EOC Test Preparation: Transformational Years The Civil Rights Movement • Segregation still practiced in the south by law • Segregation still practiced in the north despite no law enforcing it • Discontent over treatment and oppression lead to the Civil Rights Movement – Fighting for constitutional rights The Civil Rights Movement • Brown v. Board of Ed (1954) – 1950s NAACP sued board of ed. In Topeka, Kansas because Linda Brown was not allowed to attend the all-white school – Supreme Court reversed Plessy v. Ferguson (“separate but equal”); meant segregation in schools was unconstitutional • Chief Justice Earl Warren The Civil Rights Movement • Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States (1964) – Supreme Court continued dealing with segregation – Court ruled that Congress could regulate interstate commerce to outlaw segregation in privately owned businesses White Resistance to CRM • Southern political leaders maintained segregation despite Court rulings • Arkansas and the Little Rock Nine – Governor wouldn’t allow segregation in the high school – National Guard called to prevent students from entering – Eisenhower had to send in 101st Airborne to enforce Court’s ruling White Resistance to CRM • University of Mississippi and James Meredith – Governor tried to prevent him from being admitted – JFK sent federal authorities to handle the situation • AL Governor George Wallace – Prevent integration at Univ. of Alabama – Federal authorities sent to intervene Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nonviolence • Montgomery Bus Boycott – Rosa Parks, Dec. 1, 1955 – NAACP and Dr. MLK Jr. lead a boycott of city buses • City lost lots of $$$ • Made MLK Jr. a national figure Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nonviolence • MLK-Leader of the CRM • Civil disobedience- non-violent refusal to obey unjust laws – Gandhi • Sit-ins – – – – Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nonviolence Feb. 1, 1960 Greensboro NC Nonviolent, remain seated until served or arrested Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nonviolence • Freedom Rides – Blacks and whites took buses from the north to south to test court’s decision on interstate travel – CORE: Congress of Racial Equality Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nonviolence • CR protests continued in the South 1962-63 • August 28, 1963: March on Washington – Meant to put pressure on JFK to pass CRs legislation – 200,000 people showed up in support Malcolm X and Black Militant Movement • Malcolm X – Gain rights by “any means necessary” – Started as a more militant individual, through Islam he became less militant – Viewed by some as a traitor – Killed in Feb. 1965 at a rally Malcolm X and Black Militant Movement • Black Power-pride in African heritage, separate black economic and political institutions, selfdefense against white violence, potentially violent revolution • Black Panthers-1966 – Positive and negative impact – Pushed to rebuild ghettos in big cities Legal Changes • Lyndon B. Johnson urged Congress to pass CRs laws that JFK had proposed prior to his assassination – Civil Rights Act of 1964 • Prohibited segregation in public places • Prohibited discrimination in education and employment • 24th Amendment-1964, protected blacks’ voting rights by making the poll tax illegal • Voting Rights Act-1965 – Suspended literacy tests for voter registration – Led to huge amounts of African Americans to register to vote and running for political office Civil Rights and the Cold War • Both the US and USSR sought countries all over the world to form alliances with • The fact that the US was slow to enforce equality among all people didn’t help the cause Civil Rights and the Media • Power of the media – Many people in the US owned TVs and were able to watch what was happening in the CRM – Ideas spread quickly Johnson, Nixon, Vietnam • Lyndon B. Johnson, – “Great Society”-CRs, social programs (“War on Poverty”) – Was able to get Congress to pass a lot of legislation that helped the poor and urban areas – Medicare/caid – Head Start (education for low-income families) – Department of Housing and Urban Development – Loosened immigration laws Johnson, Nixon, Vietnam • Vietnam was a colony of France, but following WWII they began fighting for independence – Nationalists had ties to communism • Geneva Accords-conference in Switzerland, 1954, called for Vietnam to be divided into 2 nations – North=communist under Ho Chi Minh – South= democratic under Ngo Kinh Diem US Involvement in Vietnam • Eisenhower and Kennedy (and the US) feared the spread of Communism • Viet Cong-Communist rebels in South Vietnam – US sent military to help South Vietnam fight communist North and VC – Diem’s gov. was corrupt in the South • Kennedy assassinated (Lee Harvey Oswald), Johnson now in office, will not lose Vietnam to Communism US Involvement in Vietnam • Johnson won the presidency in 1964 by making his opponent seem (literally) on the warpath against Vietnam – However, Johnson was completely supportive of military involvement • Gulf of Tonkin-North Vietnamese had attacked US ships – Had they really??? – Johnson used the event to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution • Gave him the power to take military actions against Vietnam w/o Congressional approval US Involvement in Vietnam • VC power continuing to spread as poor Southern Vietnamese supported the cause • Operation Rolling Thunder – US wanted to cut off North Vietnam’s support of VC (through supplies) – Johnson ordered intense bombing campaign • Bridges, supply lines, villages • Careful not to bomb areas that might incur wrath of USSR and China Viet Cong and Guerilla Warfare • Not the traditional style of warfare – Strategies involving surprise attacks and then fleeing • Tet Offensive – Jan. 30, 1968 – Heavy fighting – Proved that the Communists could launch a serious military attack on US forces • US citizens begin to question the war Attitudes in the US • Divided attitudes • US as the criminal? • Anti-war movement – Mostly on college campuses – Some peaceful, some violent • Johnson looks bad, does not run for re-election Nixon and Vietnam • Jan. 1969, vowed to get US out of Vietnam • Vietnamization: – South Vietnamese soldiers to take the place of the US soldiers in Vietnam – Still nervous about Communism…began bombing raids against NV, Cambodia, Laos – Invaded Cambodia and destroy Communist training camps End of US Involvement • Paris Peace Accords – Withdrawal of US troops within 60 days – Release of POWs – All parties involved would end military activities in Laos and Cambodia – 17th parallel would still divide N and S Vietnam End of US Involvement • Fall of Saigon – After US left Vietnam, fighting resumed – North Vietnamese surrounded South Vietnamese at Saigon – US tried a last evacuation mission on April 29th – April 30th Saigon fell and Vietnam became a Communist country War Protests • Kent State University – Anti-war protest turned violent – Students attacked businesses and burned army ROTC building on campus – Governor of OH sent in troops • Opened fire when students began throwing rocks/objects • 4 dead, 9 injured War Protests • Pentagon Papers – 1971 – NY Times published a gov. study on US involvement • Executive branch (president) had lied to Congress – Secret decisions – Unapproved military actions War Protests • Media and Vietnam – Nightly news showed horrors of war and even listed the death tolls each night – Huge negative impact on citizens’ views of the war Social Revolution • “Baby Boomers” were now in college and challenging the ideals of society • Woodstock – 1969 – Peace, music, drugs, “immoral” behavior – counterculture • Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) – “New Left” – Rejected traditional views concerning social issues – Radical change Social Revolution • Migrant Workers – United Farm Workers – 1962 – Cesar Chavez – Supported rights of migrant farm workers – Non-violent protests, hunger strikes Social Revolution • Women’s Movement – “women’s lib”; equality between sexes – Betty Friedan, The Feminine Mystique – Phyllis Schlafly • Against Equal Rights Amendment • Women should stay home and take care of family, pursue a career later Social Revolution • Women’s Movement – Equal Rights Amendment-sexual discrimination illegal (1972) • Was not ratified – Roe v. Wade-1973, Supreme Court ruled state laws restricting a woman’s right to an abortion during first 3 months was unconstitutional Nixon Presidency • Détente – Nixon wanted to ease tensions between US and foreign nations through diplomacy • Domestic Policies/Issues – New Federalism: give power back to states, cut gov. support – Wanted a “middle road” when it came to CRs Nixon Presidency • Domestic Policies/Issues – Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Ed (1971) • School busing and racial integration Nixon Presidency • Oil Embargo – Fuel crisis, 1973 – OPEC placed an embargo (refused to sell) to US b/c of support for Israel • Exposed us dependency on oil Nixon Presidency • Environmental Protection – Environmental Movement – Resources were not limitless • Conservation – EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) Nixon Presidency • Watergate – 1972 presidential election – Nixon was concerned he would lose • Officials loyal to him wiretapped phones at DNC headquarters • Attempt failed, police arrested 5 men involved • Nixon didn’t know about the break-in, but he participated in cover-up – Supreme Court ruled that he had to deliver the tapes, but 18. 5 minutes was suspiciously missing – He was the only president in history to resign • Would’ve been impeached otherwise EOC BOOKWORK • P. 222-224 – #s 1-10 multiple choice