Chapter 18 Section 3
New Civil Rights Issues
Racism…Still
• In the 1960s, racism, discrimination toward
someone because of his or her race, was still
common.
• In 1965 about 70 percent of African Americans
lived in large cities.
• They were often trapped by poverty in the
inner city.
• Real estate agents, local banks, and landlords
refused to rent or sell to African Americans.
Gains…Hopes…Frustration
• African Americans were aware of the gains made
by the civil rights movement, but knew the gains
did not address their social and economic
problems.
• The gains of the civil rights movement contribute
to the frustrations of African Americans living in
urban areas because people had raised their
hopes that changes would occur, but everyday
conditions did not improve.
Watts
• Their anger at the
situation erupted into
violence.
• Race riots broke out
around the country.
• Thirty-four people were
killed during a six-day
riot in Watts, a
neighborhood in Los
Angeles.
Detroit
• The worst riot occurred in
Detroit in 1967.
• The U.S. Army was called
in to control the situation.
• However, the results of
the riot damage in Detroit
included…43 deaths and
over 1,000 wounded,
1,300 buildings destroyed
by fire, and property
losses estimated at $250
million.
Kerner Commission
• President Johnson picked
Otto Kerner to head a
commission to look at the
causes of the riots.
• It blamed racism for most
of the problems in the
inner city and
recommended more jobs
(job creation), more
public housing units, and
a renewed federal
commitment to fight de
facto segregation.
Endorsing the Kerner Commission
• However, President
Johnson never endorses
the recommendations
of the Kerner
Commission because
federal government was
burdened by its
spending for the
Vietnam War.
Chicago Movement
• In 1965 Dr. King decided
to focus on improving the
economic conditions of
African Americans.
• He and his wife moved
into a slum apartment in
Chicago to call attention
to the problems there.
• The Chicago Movement
was largely unsuccessful
in ending urban poverty.
Dr. King Losing Support
• Dr. King’s failure in Chicago convinced some
African Americans that nonviolence was not
the solution to their problems because it
failed to improve their economic position.
Turning Away from Nonviolence
• Many poor, young African Americans turned
away from King’s movement.
• They turned to more aggressive forms of
protest.
• A few believed that the term meant that selfdefense and violence were acceptable when
defending one’s freedom.
Stokely Carmichael
• Stokely Carmichael, the
leader of SNCC
explained “black
power” to mean
controlling the social,
political, and economic
direction of the struggle
for equality.
Black Power
• Black power stressed
pride in African American
culture.
• It rejected the idea that
African Americans should
try to imitate white
society.
• Black power was very
popular in the poor urban
neighborhoods where
many African Americans
lived.
Nation of Islam
• By the early 1960s,
Malcolm X had become
the symbol of black
power.
• He gained fame as part
of the Nation of Islam,
or the Black Muslims.
• The Nation of Islam was
an organization led by
Elijah Muhammad.
Malcolm X Changing his Tune
• Malcolm X broke away
from the Nation of
Islam by 1964.
• Malcom X conclude that
an integrated society
was possible because
he witnessed Muslims
of many races
worshipping together in
Mecca.
Malcolm X Death and Legacy
• In February 1965 members of the Nation of Islam
killed Malcolm X in New York.
• Malcolm X is remembered for encouraging
African Americans to believe in their abilities to
make their own way in the world.
• Malcolm X’s ideas affected a new generation of
militant African American leaders.
• One group, the Black Panthers, preached black
power, black nationalism, and economic selfsufficiency.
Black Panthers
• The Black Panthers’ main
belief was that a revolution
was necessary within the
United States.
• The Black Panthers' “Ten-Point
Program” call for an end to
racial oppression, and
community control of major
institutions such as schools,
housing, law enforcement, and
hospitals.
• They urged African Americans
to arm themselves and
confront white society to force
whites to grant them equal
rights.
Divided Movement
• By the late 1960s, the civil rights movement
was divided into dozens of competing
organizations.
• Some African Americans called for violent
action.
• This angered many white supporters of the
civil rights movement.
Dr. King’s Death
• In 1968 Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr., went to
Memphis, Tennessee, to
support a strike of African
American sanitation
workers.
• On April 4 he was shot to
death as he stood on his
hotel balcony.
• The result of Dr. King’s
death touched off riots in
more than 100 cities.
Civil Rights Act of 1968
• After Dr. King’s death,
Congress passed the
Civil Rights Act of 1968.
• The key element of the
law banned
discrimination in the
sale and rental of
housing.
Civil Rights Movement, Legacy
• The civil rights movement continued, but it
lacked the vision that Dr. King had given it.
• Still, the civil rights movement of the 1950s
and 1960s had created many new
opportunities for African Americans.