Name:
Pursuing “Life and Liberty”: Civil Rights in the USA,
1945-1968
Edexcel Unit 2 Option 13b
Examination in June 2006
Teacher: Mr R Miller
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Course Outline
The four bullet points outlined below define what the exam board expect you to know
and understand:




The social and economic position of black citizens in the USA in the 1940s and
1950s; the nature and extent of discrimination and segregation;
Martin Luther King and peaceful protest;
Black Power and the use of violence;
The extent to which civil rights had been achieved by 1968.
The paragraph below clarifies the content. It comes from the teachers’ guide and is
therefore very important in terms of explaining exactly what you need to know.
“The main focus of this unit is on the black struggle for equal rights in the 1950s and
1960s. Candidates should also have a knowledge and understanding of the economic and
social position of blacks in different parts of the USA in the period immediately
following the end of World War II. The phrase ‘Martin Luther King and peaceful protest’
in the specification relates to the forces opposed to equal rights and the ways in which
opposition to equal rights expressed itself as well as to the civil rights movement itself.
Questions may be set which involve explicit comparison of the philosophies and outlooks
of Martin Luther King and ‘Black Power & Black Panther activists’. Questions will not
be set which have as their central focus the policies and records of individual on civil
rights issues. The phrase ‘The extent to which civil rights had been achieved’ relates both
to relevant Supreme Court decisions in the 1950s and 1960s, the extent to which these
were implemented in different parts of the USA and to the importance of the Voting
Rights Act (1965) and the Civil Rights Act (1968).”
Assessment
For this unit you will be expected to answer two examination questions. One will ask you
to describe events and the other will want you to explain why events happened. The exam
will last an hour and each of your answers will take you half an hour to plan and write.
The mark scheme for the questions should help you to develop and improve your writing.
You will, at times, be asked to assess your own work and the work of other students in
the group.
Level
Describe/How questions
(marks)
Level 1 Simple statements giving information
(1-8)
Level 2
(9-19)
Developed statements giving information in
some detail
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Why Questions
Simple statements. The
treatment is likely to be
generalised and material
will be partial but there will
be some accurate reference.
Developed statements
which offer predominantly
accurate material. There
Level
Describe/How questions
(marks)
Level 3
(20-27)
Developed description, material should be
detailed and candidates should be able to draw
out the implications of the material they are
selecting, i.e. show the impact or influence.
Level 4
(28-30)
Developed exposition about theme. Material
will be precisely selected and the material will
all be relevant and accurate and sufficiently
extensive to suggest mastery of the topic.
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Why Questions
will be some focus on
causation, i.e. a narrative
response will include some
links to causation, or a
response may present causal
factors but with limited
support or contain treatment
that is analytical but
unbalanced, perhaps
because it offers an
essentially monocausal
explanation.
Developed explanation
supported by detailed and
well selected information.
The arguments should be
supported by detailed and
well selected information
and causal links between
factors and will be clear.
Links will be seen as
cumulative or presented as
an overall combination
rather than analysed or
explored fully.
Sustained argument that
focuses exclusively on
causation and which
supports the arguments
made with detailed and
precisely selected
information. At this level
candidates should be able to
show how factors work
together. Alternatively, the
candidate may attempt to
argue the relative
importance of different
factors, and, in so doing,
establish their combination
and interaction.
Making notes
Page references in the note sections refer to Vivienne Saunders’ ‘Race Relations in the
USA since 1900’. You may need to read more than just the pages listed to understand the
information properly. You should also use other books and the internet.
Some suggestions for further reading are:
Sweet Land of Liberty? – Robert Cook (Longman Studies in Modern History ISBN 0 582
215323)
The Autobiography of Malcolm X - Malcolm X (Penguin Classics ISBN 014 118543 0)
The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jnr - Ed. Clayborne Carson (Abacus ISBN 0
349 11298 3)
Writing Essays
This guidance is taken from the examiners’ report on the summer 2005 exam.
“Complete both parts of the same question. These are equally weighted – try to divide
your time equally.
To do well you need to:
Focus – analyse the question carefully to ensure that you understand the focus. Consider
the terms used, e.g. steps, measures, policies, actions, role, contribution – what do they
imply, how do they define what you include? ‘Why did’, ‘why…able’ – what is the
difference? Economic, political, social, diplomatic, personality, character, features (and
more) – what aspects do they include? The specified dates, the issues/implications
(potentially a useful introduction).
Then, with the question in mind, select what aspects of your knowledge are relevant.
Compose 5 or 6 relevant statements that directly answer the question. Put them into a
sensible order to create an answer. Look for links between them – this helps you to order,
group or categorise them well.
Develop each statement, elaborate, support; work your examples, link to the question
and/or other statements. Make sure that your references are precise; include names,
dates, figures, and accurate terminology. Use paragraphs to clarify the sections of your
argument, and try to link each section to the next one, relating them to one another.
Conclude – not just a list. Highlight links and interaction; demonstrate relative
importance, necessary factors, dependent factors, comparisons to highlight factors. Try
to make your conclusion a summary of your whole answer, including how the different
parts of it link together.”
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Introduction: The USA Today
Investigation: To what extent do blacks in the USA today live Martin Luther King’s
“dream" of freedom and equality?
As I am updating this guide the USA is coming to terms with the impact of Hurricane
Katrina. Stark images of devastation and human suffering fill the broadcast media. Many
people have been struck by the fact that the very poorest people unable to leave New
Orleans were black. Some observers have suggested that events in New Orleans and the
surrounding area have shown that race relations in the USA are far from good. The first
investigation is not directly linked to your final assessment. However, it is important to
understand what is happening in the US today if we are to fully understand the
significance of the events in the middle of the twentieth century.
Time: 6 lessons
Key Readings
You will receive a collection of newspaper stories about the US today, taken from reports
in newspapers over the last few years. You should find at least one source of information
using newspaper web sites.
Notes
You should make notes on the following topics relating to black rights and freedom,
under these headings:





Politics;
Education;
Crime;
Housing;
Work.
In your notes you should refer to information you have found in the newspaper articles.
Assessment
You should hand in the following work by the deadline:
 The newspaper stories, including the one you found yourself, with comments
written in the margins;
 Brief notes from the articles under the headings;
 An answer to the investigation, based on your research, which should be
approximately 1000 words in length.
Deadline:
The deadline for this work is:…………………..
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Part One: The nature and extent of discrimination and
segregation in the USA in the 1940s and 1950s
Investigations
Describe the main ways in which blacks felt themselves discriminated against in US
society in the 1940s and 50s.
Why did the post Second World War period see an increase in Civil Rights protests in the
US?
Time: 8 lessons
Notes
You should make notes on the following individuals, events, policies or themes 
What can we learn about the condition of blacks by studying the lives of Emmet
Till (pp. 70, 82) and Ruben “Hurricane” Carter?

What were the “Jim Crow” laws and what was the impact of the laws on the lives
of blacks living in the US? (pp. 6, 22, 30, 37, 45, 169)

What was the role of black rights organisations like the NAACP and what impact
did they have before World War II? (pp. 27, 34-6, 41-3, 45, 47, 49-51, 54, 67-70,
72-80, 84, 88-90, 92, 95-101, 104, 108-111, 116, 123, 127, 129-31, 134, 146, 159,
171-2, 174-5, 179)

What were the aims and methods of the Ku Klux Klan? What was the extent of
support for the KKK in the southern states in the first half of the twentieth
century? (pp. 22, 29, 33, 35, 39, 43, 60, 66, 75-7, 93-4, 102, 106, 108, 128, 134,
136, 150, 160, 178)

What was the impact of World War II on Black Rights? (pp. 27, 38-9, 48-9, 51-2,
54, 66, 154)

What impact did the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955, have on the Civil Rights
movement? (pp. 59, 70, 73, 82-3, 87, 89, 90-2, 95-6,153)

How blacks were affected by segregation in education (pp. 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 22-3,
28-30, 34, 37-9, 48-9, 67, 72-3, 78-80, 82, 88, 107, 109, 111-112, 121-3, 146-7,
150-1, 153, 156-7, 164, 169) and how far were the problems of segregation
resolved by the end of the 1950s? You should refer to Brown v Board of
Education (1954) and Little Rock High School (1957) (pp. 59, 68, 70, 73, 75, 7780, 82, 84, 87, 96, 121, 152-3, 159)
Assessment
You should hand in answers to both the investigations. I will also want to see your notes
on the outlined topics.
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The answers to the investigations should each be approximately 1000 words.
Deadline
The deadline for this work is:………………….
Part Two: Martin Luther King and Peaceful Protest
Investigations
Describe the main ways Martin Luther King attempted to achieve Black Civil Rights in
the 1950s and 1960s?
How effective was Martin Luther King’s leadership of the Civil Rights movement?
Time: 14 lessons
Notes
You should make notes on the following individuals, events, policies or themes 
What was the impact of events in MLK’s early life and experiences on his ideas?
122-3

What was the role of King in the SCLC?

What was MLK’s role in the Montgomery bus boycott?

What was the impact of the Freedom rides, 1961

What was the King’s role in the protests in Albany, Birmingham, Washington,
Selma, Meredith?

What was the importance of King’s Dream speech?

What problems did King face in gaining support in northern cities like Chicago?

What was MLK’s role in changes in the law? (Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights
Act)

What was the reaction to MLK’s assassination?

How successful was King’s attempts to achieve civil rights for blacks?
(pp. Chapter 5 and also 33, 69, 74-8, 82, 84, 120-1, 123-5, 127, 130-1, 134, 137, 141,
146, 157, 162-3, 165-6, 169-70, 175-6)
Assessment
The answers to each investigation should be about 1000 words.
Deadline
The deadline for this work is……………….
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Part Three: Black Power and the use of violence
Investigations
How do Martin Luther King and Malcolm X compare as leaders of the black Civil Rights
movement?
Why did radical black power movements attract so much support in the 1960s?
Time: 14 lessons
Notes
You should make notes on the following individuals, events, policies or themes 
What was the impact of events in Malcolm X’s early life and experiences on his
ideas?

Why did Malcolm X favour separatism and the Black Muslim movement?

How were Malcolm X’s ideas changed by his pilgrimage to Mecca?

What were Malcolm X’s achievements within the Civil Rights Movement and
Black Power?

What was the reaction to Malcolm X’s death?

Why were there riots in Watts, Los Angeles in 1965?

What was the role of Stokely Carmichael?

What were the aims and actions of the Black?
Assessment
The answers to the key questions should be about 1000 words each.
Deadline
The deadline for this work is:……………………
Part Four: Civil Rights by 1968
Investigations
How much had life changed for blacks living in the US at the end of the 1960s?
Why had the civil rights activists achieved only limited success in the United States by
1968?
Time: 10 lessons
Notes
You should make notes on the following individuals, events, policies or themes –

What impact has the civil rights movement had on Black involvement in politics?
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
What was the economic situation of Blacks in the US in 1968?

Did Blacks have equal access to education in the US in 1968?
Assessment
The answers to the key questions should be about 500 words each.
Deadline
The deadline for this work is:…………………..
Revision
There will be allocated revision lessons at the end of the course and before you start study
leave. However if some topics take longer than anticipated this time may be reduced.
Final Examination
The provisional date for your examination for this unit is on the afternoon of 07/06/06.
You can check the exam timetable at:
www.edexcel.org.uk/calendar/timetables/gce_may_06
This guide can also be found on the department’s web site.
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