Transcript 17.4 HW will be collected on review day (Thursday) Bell

Bell Ringer
Do you plan to vote when you turn
18?
Why or why not?
Would you still vote if it meant facing
harassment or violence?
**Protecting voter’s rights was an important
aspect of the civil rights movement.**
Chapter 19; Section 3
The Political Response
The Civil Rights Movement
1954 - 1968
March on Washington
August 1963; over 200,000
people participated to
focus attention on
Kennedy’s civil rights bill
cloture
th
3/5 s
In the Senate, a
vote that permits the
ending of debate on an
issue.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Law that outlawed
discrimination in a
number of areas,
including voting, schools
and jobs
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Law aimed at reducing
barriers to African
American voting, in part
by increasing federal
authority to register voters
Main Idea
Continuous civil rights
protests in the 1960s
gradually made politicians
respond to public opinion
and move forward with
strong civil rights legislation.
“If the President does not
himself wage the struggle for
equal rights—if he stands
above the battle—then the
battle will be inevitably lost.”
John F. Kennedy; 1960
Kennedy on Civil Rights
Supported civil rights
-Senator John F. Kennedy had
offered help when MLK, Jr. was
sentenced to a labor camp
-caused blacks to vote for JFK
in the 1960 election (v. Nixon)
-moved slowly on civil rights issues
once in office
-appointed African Americans
to important positions
•-students demanded
leadership within the
movement from Kennedy
•-introduced a bill to prohibit
segregation in public places, ban
discrimination wherever federal
funding was involved and
advance school desegregation
Powerful southern
segregationists in
Congress prevented the
bill from coming up for
a vote.
Q: What did students demand
from Kennedy?
Leadership
The March on Washington
attempt to bring attention to the
civil rights bill
August 1963
-Over 200,000 people
-Directed by A. Philip Randolph
James Baldwin
Jackie Robinson
Sammy Davis, Jr.
The March on Washington, cont.
peaceful and orderly
held hands and sang songs
speech delivered by MLK,
Jr.:
--“I Have a Dream”
“I Have Dream”
1:18 minutes
Q: Why was President Kennedy
at first opposed to the march?
He feared it would
alienate Congress and
attract violence.
Q: What was the purpose of the
March on Washington?
To focus attention
on Kennedy’s
civil rights bill.
Johnson on Civil Rights
 declared that passage of the civil
rights bill would honor JFK’s memory
--Passed in House but Senate
started a filibuster (unending
debate)
--cloture was used to end the
debate by a 3/5ths majority and
move on to a vote
Turning Point: The Civil Rights Act
Impacted voting, schools, jobs
gave Justice Department authority to
push school segregation and voting
rights cases
Included “titles” under the law
Title
Purpose
Title I Banned the use of different voter registration
standards for blacks and whites.
Title Prohibited discrimination in public accommodations
II such as motels, restaurants, gas stations, theaters and
sports arenas.
Title Allowed the withholding of federal funds from
VI public or private programs that practice
discrimination.
Title Banned discrimination on the basis of race, sex,
VII religion or national origin by employers and unions.
Created the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) to investigate charges of job
discrimination.
Freedom Summer
Voter registration drive in Mississippi (1964)
• 1000 African American and white volunteers
participated
−Mostly college students
•KKK held rallies to intimidate the volunteers
•3 activists went missing and were found buried
• James Chaney
• Andrew Goodman
• Michael Schwerner
−80 mob attacks
reported
−Churches and homes
burned or firebombed
−Volunteers beaten and
wounded by gunfire
Freedom Summer
1:45 minutes
The Democratic Convention (1964)
registered voters and SNCC
members organized MFDP
-Mississippi Freedom Democratic
party
-sent delegates to the DNC
* Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer
1:06 minutes
The Selma March
•many black southerners could still
not obtain voting rights
−police arrested people just for
standing in line to register
•March organized by MLK, Jr. and
other leaders to protest
−They would walk from Selma, AL
to the capital (Montgomery)--50
miles away
•Armed troopers on horseback
attacked the crowds with whips, tear
gas and clubs.
−TV images shocked viewers
•President Johnson placed the
Alabama National Guard under federal
control
−Sent in to protect the marchers
•Thousands flocked to join
−About 25,000 people by the time they
reached Montgomery
The Selma March
6:37 minutes
Q: The visibility of civil rights protests
led to advances in civil rights on both
the local and national level. What did
most of these protests have in common?
They were peaceful;
they challenged laws;
they urged
desegregation
The Voting Rights Act of 1965
Passed after Johnson promised a
law would protect voting rights
-over 400,000 African Americans
registered in the Deep South the
next year
Q: Look at the chart on p. 579.
How many new African
American voters registered in
the South between 1960 and
1970?
About 2 Million!
Q: How did President
Johnson’s previous
experience in Congress help
to achieve passage of the
Civil Rights Act?
He used little-known
procedures like cloture to
pass legislation.