Unit 11 Vocabulary Civil Rights Movement efforts made

Unit 11 Vocabulary

Civil Rights Movement • efforts made by African Americans and their supporters in the 1950 s and 1960 s to eliminate segregation and gain equal rights in the United States

Integration of the Military • President Truman issued an executive order in 1948 to integrate the armed forces and end discrimination in the government • represented the beginnings of a federal commitment to dealing with racial issues.

Jackie Robinson • In 1947, joins the Brooklyn Dodgers, making first integrated team in MLB • 1 st African American in the Hall of Fame

Brown v. Board of Education • Ends segregation in schools • Overturns Plessy v. Ferguson • Many states ignore it and resist integration, takes awhile before federal government enforces it

Letter from a Birmingham Jail • Written by MLK • Written in response to critics of the Civil Rights Movement • Explains why they must fight segregation

“I Have a Dream” Speech • Given by MLK at Lincoln monument in Washington, D. C. • Drew attention to Civil Rights movement and the Civil Rights Act.

Civil Rights Act of 1964 • Law that bans discrimination in public places (no segregation) • Kennedy’s assassination helps get this passed; Johnson convinces Congress to honor his work in civil rights

Voting Rights Act of 1965 • Forbids practices that prevented black people from voting like poll taxes and literacy tests • Freedom Summer and Selma march helped get this passed • The number of black voters in the South tripled

Turmoil of 1968 • MLK’s assassination led to violence and anger around the nation • Robert Kennedy’s assassination hurt the Democratic Party, Nixon won election • Both assassination and anti-war protests led to violence at the Democratic National Convention between protestors and police

SNCC • Civil rights activist group made up mostly of students • Start with peaceful protests like sit-ins and freedom rides, but became more confrontational and radical over time

SCLC • Civil rights activist group led by Martin Luther King, Jr. • Made up of pastors and civil rights leaders • Non-violent protests and marches

Warren Court • The Supreme Court during the period when Earl Warren was chief justice, noted for its activism in the areas of civil rights and free speech • Ex: Brown v. Board • Banned prayer in public schools, and limited censorship in books and films

Great Society • President Lyndon B. Johnson’s program to reduce poverty and racial injustice and to promote a better quality of life in the United States • Part of a “war on poverty” • Ex: Medicare Act; Higher Ed. Act; Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Clean Air Amendment, Truth in Packaging Act

NOW • National Organization for Women • An organization founded in 1966 to pursue feminist goals, such as better childcare facilities, improved educational opportunities, and an end to job discrimination

Cesar Chavez • Worked with Delores Huerta to establish the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC) • United California fruit and vegetable farm workers, mostly made up of Mexican. Americans • Used non-violent protests to gain better wages and benefits

Rachel Carson • Wrote Silent Spring (1962) which exposed a “hidden danger”, the effects of pecides on the environment • Led to the Water Quality Act of 1965 which required states to clean up rivers • Early part of the environmental movement

Conservative Movement • The “New Right”; a late 20 th century alliance of conservative special interest groups concerned with cultural, social, and moral issues • Goals: – Shrink the size of the federal government and reduce spending – Promote family values and patriotic ideals – Stimulate business by reducing government regulations and lowering taxes – Strengthen the national defense