Black American civil rights, c1955–80 Flashcards
(38 cards)
Year, events and impact of Montgomery Bus Boycott?
- Rosa Parks (NAACP member) arrested for sitting at front of bus. NAACP lawyers took case, MIA (Montgomery Improvement Association) formed to organise boycotts, with MLK as leader. Boycott organised taxis for commuting. MLK house firebombed… MLK arrested for conspiracy: huge publicity.
For how long did the Montgomery Bus Boycott last?
380 days
Which association + leader organised the Montgomery Bus boycott?
The MIA (Montgomery Improvement Association) with MLK
What percentage of people using the buses boycotted?
75% of users were black, and 90% of the Black African Americans boycotted
When did the Supreme Court rule bus segregation unconstitutional?
Results/ impact of this?
November 1956
Blacks began riding buses again… hardened the racial divide: MLK’s home firebombed + snipers shooting at blacks in white seats just 3 days later.
When was incident of Little Rock, Arkansas?
What happened?
Impact?
September 1957
Elizabeth Eckford first day at desegregated school: greeted by angry mobs of racist shouting mums. She walked through them to the bus stop to leave, many photos taken shocked the world.
MLK managed to get Eisenhower to use federal intervention; guards protecting the children in and around school.
When was the Greensboro sit in?
What was it?
February 1960
4 black students weren’t being served at a lunch counter… waited until shut. The next day 30 came and sat, while being abused by white students. Media took photos and it was clear who the oppressors were.
How many students participated in the Greensboro sit in?
4 initially thenc30
When was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) setup?
April 1960
What was one of the most important jobs of the SNCC?
What else did they do to further MLK’s ideas?
Encourage voter registration.
Took non-violent protests to areas of likely violence following Greensboro sit-ins.
When were the Freedom rides?
What were they?
Impact?
1961
Bus rides in the South to test wether buses had been desgregated.
Buses were attacked, campaigners beaten up, one bus even firebombed: media coverage showed shocking violence. Some were imprisoned in Birmingham and beaten up.
When were the Birmingham, Alabama riots? Nickname of Birmingham?
What happened?
Impact?
1963, ‘Bombingham’ due to regular black homes/ businesses being firebombed.
Tactic to get arrested+ fill jails. Children marched and were met with high pressure hoses/ dogs.
Shocking pictures worldwide, JFK ashamed, Birmingham desgregated… long term, JFK pressed forward on civil rights legislation.
Who was the racist chief of police during the Birmingham Alabama riots?
What did he do?
‘Bull’ Connor
Ordered his men to fire high pressure hoses and let dogs on the marching children.
After the Birmingham Alabama riots, what percentage of people thought race was the USA’s most pressing problem?
How did the CR movement grow after this?
42%
1963 march on Washington, hundreds of thousands… MLK’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech.
When was freedom summer?
What/who was it?
1964.
SNCC push for voter registration: volunteers training blacks to pass test
How many of the 17,000 who tried to register to vote during Freedom Summer were accepted?
Other controversy regarding?
1,600.
Some volunteers went missing, found dead. Countless beatings/ shooting incidents.
When were the Black Panthers formed?
What were they?
1966
Group from Black Power movement, community projects like free breakfast for school kids, and wore uniform/ carried guns.
Stokely Carmichael was the leader of which organisation in 1965?
What did he want?
SNCC
Radicalisation of CRM and exclusion of whites. Suggested a new slogan of ‘Black Power’ rather than ‘Freedom.’
Carmichael suggested that the calls for ‘freedom’ should be replace with calls for…
What was the symbol of the new symbol?
‘Black Power’
A raised arm with a clenched fist.
Which major cities had riots in 1964?
Why?
Impacts?
New York, Chicago, Philadelphia
Set off by police brutality and long term problems. Occured every year until 1971.
Media coverage of violent blacks rioting swung public opinion, bringing some white backlash.
When was the March on Washington?
August 1963
How many people attended the March on Washington?
Hundreds of thousands.
When did the Northern Crusade by MLK begin?
What issues did the Northern Crusade highlight?
What happened to MLK and media?
1966
Unions, working conditions, teaching, poverty in slums of Chicago.
MLK + media relationship became sour, as he was accusing them of trying to make him say militant statements.
What was the Civil Rights Act passed?
What did it do?
1964
Banned discrimination of sex/race in hiring/firing/promoting (set up Equal Opportunities Commission to enforce.)
