shea, green, and smith, living democracy, second editioncopyright 2009 pearson longman chapter 12...

Shea, Green, and Smith, Living Democracy, Second Edition Copyright 2009 Pearson Longman

Chapter 12 Special Topic: The Development of American Activism

The Right to RevoltJohn Locke argued

that certain rights cannot be taken away.

Jefferson based the Declaration on this premise, and further argued that resistance is justified when rights are curtailed.

American Activism and Protest



In 1765, the Sons of Liberty organized in resistance to the Stamp Act.

They held rallies, sponsored “committees of correspondence,” and recruited community leaders to their cause.

Pathways of Action: The Sons of Liberty



The First Amendment

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the

free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress

of grievances.

Constitutional Foundations

The First Amendment allows for the right of assembly, an important basis for activism.



“The liberty of association has become a necessary guarantee against the tyranny of the majority….There are no countries in which associations are more needed, to prevent the despotism of faction or the arbitrary power of the prince, than those which are democratically constituted.”

Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835

American Activism and Protest

Toqueville stressed the importance of the right to assembly.



ProhibitionThe Prohibition Movement

Although Prohibition came to a head in the early 1900s, it was one of the earliest

movements in American history.Roots in early 1800s

Women’s Christian Temperance Union founded 1874. Women were leaders in this movement, and gained experience in political culture.

Eighteenth Amendment, 1919 (Repealed by Twenty-First Amendment)



Abolition

Centralized organization with 2,000 chaptersUsed the media and lectures to popularize the strugglePetitions to CongressThe Underground Railroad was a peaceful means used.John Brown led raids and hoped to start a revolution.The movement was disbanded with ratification of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments.The movement gave crucial experience to activists hoping to achieve women’s suffrage and prohibition.

Various forms of activism developed in the struggle for the abolition of

slavery.



The Women’s Rights Movement: The First WaveGaining SuffrageEarly activists for

women’s rights were also part of the fight for abolition.Suspended during the Civil WarTurned into a mass movement after 1910Used national and international organizations, lecture tours, protests, and the courtsNineteenth Amendment ratified in 1920



Labor Unions

The Rise of Labor Unions

Used the advantage of numbers to gain concessions

American Federation of Labor, 1886

AFL and other unions won the right to organize under the Clayton Act, 1914 Child Textile

Workers in Philadelphia



Antiwar movement began in the 1950s

After 1965, new groups protesting the war in Vietnam

Highest point of unrest since the Civil War

Vietnam and the Antiwar Movement



New goals after gaining the right to vote

Workplace discrimination a major issue

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Equal Rights Amendment never ratified

The Women’s Rights Movement: The Second Wave


Chapter Twelve Special Topic: The Development of American Activism

Pathways Profile: A. Philip Randolph (1889–1979)

In 1925, organized a labor union: the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters

Organized the 1963 March on Washington



The Civil Rights Movement

Used the courts, passive resistance, marchesCivil Rights Act of 1957Voting Rights Act of 1965

shea, green, and smith, living democracy, second editioncopyright 2009 pearson longman chapter 12...

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