Civil Rights

Today’s class

• Civil Rights Movement (African-Americans)– What are Civil Rights? How were they achieved?– What problems still exist?

• Women’s movement– Important moments in women’s rights– Are women equal in today’s society?

What we’ve discussed so far…

• The beginning of the United States– Colonization (Settling the new land)– Revolution – Declaration of Independence– New government – The Constitution

• The nation grows– Monroe Doctrine – The U.S. gains control in the

continent– People move west

Differences in America

• The issue of slavery– The Northern and Southern economies are very

different• North – Industry – Large Cities – Paid Labor• South – Agriculture – Smaller Cities – Slave Labor

– Social and political differences lead to the Civil War

• The North wins• The Emancipation Proclamation “frees” the slaves

• WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

After the Civil War

• We call the period after the Civil War the Reconstruction Era (p. 84)– The government wanted to:

• Rebuild the political system in the South• Rebuild the economy

• During this early period, many black people were able to participate in the government

Reconstruction

Reconstruction

• During this period, the southern states were under military control– This was meant to protect the rights of the newly

freed African-Americans

• The U.S. government added 3 changes to the Constitution– 13th Amendment – Ended slavery– 14th Amendment – Citizenship given to blacks– 15th Amendment – Right of blacks to vote (men)

Racist Groups

• Racist groups such as the White League and the Ku Klux Klan were started against blacks– Lynching– Tar and feathering

• Whites gained control of southern governments by intimidating black voters– The White League as well as the Red Shirts killed many

blacks and they were scared to vote

Ku Klux Klan

• A terrorist group against African-Americans

Lynching

Jim Crow Laws•Laws that segregated (separated) blacks and whites

Segregation Laws

• 1896 – Jim Crow Laws were declared legal – “separate but equal”– The laws could be used as long as there were

facilities for both blacks and whites• Examples: restaurants, bathrooms, schools, etc.

Jim Crow Laws

• These laws prevented poor and illiterate people from voting– Poll tax – a tax must be paid to vote

• Kept many poor people from voting

– Literacy requirements • You must be able to read and write to vote

• These methods were used to keep blacks from voting and helped whites regain control of the state governments

Jim Crow Laws

Civil Rights Movement

• 1954 – The Supreme Court rules that segregated schools are unconstitutional

p. 123

• 1957 – Little Rock, Arkansas– 9 black students were admitted to an all-white

school– Whites protested and the military was called in to

get the students into the school– It was a difficult transition, but most schools were

integrated by the mid-1960s

The Little Rock Nine

Rosa Parks (p. 124)

• 1955 – Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat to a white man– A boycott is lead by Martin Luther King Jr.– After a year, the transportation system is desegregated

“I Have a Dream”

• 1963 – March on Washington– Around 300,000 protesters march to the Lincoln

Memorial and listen to Martin Luther King’s speech

Martin Luther King Jr.• Martin Luther King Jr. believed in non-violent protests.

– “civil disobedience”• An active refusal to obey unfair laws• Rosa Parks is a good example

– Sit-ins – protesters remain in a place until they are forcefully removed

• Example: blacks used this method in white restaurants• They would “sit-in” the restaurant until police made them leave

• King was an important figure in the Civil Rights movement– King was the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize– He was assassinated in 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee

Martin Luther King

Changes

• 1964 – The poll tax is ended

• 1964 – Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964– Prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion or national

origins

• 1965 – Voting Rights Act made it easier for blacks to vote

• 1968 – Civil Rights Act of 1968 – prevents discrimination in the sale, rental and purchasing of housing

“Black Power”

• A term used during the Civil Rights movement

• Many worried that this slogan went against King’s ideal of “peaceful protest”

• During this time there were many riots– There was a large riot in Los Angeles in 1992– This shows that America is still far from solving it’s problem with

racism

Los Angeles Riots 1992 (p. 125)

Problems

• The O.J. Simpson trial– Showed the complexity of racial problems in the

U.S.

• The election of Barack Obama shows the progress America has made with racial issues– Time will tell how far America has come during

Obama’s term as President

Women’s movement

• In 1896 blacks were given the right to vote– Right was still not given to women

• In 1920 women were given the right to vote– 19th Amendment to the Constitution– Women had pushed for this right after World War I– Women held many of the “men’s” jobs while they were at

war• This helped the suffrage movement greatly

Movements in WWI and WWII

Women and World War II

• 16 million American men went to fight– 6 million women went to work in the factories– Produced military goods

• A movement was born after women proved they could do the difficult jobs normally done by men

First-Wave and Second-Wave Movements

• First-wave (WWI) – Right to vote

• Second-wave – Focused on equality with men– Wanted changes in divorce laws– Wanted equal pay– Freedom in decisions about pregnancy

• Right to abortion• Contraceptives (the pill)

Important Events

• 1960 – Birth control pills approved (safe)• 1963 – Equal pay act

– Equal pay for equal work– The pay is not yet equal, but has risen greatly

• 1965 – Affirmative Action– No discrimination based on race, gender or religion for government

jobs

• 1969 – First “no-fault” divorce law in California– Women begin to gain more rights in marriage and divorce

• 1973 – Roe vs. Wade– Supreme Court case which made abortion legal

Women’s Rights• We’ve discussed some important events in the

Women’s Movement• While many issues still exist, we have seen a lot of

progress from these movements• Examples

– In the beginning of the 20th century only 20% of degrees were earned by women

• Now it is close to 50%

– In the beginning of the 20th century only 5% of doctors were women

• Now it is almost 38%