CHAPTER 11:
Harry S. Truman -became the nation's thirty-third president following the death of Franklin Roosevelt and became a
supporter of civil rights.
Jackie Robinson -became famous as the first African American during the modern era to play baseball in the Major
League.
Little Rock Central High School-high school which gained national attention after the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of
Education decision when the governor refused to obey a federal court order to integrate the school The governor
called in the Arkansas National Guard to prevent nine black students from entering the school, prompting
President Eisenhower to nationalize the Guard and send them home. Eisenhower then mobilized elements of the
101st Airborne to enforce the court's ruling and make sure that the African American students safely gained
admittance to the school.
George Wallace -governor of Alabama, who opposed integration and attempted to prevent black students from gaining
admittance to the University of Alabama.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. -the acknowledged leader of the civil rights movement, who was an extremely gifted man who
believed in nonviolent protest. He led the Montgomery bus boycott, was president of the SCLC, wrote the famed
"Letter from Birmingham Jail,”- delivered a famous speech at the March on Washington, won the Nobel Peace
Prize, and was eventually assassinated in April 1968.
SCLC -the Southern Christian Leaders Conference. It was an organization that sought to unite leaders from the black
community during the civil rights movement Early on, the SCLC tended to rely on voter registration and education
within the black community as its major method for pursuing civil right'. The SCLC believed that if it could educate
average African American citizens and get the right candidates elected to public office, it could successfully bring
about the end of segregation and inequality. However, following their participation in the Albany movement, a
number of SCLC leaders began to appreciate the value of mass demonstrations and public protests as well.
march on Washington -civil rights march held in 1963 that consisted of 200,000 civil rights activists demanding equality
for all citizens. It culminated in Dr. King's famous "I have a dream" speech.
SNCC -Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. It was a student organization which devoted itself to the use of
non-violent protests to demand civil rights for African Americans.
freedom rides -integrated bus trips in which civil rights advocates (both black and white) traveled south on buses to test
Supreme Court rulings requiring the integration of buses. One famous ride turned violent in Alabama. These rides
helped draw national attention to civil rights and created additional support for the movement.
Lyndon B. Johnson -became president following the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963. Johnson pushed through
civil rights legislation, proposed domestic programs designed to end poverty known as the "Great Society," and
supported affirmative action.
Voting Rights Act of 1965 -legislation passed by Congress in 1965 which authorized the president to suspend literacy tests
for voter registration and to send federal officials to register voters in the event that county officials failed to do
so. This new law led to a huge increase in African American voter registration, as well as an increase in the
number of African American candidates elected to public office.
Earl Warren -served as chief justice of the Supreme Court from 1953 until 1969 and oversaw a number of key Supreme
Court decisions which led to social change.
Johnson's Great Society -President Johnson's domestic programs- which were meant to end poverty and involved large
amounts of government spending.
1968 -year which saw social and political revolutions take place around the world.
assassinations of Dr, King and Robert Kennedy-In April 1968, an assassin gunned down Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in
Memphis, Tennessee, leaving others to carry the banner of civil rights in his place. Later that summer, Democratic
presidential hopeful Robert Kennedy was also assassinated after winning the California primary. Because of his
open support for civil rights, many citizens had considered Kennedy to be their greatest hope for steering the
nation in a positive direction. In the midst of all the chaos and violence, the nation moved ahead with concern
and a sense of uncertainty.
United Farm Workers -organization founded in 1962 and led by Cesar Chavez. It imitated many of the methods used by
the civil rights movement as it supported the rights of migrant farm workers, many of which were poor Hispanic
immigrants.
women's movement -movement which rejected traditional gender roles and advocated equality between men and
women.
environmentalist movement -movement inspired largely by Rachel Carson that is concerned with preserving the earth's
resources and species of life. It often focuses on combating ways in which human beings "negatively affect" the
environment.
Silent Spring ..-book written by Rachel Carson that helped inspire the modern environmentalist movement.
EPA -The Environmental Protection Agency. It is a federal agency established for the purpose of enforcing laws aimed at
maintaining a safe and clean environment.
conservatism -political philosophy which gained support in the '60s and that believes government should not try to
regulate too much. Conservatives would rather keep taxes low and have a government that does as little as
possible. They believe in personal freedoms and property rights rather than government trying to control how
society operates.
Truman's decision to integrate the U.S. military -In 1948, President Truman signed legislation integrating the U.S.
military. His support of such actions split the Democratic Party over the issue of integration in 1948.
Brown v. Board of Education - Supreme Court decision in which the Court ruled that segregation in public schools is
unconstitutional because conditions in segregated schools are not equal. It reversed the decision made years
before in Plessey v. Ferguson.
James Meredith '"-first African American admitted to the University of Mississippi.
Atlanta -southern city praised for its peaceful implementation of school segregation during the '50s and' 60s.
Montgomery bus boycott -early civil rights protest led by Dr Martin Luther King Jr. in which African Americans in
Montgomery, Alabama, boycotted public transportation in response to the arrest of Rosa Parks. African
Americans refused to use public buses until they were finally integrated. The event made Dr. King a nationally
known figure and established him as the recognized leader of the civil rights movement.
Letter from Birmingham Jail-famous letter written by Dr. King from the jail in Birmingham, Alabama, where he had been
arrested following a peaceful civil rights protest. His letter was a response to several white ministers who wrote a
statement arguing that the battle for civil rights should be waged in the courts rather than by protests. King's
public response eloquently expressed the reasons he disagreed and proclaimed that civil disobedience was a
necessary and acceptable method for achieving equality.
sit-ins -nonviolent protests in which blacks sat in segregated places until they were served or arrested.
CORE -Congress of Racial Equality. It was an organization founded in 1942 and is devoted to social change through
nonviolent action. It is perhaps most noted for organizing the famed "freedom rides" of the 1960s .
Black Power -a philosophy that held that blacks should take great pride in their African heritage and be willing to use
violence, if necessary, to attain and protect their civil rights.
Civil Rights Act of 1964 -an act passed by Congress which prohibited segregation in public accommodations (hotels,
restaurants, theaters) and discrimination in education and employment.
Warren Supreme Court -Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Earl Warren in the 1950s and '60s which was noted for using
its authority to bring about social change in the United States.
Miranda v. Arizona -1966 Supreme Court ruling in which the Court ruled that criminal defendants must be informed
when they are arrested that they have the right to an attorney and the right not to incriminate themselves.
Medicare and Medicaid - important programs introduced as part of Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society." Medicare provides
elderly citizens with medical care and is funded by the federal government. Medicaid provides medical care for
lower-income families and is partially funded by the states.
antiwar movement -social/political movement of the 1960s and early '70s that consisted largely of college students and
was aimed at ending the war in Vietnam.
Democratic National Convention of' 1968 -political convention where the Democratic Party nominated its candidates for
president and vice president for the' 68 election. Large numbers of radicals and protesters descended on the city
where the convention was held and, eventually, massive demonstrations got out of hand after convention
delegates voted against a Vietnam peace resolution and it became clear that Johnson's vice president, Hubert
Humphrey, would be nominated for president. Police began clubbing those involved in the rally, while television
cameras caught most of the violence.
Cesar Chavez -founder of the UFW and an advocate for Hispanic migrant workers, he imitated many of the methods of Dr.
King and went to great lengths to improve the conditions under which migrant workers toiled, including
personally conducting hunger strikes.
NOW -National Organization for Women. Organization founded by Betty Friedan which was devoted to political activism
and feminist causes.
Rachel Carson -scientist/writer whose book Silent Spring helped inspire the modern environmentalist movement.
Earth Day -annual event first celebrated in 1970 which is meant to encourage concern for the environment and draw
attention to environmental issues.
Al Gore -former vice president of the United States who is currently one of the world's best-known advocates for the
modern-day environmentalist movement.
Barry Goldwater -Republican candidate for president in 1964 whose candidacy marked the rise of the conservative
movement and ended the days of the "solid South."