Georgia
Studies
Unit 8: Modern Georgia
and Civil Rights
Lesson 1: Post-World
War II Developments
Study Presentation
Lesson 1: Post-World War
II Developments
• ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
– How has technological change affected
agricultural methods and production?
– How did the post WWII economic climate
provide opportunities for entrepreneurs?
– How do Georgia’s transportation systems
affect economic growth and development?
New Technology
• Television use expanded in the 1950s
– ABC, CBS, NBC were major networks
– Entertainment was important
– Entertainment was important; People could now watch
news events almost as they happened
• Transformation of Agriculture:
– New synthetic (man made) fabrics became popular.
– Examples: Rayon and Nylon
– Reduced the need for cotton; as the demand for cotton fell
other crops/plants began to be grown in place of cotton;
trees, peanuts, soybeans, and corn were some of the
major examples
– New farming technology (i.e. tractors and harvesters)
helped improve the amount of products that farmers could
grow.
Industries Move into
Georgia
• Businesses continued to move into the state
• Air conditioning began to be installed
making year round work more comfortable
• Georgia’s low taxes were attractive to
workers and businesses
• Lockheed became largest employer
• CDC: Centers for Disease Control – Atlanta
headquarters established
The Cold War
• Relations between the US and USSR
became tense
• Cold War: a war of words and diplomacy
• US and USSR were world’s most powerful
countries
• USSR kept eastern Europe in communism
behind the “iron curtain”
• Containment of communism led to war in
Korea and Vietnam
The Korean War
• Korea was divided after WWII
• 38th parallel was line between communist North
and democratic South
• June 25, 1950: North Korea invaded South
Korea
• United Nations countries sent troops to assist
South Korea
• 25,000 Americans killed; 500 Georgians
• Peace declared in July 1953; no winner
• Many businesses benefited from doing business
with the military bases and armed forces
Ellis Arnall
• Elected Georgia’s governor in 1942
• Helped to fix the accreditation issues with
the University of Georgia (during Eugene
Talmadge’s time as governor) by helping the
board of regents become a separate body
from the governor’s office.
• Removed Georgia’s prison system from
under the control of the governor.
• Under Governor Arnall, Georgia became the
first state in the Union to grant 18-year olds
the right to vote.
The 1946 Governor’s Race
• Governor Ellis Arnall’s term of office was due to end in 1946.
• Eugene Talmadge was elected to his 4th Term as Georgia’s
Governor but died before taking the Oath of Office.
• Began the “Three Governor’s” Controversy:
– Herman Talmadge (Eugene’s son) was chosen as governor by the
legislature due to the amount of write-in votes he had received and
were “found” after the election.
– Current Governor Arnall declares that Lieutenant Governor Melvin
Thompson was the new Governor as he was the rightful successor.
– January 15, 1947, Herman Talmadge’s men broke into the
governor’s office and changed the locks and readied themselves to
run the state.
– Governor Arnall set up a temporary office at the Capitol Information
counter; Arnall officially resigned three days later.
– Finally in March 1947, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled Thompson
was the governor until a special election could be held in 1948. At
this election, Herman Talmadge was elected governor.
Georgia Governors
• Melvin Thompson: purchased Jekyll Island
to build a state-owned resort; established
UGA Veterinary School
• Herman Talmadge: Strict segregationist.
Minimum Foundation Program for Education
Act – established 9-month school year
raised standards for schools
• Marvin Griffin: began educational television;
oversaw purchase of Stone Mountain for
park
Atlanta’s Mayors
• William Hartsfield: Served as Atlanta’s mayor
longer than any other person (6 terms from 19371961). Presided over many building projects
including expressways and parks throughout the
city. After his death in 1971 the Atlanta airport
was renamed after him.
• Ivan Allen, Jr.: Served as Atlanta’s mayor from
1962-1970. Only politician from the South to
speak in favor of the Civil Rights Act. Helped to
bring the Braves from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to
Atlanta.
Major League Sports Teams
• Atlanta Braves: Moved to Atlanta in 1966.
Bought by Ted Turner in 1976. Braves
games began being broadcast nationwide
on TBS. Won the World Series in 1995 (first
professional title in Atlanta’s history).
• Atlanta Falcons: Played their first NFL game
in 1966. Played in the Super Bowl in 1998.
• Atlanta Hawks: NBA team, moved from St.
Louis, Missouri to Atlanta in 1968.
Transportation Systems
• Interstate Highway System: Makes transportation
through the city easier. Interstates, such as I-20, I-75,
and I-85, go through the city of Atlanta. I-95 goes from
Florida to Maine and I-75 goes from Miami to Michigan.
• Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport: One of the
busiest airports in the world. Named after two Atlanta
mayors (William Hartsfield and Maynard Jackson).
• Georgia’s Deepwater Ports: Two major deepwater ports
(Savannah and Brunswick). Goods (products) made in
Georgia are frequently shipped to other parts of the
world through these ports.
• Railroads: Allowed for efficient transportation of people
and products over land.
• These four transportation systems are important to GA’s
economy as they allow people and goods to move
throughout the state.
Georgia
Studies
Unit 8: Modern Georgia
and Civil Rights
Lesson 2: Segregation
and Civil Rights
Study Presentation
Lesson 2: Segregation and
Civil Rights
• ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
– How can the policies of state and local
political leaders influence economic
growth?
– How can political policies and decisions
create a climate in which individuals and
groups can voice opinions to bring about
social change?
End of the White Primary
• White Primary – Used, after the Civil War, to keep
African Americans from voting.
– 1900 Democratic Primary – Democratic leaders decided
that only white Democrats could vote in the primary
election.
– GA was essentially a one-party state (Republican and
Independent candidates got little support from white
citizens).
– As a result, white, Democratic candidates were often
elected with little or no African American support.
– End of the White Primary – King v. Chapman Supreme
Court case made the white primary systems in GA
unconstitutional (illegal).
Early Civil Rights in GA
• Herman Talmadge – Served as governor of GA briefly in 1947
and again from 1948-1955. Later served in the U.S. Senate.
– Segregationist – Worked to keep African American and white
citizens separate
– As a politician, Talmadge worked to help GA’s farmers and
tried to stop Civil Rights.
• 1956 State Flag – In 1956, GA’s state flag was changed to
prominently display the Confederate Battle Flag; changed in 2001
as citizens found the flag offensive.
GA Flag
1920-1956
GA Flag
1956-2001
GA Flag
2003-Present
The Supreme Court and
Education
• 1948: racial integration ordered in armed
forces
• 1950: Brown v. Board of Education – case
struck down “separate but equal” concept;
schools were to be integrated
• Sibley Commission: found that most
Georgians would rather close schools than
integrate
• More private schools opened
• 1961: Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes
first African American students at UGA
• 1971: All Georgia public schools integrated
Montgomery Bus Boycott
• Dec. 1, 1955: Rosa Parks, African
American, refused to give up her bus
seat to whites in Montgomery, AL
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the
NAACP organized civic leaders and
prepared marches
• Supreme court ruled segregation on
public transportation unconstitutional
A Nonviolent Movement is Born
• Benjamin Mays – President of Morehouse College;
educator and mentor to Martin Luther King, Jr. of
Atlanta and as a Civil Rights advocate.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. developed a nonviolent
approach to social change
• Four-prong approach:
–
–
–
–
direct, nonviolent actions
legal remedies
ballots
economic boycotts
• SCLC: Southern Christian Leadership Conference –
civil rights group led by Dr. King
• Sit-in: Dr. King’s strategy to people refuse to leave a
public building until their demands are met
The Albany Movement
• 1961: Albany, GA becomes center of civil
rights activity
• SNCC: Student Nonviolent Coordinating
Committee – challenged segregated bus
system in Albany
• Nearly 500 people jailed
• Biracial committee formed to study
concerns of African Americans
Protests Move to Alabama
• 1963: Martin Luther King, Jr. begins work to
integrate all aspects of public life in
Birmingham, AL
• Over 3000 people arrested
• 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing – KKK
sets a bomb which killed 4 black children in
their church in Birmingham, Alabama
• African Americans and whites from the
north and south began to join together to
stop the violence
The Civil Rights Act
• President Kennedy created new civil rights
laws
• Kennedy was assassinated before the new
laws came into effect
• Lyndon Johnson became president and
pushed for passage of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964
• All public facilities had to be integrated
• Discrimination was prohibited in business
and labor unions
The Voting Rights Act
• 1964: Freedom Summer – Martin Luther
King, Jr. and SNCC worked to get African
Americans registered to vote
• Selma-to-Montgomery, AL march led by Dr.
King
• Nearly 30,000 marchers
• Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of
1965 – one million African Americans were
registered to vote
A Shift in Mood
• Some people moved from the nonviolent
strategies to more aggressive ones
• SNCC and “Black Panthers” confronted police
• Malcolm X preached black separatism
• Race riots in Los Angeles, Detroit, and Newark
• Lester Maddox became governor of Georgia in
1967. Had forcibly turned black activists who
challenged segregation at the restaurant he had
owned. Very popular with Georgians who
supported segregation.
• April 1968: Dr. King assassinated in Memphis, TN
while working with striking sanitation workers
Atlanta: A Case Study in
Change
• Integration in Atlanta was relatively peaceful
• Church leaders get much credit for this peaceful
change
• William Hartsfield: Atlanta mayor who expanded
Atlanta’s airport and worked with African
American and white leaders; worked to integrate
Atlanta’s schools
• Ivan Allen: Atlanta mayor ordered removal of
“white” and “colored” segregation signs in the City
Hall; integrated police and fire services and city
government
• Troubled times followed but were overcome
• The city became known as “the city too busy to
hate”
African Americans Take
Office
• Maynard Jackson: Elected mayor of Atlanta
in 1973 (1st African American mayor of a
major southern city).
• Andrew Young: An aide to Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr. and Executive director of the
SCLC. In 1972, won election to the U.S.
House of Representatives (1st African
American from GA to be elected to
Congress since the 1860’s).
Georgia
Studies
Unit 8: Modern Georgia
and Civil Rights
Lesson 3: Georgia in
Recent History
Study Presentation
Lesson 3: Georgia in
Recent History
• ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
– How did the policies and actions of Jimmy
Carter influence the state, nation and world
politically and socially?
– How did the 1996 Olympic Games provide
opportunities for economic development
and contribute to Georgia’s international
image?
– How do new immigrants change social
structures and influence economic policies
and practices?
Political Changes
• “One Person, One Vote”: The concept that
each citizen’s vote should equal every
other citizen’s vote
• County-unit system was declared
unconstitutional in 1962
• This change caused more representatives
to come from urban areas
• Reapportionment – General Assembly had
to reapportion (redraw) voting districts to
ensure districts of equal population size
Georgia Governors
• Carl Sanders: elected in 1962; worked to
diffuse racial violence; increased spending
on education; used television ads to
campaign
• Lester Maddox: elected 1967; surprise
winner; appointed more African Americans
to state office than all other governors
combined; integrated the State Patrol;
“People’s Days” – any Georgian could visit
and talk with the governor
Georgia in the 1970s
• Ted Turner: TBS television network expanded
from one station to a national network
• MARTA: Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit
Authority – began rapid rail service in Atlanta
• James (“Jimmy”) Earl Carter: 1970 – elected
governor of Georgia; 1977-1980 served as
President of the United States
– As president, negotiated peace between Israel and
Egypt
– Problems as president: high energy costs, high interest
rates, high inflation, 52 American hostages held in Iran
• Georgia cities began to lose population to the
suburbs; cities have began to work to attract
residents
Jimmy Carter
• Born: October 1, 1924 in Plains, GA.
• Elected to the GA Senate in 1962 and 1964.
• Elected as governor of GA in 1970. Worked to
streamline Georgia’s government and improve
education in rural areas.
• Won the presidential election in 1976. Worked to
develop peaceful relations between numerous
countries. Due to the Iranian hostage crisis and
economic problems during his presidency,
President Carter lost the 1980 election to Ronald
Reagan.
The Women’s Rights
Movement
• Women’s Rights Movement: women gained
confidence that they could do the same jobs as
men and should have the same rights
• Women often could not get credit at banks
• NOW: National Organization for Women –
promoted women’s rights issues
• ERA: Equal Rights Amendment – never became
part of the Constitution
• 1972: Title IX – President Nixon signed law which
prohibited discrimination in education (academics
or athletics)
Vietnam Divides America
• North Vietnam: communist
• South Vietnam: democratic
• USA began support South Vietnam against
the North
• 1968: Over 500,000 Americans involved in
Vietnam War
• Protests against the war increased
• 1973: war ended with no clear victor –
Vietnam is now united and communist
Watergate
• 1972: Group of men arrested for breaking
into the Watergate building in Washington,
DC to “bug” Democratic National Committee
offices
• Evidence supported that President Nixon
knew of the burglary and tried to cover it up
• Nixon resigned and Vice-President Gerald
Ford became president
The Energy Crisis
• 1973: US supports Israel in its war with
Egypt
• Arab nations stop selling oil to the US
• Price of gas went up and there were
shortages
• Georgians began to drive less and purchase
fuel-efficient cars
• Prudhoe Bay, Alaska: Alaskan Pipeline
brought oil to the “lower 48” states
The End of the Cold War
• Ronald Reagan: “Great Communicator”
elected president – served 1981-1989
• Reaganomics: “supply-side” economics, tax
cuts, heavy defense spending, limited
government, limited regulation on business
• Reagan tough with USSR
• By end of 1980s, Cold War ending
• Mikhail Gorbachev: leader of USSR
• 1989: Berlin Wall came down
• 1991: Communist USSR government
collapsed
Rise of the Two-Party System
• Political shift in Georgia (and other southern states) during the
1980’s and 1990’s.
• Increase in the amount of conservatives (mainly Republicans),
especially in national elections. As more Republicans were
elected to office Georgia began to have a real Two-Party
(Democrats and Republicans) System for the first time in over
100 years.
• Notable Elections in the rise of the Two-Party System:
– 1980 – Mack Mattingly becomes first Republican elected to
the U.S. Senate since Reconstruction.
– 1992 – Republicans win most Georgia’s congressional
elections; however, Atlanta Democrat Cynthia McKinney
became the first African American woman from GA to be
elected to Congress.
– 1994 – Republicans gain a majority in the U.S. House of
Representatives for the first time in 40 years; GA’s Newt
Gingrich is elected Speaker of the House.
– 2002 – Sonny Perdue elected Governor of GA; first
Republican Governor since Reconstruction.
1996 Olympic Summer
Games
• 1996 Olympic Summer Games held in Atlanta,
Georgia. Events were also held in the cities of
Savannah, Columbus, Athens, Gainesville, and
Cleveland.
• Major economic impact on Georgia. Hotels added
7,500 new rooms and new sports venues and event
sites were created (such as the Georgia Dome and
Centennial Olympic Park)
• More than 72 million visitors came to Atlanta during
the Olympics
• Helped to create large amounts of tax revenue for
Atlanta, Georgia. Also, helped to increase the
popularity and media exposure of Atlanta as a
major southern city.
Immigrants Coming to GA
• Immigrants – People who move to an area from other
countries.
• 1965 – Large numbers of immigrants began coming to
the United States.
• By the 1970’s almost 4.5 million people legally entered
the country.
• In the 1990’s almost 9 million people came to the
United States. 80% of these came from Asia, the
Caribbean, or Latin America.
• Many of the immigrants coming to the United States
are illegal immigrants. In 1986, the Immigration Reform
and Control Act created penalties and punishments for
companies that hire illegal immigrants. However, these
immigrants often times help fill jobs in farming and
manufacturing.
“The Day That Changed
America”
• September 11, 2001: Islamic terrorists hijack US
passenger planes and crash them into the World
Trade Center and Pentagon
• One additional plane (United flight 93) was retaken by passengers but crashed in Pennsylvania
• WTC towers collapse killing 2,774
• The War on Terror began shortly after 9/11 as the
United States began to fight against countries that
harbored and funded terrorist groups.
Enduring Freedom and
Iraqi Freedom
• al-Qaeda linked to the September 11 attacks – based in
Afghanistan
• October 2001: Operation Enduring Freedom – US and
other nations’ troops invade Afghanistan to destroy alQaeda camps and destroy Taliban government
• Osama bin Laden escaped
• Saddam Hussein in Iraq continued to violate UN
resolutions regarding weapons of mass destruction and
inspections
• March 19, 2003: US and coalition forces attack Iraq –
combat phase over by May
• Weapons of mass destruction were not found
• Saddam Hussein captured and later executed on
December 30, 2006.
Challenges for the Future
• 8 million people live in Georgia – large increase
puts demands on environment; more traffic,
pollution and less resources.
• Three main challenges:
1. water resources
2. differences between urban (city) and rural (country) GA
3. tremendous population growth
• Alabama, Florida and US government have
demanded Georgia reduce water use and pollution
• Difficult to fund services such as schools in rural
areas as those areas do not generate enough tax
revenue (mainly through property and sales taxes).
The Three Governors
Episode
• Newly re-elected governor Eugene Talmadge died before
taking his 4th term of office in 1946
• The previous governor, Ellis Arnall, the Lieutenant Governor
Melvin Thompson, and Talmadge’s son, Herman, fought over
who would govern Georgia.
• Due to the amount of write in votes, Herman Talmadge was
chosen as governor by the legislatures.
• Arnall believe that the governor should have been Thompson.
• Due to the confusion, Secretary of State Ben Fortson refused
to give the official state seal to anyone.
• The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that a special election must
be held and Thompson was chosen as governor until 1948.
• Herman Talmadge was elected governor in 1948 and 1950.