1968 election and promised to end the war in Vietnam. The Watergate Scandal (1972) overshadowed much of his presidency even though he did not have much to do with it- his people broke into the Democratic headquarters. However the public saw that the country was lacking morality in the political sphere. He resigned in 1974 (first and only to do so) and is pardoned by Gerald Ford.
Jimmy Carter
Won the 1976 election as a born-again Christian. He appealed strongly to conservatives.
Muhammed Ali
Born as Cassius Clay but formally converts to Nation of Islam in 1962 and adopts his new name. In 1964 he competes in the Heavyweight Championship in Miami, Malcolm X encouraged him to use it as an identifier for the NOI but Elijah Muhammad doesn’t want him to because he thinks Ali will lose. Ali wins and pleases them both. Elijah Muhammad uses him as a leader for his movement because he is coachable.
He is drafted for the Vietnam War in 1966 but attempts to be granted conscientious objector status which would mean he’s opposed to war in all cases, his objection is sincere, and that his objection is on religious grounds. BUT he said he was only opposed to war that wasn’t divinely ordained and the question arose as to whether Nation of Islam was actually a religion (previously seen as a political group and the state decided whether something was a religion). In 1967 he is convicted of draft evasion and goes in and out of jail, ultimately giving up the best years of his career for his religion. The Supreme Court never makes a decision and he’s released on a technicality. He officially retired in 1981.
W.D. Muhammad
Elijah Muhammad’s son who takes over the Nation of Islam when his father died in 1975. He changes the name to World Community of Al-Islam in the West, which is much closer to traditional Islam. Less interested in black radicalism.
Barack Obama
The first president to bring his unique racial and religious position to the election. He’s proud of his two races but promotes racial equality. Critics claim that he is just a “balancing act” since he is not 100% black.
“Post Racial America”
The idea of a race neutral America in which discrimination and hierarchy are rejected. However it is too difficult to say whether or not America is actually post-racial because the line is so difficult to draw. Some argue that it is not a good term because it erases the racial past, which is important to understand. Conflicted idea that if you are “colorblind” then you are just ignoring problems but if you do recognize the problems then you’re being racist. Obama and Weisenfeld reject this idea.
Jerry Falwell
Forms the Moral Majority in 1979- bringing together Evangelicals and Fundamentals. He wrote “If I Should Die Before I Wake” in 1986 to argue against abortion. He said that everyone goes through a spiritual re-birth and that the actual human birth is less important. With abortion, there is a denial of this re-birth. He was also very strongly against homosexuality.
“Flapperism”
Undermined the morality of women through immodest dress and androgyny. Behaviors flappers engaged in were corruptive to men. Challenged patriarchy especially women who were independent and worked outside of the home. Middle-upper class and urban phenomenon (not so much rural).
Birth Control and Abortion
First became available in 1920 with condoms and abortion. It was predominantly used by white protestant women, but nativists didn’t like it because they feared white power would decline. People were also argued that women stopping pregnancy was a disruption of God’s plan (“Be fruitful and multiply”). Women gained access to the birth control pill in the 60’s.
“Born Again”
Falwell’s idea of a spiritual re-birth in which the human birth is less important, but abortion denies the right to have a second spiritual birth without the first physical birth.
Mormonism
- Joseph Smith started Mormonism, a new brand of Christianity which is more pure and ancient. March 26, 1830 he published first book of Mormon. He was seen as a heretic so he went to Ohio (1831-1838) to make first Mormon settlement. He moved around making different settlements in Missouri and Illinois (this is when the polygamy faction began) which is why there is a big midwest Mormon population. He eventually moved Mormonism to Utah to leave the US (Utah wasn’t US property yet). In 1890 polygamy became illegal which led to more faction like the Fundamentalists; the biggest faction is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- Some differences between mainstream Christianity and Mormonism are mormons have 3 levels of heaven and souls can accept Mormonism in heavy hence proxy baptisms, temple ordinances, continous/personal revelation, missions, etc
- Some important Morman ideals are condemning homosexuality and making heterosexuaty sacred because in order to be exalted into godhood you need to be sealed in a marriage and having a lot of children (which is what god did), chastity and modesty, patriarchy, continuous revelation, family unit, female purity, etc.
The Political power of Moral Outrage
-Conservative Christians made moral issues into political issues by arousing the public with tactics such as moral degradation, association with communism, homophobia, secular mobilization, nationalism, and swaying the legal process. They made moral issues aligning with their conservative beliefs everyone’s issues.
Ex: Perversion for Profit Documentary (homophobia), Citizens for Decent Literature (de-emphasized Catholic connection)
-Targeted middle class groups, families in suburbia
-The Christian Right are right wing Christian political groups wanting socially conservative policies, they get influence from grassroots activism, ex: Goldwater who helped Reagan become popular, made anticommunism a moral and religious issue by aligning conservative anti communism with conservative protestantism at a grassroots level
-They were very successful, Jimmy Carter was a born again Christian, had a lot of political influence
-Some differences between mainstream Christianity and Mormonism are mormons have 3 levels of heaven and souls can accept Mormonism in heavy hence proxy baptisms, temple ordinances, continous/personal revelation, missions, etc
-Some important Morman ideals are condemning homosexuality and making heterosexuaty sacred because in order to be exalted into godhood you need to be sealed in a marriage and having a lot of children (which is what god did), chastity and modesty, patriarchy, continuous revelation, family unit, female purity, etc.
