United States History Civil Rights Movement (1950s-1960s) | Concordia University Wisconsin

University:
Concordia University Wisconsin
Course:
HIST 1215 | American Civilization II
Academic year:

2021
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58

Pages:

1
Author:

helyettitycx1

Civil Rights Movement (1950s-1960s) The 14 th Amendment was very important for the civil rights movement because it guaranteed African Americans equal protection of the law. ● In the Plessy v. Ferguson case in 1896 the Supreme Court had ruled that segregation was legal (mentioned that “separate but equal” facilities were constitutional). However, this ruling was overturned (reversed) by the Brown v. Board of Education case which made school segregation illegal. After the Brown decision, the movement for African-American rights gained strength and Martin Luther King, Jr. emerged as a leader. He promoted tactics of civil disobedience and nonviolence. Events such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Freedom Rides, and the March on Washington are important examples of civil disobedience. The two main issues for the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and early 1960s were desegregation (getting rid of segregation) and voting rights. ● The three major laws that were made because of the civil rights movement were: o Civil Rights Act of 1964: made segregation everywhere officially illegal o Voting Rights Act of 1965: made literacy tests and other voter restrictions illegal o th 24 Amendment: made the poll tax illegal As time progressed, the civil rights movement became somewhat divided between those who followed MLK’s ideas of civil disobedience and nonviolence versus those (such as Malcolm X) who promoted black power: The idea that African Americans should be more forceful in demanding equality and maybe even use violence as a means of self- defense. ● One lasting effect of the civil rights movement is affirmative action: The legal program that sets aside educational and job positions for minority groups as a way of making up for past inequalities.