Explain how and why African
Americans and other supporters
of civil rights challenged
segregation in the United States
after World War II.

1896 – Plessy v. Ferguson: “separate but equal”



Jim Crow laws were created and were common in the
South
1955 – Rosa Parks challenged segregation and was
arrested. Days later a bus boycott was organized
in Montgomery.
NAACP challenged segregation in the courts
1935 – exclusion from juries violated equal protection
under the law
 1946 – segregation on interstate busses unconstitutional
 1950 – state law schools had to admit qualified African
American applicants


1942 - Congress of
Racial Equality


Used sit-ins to protest
segregation
Successfully
integrated theatres,
restaurants, and other
public facilities in
Chicago, Detroit,
Denver, and Syracuse


Thurgood Marshall – NAACP chief counsel
1954 – Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka,
Kansas: segregation in public schools was
unconstitutional and a violation of the 14th
amendment (equal protection)

“Southern Manifesto” – southern resistance to
Brown v. Board



101 Southern members of Congress signed
Pledged to use “all lawful means” to reverse the
decision
Montgomery Bus Boycott



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December 1955 - Led by Martin Luther King Jr.
Inspired by Mohandas Gandhi – non-violent
resistance
Boycott lasted over a year
December 1956 – Supreme Court declared
Alabama’s segregation law unconstitutional

Southern Christian Leadership Conference
(SCLC) – led by Martin Luther King Jr.
Eliminate segregation from American society
 Encourage African Americans to register to vote
 Challenged segregation at voting booths and in
public transportation, housing, and public
accommodations


President Eisenhower disagreed with
segregation


Ordered navy shipyards and veterans’ hospitals to
be desegregated
Disagreed with ending segregation through
protests and court rulings


Believed people had to allow segregation to end
gradually as values changed
Refused to endorse Brown v. Board but had the
obligation to uphold the court ruling



September 1957 – Little Rock, Arkansas
9 African American students were to enroll in
Central High School
Governor Orval Faubus, running for reelection, defended white supremacy


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Ordered National Guard to prevent students from
entering building
Students had to be escorted away to safety by police
President Eisenhower ordered 1,000 federal soldiers
to escort the students into the school

Civil Rights Act of
1957



Designed to protect
the right to vote for
African Americans
Investigate
allegations of denial
of voting rights
SCLC campaigned to
register 2 million new
African American
voters