Race Issue USA

Improvements

• Black Americans were included in government
• 1 million jobs were provided for Black Americans

Continuity

• 2 million black farmers and sharecroppers were forced off the land
• Unemployment was as high as 60%

The Double 'V' Campaign

In the armed forces  

 Improvements

• The army integrated in 1955
• NAACP membership rose from 50,000 to 450,000                                                             Continuity
• Race riots occurred in 9 army training camps
• Black volunteers were given menial and dangerous tasks

At home                                                                                                                                      Improvements

• 2 million jobs were provided in war production factories

Continuity

• 1943 Race riots in Detroit

• Linda Brown, an eight year old African-American school girl, was denied permissio to attend a white elementary school 5 blocks away from her home
• Instead she was assigned to a non-white school 21 blocks from her home
• Her parents filed a law suit against the Board of Education
• Judge Warren dealt with the case and ruled it unconstitutional to segregate schools and made it law to integrate schools

Improvements

• It was the first landmark case for black Americans and set a precedent
• It was a law making it more effective and harder to ignore
• by 1957, 300,000 black American children had integrated into white schools

Continuity

• Some schools avoided the law by becoming private
• By 1960, 6 southern states still had no integrated schools

• Despite the new law, some schools remained racially segregated
• The NAACP selected nine black American students to attend a local white school
• The nine students were brutally abused while walking to, around and home from school
• They were each issued with a bodyguard to rpotect them

Improvements

• Ernest Green was the first black American to graduate from an all-white school
• Media coverage caused a wave of sympathy
• President Eisenhower directly intervened which raised the profile of the CRM

Continuity

• 2.5 million black children still received poor education
• The racism intensified and caused a white backlash

• Rosa Parks an African-American woman and valued member of the NAACP refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Alabama
• She was seated in the seats for black Amercians but the white seats were full
• She was arrested adn fined $10
• The black communities staged a 24 hour bus boycott
• The boycott was so successful, they continued using it for 381 days until the bus companies agreed to stop segregating busses

Improvements

• It showed the importance of Black economic power
• It highlighted the power of direct but non-violent action
• It was a turning point in the career of Martin Luther King
• It helped establish the SCLC

• Stimulated a new direction in the CRM - legalism turned to direct movement
• Rosa Parks' defiance rooted in memory of his death
• The open casket cause a huge ammount of sympathy and highlighted the injustice in the south

The Lunch Counter Sittings 1960

• Four African-American students sat in a 'white-only' luch counter in 'Woolworths' in Greensboro
• They politely asked the staff for service but their request was refused and they were asked to leave
• The students remained in their seats
• Hundreds of civil rights activists joined in the protests which lasted for 6 months
• Their commitment led to the desegregation of the F.W Woolworth lunch counters

The Freedom Rides 1961

• 13 civil rights activists launched a series of bus trips through the American south
• They protested about segregation in interstate bus terminals
• They departed from Washington and attempted to integrate facilities along the way to the Deep South - white Americans used 'black-only' facilities and black Americans used 'white-only' facilities
• They encountered violence but drew attention to their cause which led to segregation on busses and trains being prohibited

• In April 1963, Martin Luther King arrived in Birmingham and was immediately arrested
• The SCLC leader, James Bevel, started to enact pans for a 'Children's crusade' to protest against the arrest
• Thousands of school children were trained in the tactics of non-violence and walked out of class and 2 miles into town on May 2nd
• They peacefully protested and aimed to speak to the mayor of Birmingham about the segregation in their city
• Hundreds of children were put into jail
• Eugene Connor ordered the police to spray the children with powerful hoses and let police dogs attack them
• The children were released on May 5th following protests for their release

• More than 250,000 Americans gathered in Washington
• Speeches and performances were delivered from John Lewis, Bob Dylan and Martin Luther King
• Martin Luther King delivered his 'I have a dream' speech
• White and black Americans alike shared a joyous day of songs, speeches and prayer

Improvements

• Martin Luther King's speech bcame a highlight of his caeer
• Led to the legalistation in the 1960s
• There was huge media coverage
• One of the largest peaceful events of the CRM
• Furthered Martin Luther King's position as leader of the CRM as he won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1964

Civil Rights Act 1964

• Made segregation in public housing and facilities illegal
• All Americans are entitled to equal employment opportunities
• All federal projects must include racial integration

Voting Rights Act 1965

• Ended literacy tests
• Ensured that federal agents monitored registration and elections
• By 1963, more than a million black Americans had registered to vote which radically increased the number of elected black representatives

The LA riots 1965

• Caused by frustrated young black Americans who had seen scarce improvements
• 300,000 people were involved
• 34 were killed, 1072 injured and 4000 arrested
• Approximately $40 million of damage was caused

The Newark riots 1967

• 26 people died
• over 1,000 people were injured

The Detroit Race Riots 1967

• 40 people died and hundreds were injured
• 7,000 were arrested

1) Religious Influences

• Rejected Christianity as a 'white man's' religion
• Became involved in Nation of Islam in 1952 and convinced Muhammad Ali to convert
• Left Nation of Islam in 1964 and formed Muslim Mosque Inc. - led to split in CRM

2) Influence on Black Power Movement

• He was an inspiration to Stokely Carmichael and his views were the foundations of the Black Panther Party
• Influenced Tommie Smith and John Carlos' actions at the 1968 Olympics

3) Oratory skills

• "Black is Beautiful" - raised self-esteem of black Americans
• Violence is justified - appealed to black Americans who had seen scarce improvements

4) Influence on young black Americans in the North

• 75% of Nation of Islam membership was made up of 17-35 year old black Americans

• Rodney King was pulled over by the LAPD for drink-driving but attempted to get away
• When he was caught, the police pulled him out of his vehicle and beat him
• The police were unaware that they were being filmed by an amateur cameraman
• Despite the evidence, the white jury ruled the police unresponsible

• Sparked by the beating of Rodney King
• 53 people died
• As many as 2,000 people were injured
• Estimates of damage vary between $800 million and $1 billion
• There were approximately 3,600 fires which destroyed 1,100 buildings