ss8h11_section b & c summary

8/7/2019 SS8H11_section B & C Summary

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I. Moving on to 60s and 70s

What was happening in Georgia during the turbulent 1960s and

70s?

See the GPS standard below and start exploring:

SS8H11 The student will evaluate the role of Georgia in themodern civil rights movement:

b.The role of Georgia and prominent Georgians in the Civil RightsMovement of the 1960s and 1970s, including such events as thefounding of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee(SNCC), Sibley Commission, admission of Hamilton Holmes and

Charlayne Hunter to the University of Georgia, and AlbanyMovement, the March on Washington, Civil Rights Act, theelection of Maynard Jackson as mayor of Atlanta, the role ofLester Maddox.

c. The impact of Andrew Young on Georgia.

March on Washington

Civil Rights Act

Lester Maddox

Maynard Jackson


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II. March on Washington

Photograph of Martin Luther King, Jr. delivering his I Havea Dream speech. Credits: The Martin Luther King, Jr.Research and Education Institute.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and liveout the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths tobe self-evident: that all men are created equal.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

When Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous I Have aDream Speech during the March on Washington in 1963,this nation already began its long walk towards racialequality. Throughout the 1960s civil rights leaders exposedthe unfairness of legislation that restricted basic liberties ofAfrican American citizens.

In Georgia, members of the Student Non-ViolentCoordinating Committee used peaceful tactics, such as sit-ins, to challenge racial segregation in public facilities. In
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1961, they joined participants of the Albany Movement topublicly defy the laws that made dark skin a marker ofinferiority. Faced with daily realities of being abused,jailed, and beaten, the activists persevered at breakingdown legal and cultural barriers to racial equality.

The Civil Rights Movement was rapidly expanding. In 1963,a group of Civil Rights and labor activists organized amarch on the nations capital. This coalition of organizersincluded such prominent figures as Martin Luther King, Jr.,who served as the president of the Southern ChristianLeadership Conference at the time, and A. Phillip Randolph,the president of the Negro American Labor Council. Theactivists demanded the expansion of civil and economicrights for African Americans and used jobs and freedomtheme to rally the crowds. Some 250,000 people attended

the event.

As one of the most significant developments in the CivilRights Movement, the march helped to pass Civil RightsAct of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965. Explore thiswebsite further to find out more about the Civil Rights Act.

For more details about the background, organization, andthe key developments of the march visit StanfordUniversitys March on Washington King Encyclopediaentry.

March on Washington for Jobs and FreedomAnnouncement is an effective primary source that will allowyou to connect to the moment in time when the march tookplace.


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III. Civil Rights Act

Photograph of Lyndon Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act, July 2, 1964. Credits: Cecil Stoughton,White House Press Office (WHPO).

The Civil Rights legislation originated with President John F.Kennedy. During his 1960 campaign for president, he promisednew civil rights legislation while garnering 70% of the AfricanAmerican vote. In January of 1963, he introduced his ideas aboutthe Civil Rights Bill to the Congress in a White House PressRelease. In it, J. F. Kennedy advocated legislation that wouldprotect basic rights and liberties of African American citizens.This address became a convincing defense of racial equality andsocial justice.

However, it was not until later in 1963 that the Civil Rights Billreached Congress, just months before J.F. Kennedys

assassination in November. It, therefore, would fall to the newpresident, Lyndon Baines Johnson, to guide the bill throughCongress. Although, Johnson had a dismal record on civil rightsissues to that point, he fought hard for the legislation. Using allthe political finesse his many years in Congress had given him,Johnson avoided a filibuster by conservative SouthernDemocrats and managed to get the bill passed.
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The most sweeping civil rights legislation since Reconstruction,the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibited racial discrimination in publicplaces and required employers to provide equal employmentopportunities. To add teeth to the law, any projects involvingfederal funds could now be cut off if there was evidence of

discrimination based on color, race or national origin. Moreover,the act provided for uniform voting standards for the states.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 put an official end to many forms ofdiscrimination, but it did not stop its practice. In his Radio andTelevision Remarks Upon Signing the Civil Rights Bill, PresidentLyndon B. Johnson carefully hinted at Southern resentment andpossible aggression as a result of the passage of this piece oflegislation. Click here to see the transcribed version of hisremarks (Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States:Lyndon B. Johnson, 1963-64. Volume II, entry 446, pp. 842-844.

Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1965):

President Lyndon B. Johnsons Radio and Television RemarksUpon Signing the Civil Rights Bill.

Georgia, like many other Southern states, met the passage of theact with massive resistance. Many state leaders simply refusedto fund the integration of public schools and facilities. Followthis link to find a video in which Georgia governor Carl Sandersreacts negatively to the passage of the Civil Rights Act (Courtesyof Walter J. Brown Media Archives, WSB Television NewsfilmCollection, University of Georgia Libraries):

Carl Sanders: Civil Rights Act of 1964.


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IV. Lester Maddox

Photograph of Lester Maddox standing in front of a table ofcampaign paraphernalia in 1964. Note the license plate cover withthe Confederate battle flag. Credits: Courtesy of Richard B.Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, University ofGeorgia Libraries.

Lester Garfield Maddox was born in Atlanta, Georgia, onSeptember 30, 1915, in poverty. After dropping out of high school,he held various unskilled labor jobs during the Great Depressionand World War II. Anxious to build a better life for himself and hiswife, Virginia, Maddox opened the Pickrick Cafeteria near thecampus of the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1947. Through aseries of business advertisements laced with homespun socialand political commentary appearing in the Atlanta Journal,Maddox gained notoriety in the city.

Maddoxs increasing popularity among working class whites ledhim to run unsuccessfully for mayor of Atlanta in 1957 and 1961,followed by an equally unsuccessful bid for the lieutenantgovernors post in 1962. Despite his political setbacks, Maddoxsstaunch segregationist views continued to keep him in thespotlight. For example, on July 3, 1964, Maddox and hissupporters chased away three black Civil Rights activists fromthe Pickrick restaurant with the help of pick handles and 9mm
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revolver. Maddoxs segregationist beliefs were so strong that heclosed his cafeteria rather than abide by the provisions of theCivil Rights Act of 1964 and serve blacks.

Maddoxs visceral displays against desegregation gained him

support of many white Georgians, allowing him to win a closelycontested Democratic primary and, ultimately, the gubernatorialrace in 1966. He served as Georgias 75th governor from 1967 to1971. Following his governorship, Maddox served as lieutenantgovernor but failed to hold another political office despite severalunsuccessful campaigns. He died in 2003.

Despite his strong stand against integration and desegregation,Maddox shocked many of his supporters and critics byappointing African Americans to state positions. He even gainedsome popularity with the African American community by backing

prison reform and appointing the first black officer in the GeorgiaState Patrol. Maddoxs reasonably progressive attitude movedGeorgia further down the path of racial equality.

Go to the Archives page, orclick here, to find a short letterwritten by a politician and a renowned civil rights leader Hosea L.Williams. In it, Williams supports the development of a statepension for Maddox and credits him with promoting the causes ofAfrican Americans and the poor. This is a truly unique letter thatundermines Maddoxs segregationist reputation.
http://ss8h11.wordpress.com/archives/transcript-of-a-letter-from-hosea-l-williams-to-lester-maddox/http://ss8h11.wordpress.com/archives/transcript-of-a-letter-from-hosea-l-williams-to-lester-maddox/http://ss8h11.wordpress.com/archives/transcript-of-a-letter-from-hosea-l-williams-to-lester-maddox/http://ss8h11.wordpress.com/archives/transcript-of-a-letter-from-hosea-l-williams-to-lester-maddox/


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V. Maynard Jackson

Both Ivan Allen Jr. and Maynard Jackson served as progressive

mayors of Atlanta who promoted desegregation and civil rightsmovements. Credits: Reprinted with permission from The AtlantaJournal-Constitution.

On March 23, 1938, Maynard Holbrook Jackson was born inDallas, Texas into a household that emphasized education andservice. His father was a minister, his mother a French languageprofessor, and his grandfather a prominent civil rights leader.Excelling at academics, Jackson finished high school at 14 and

obtained a bachelors degree in political science and history fromMorehouse College in Atlanta. He later earned a law degree fromNorth Carolina Central University in Durham.

Jackson came to national prominence in 1973, when he the firstblack mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. He worked tirelessly to improvethe economic and social position of African-Americans in the city.A strong believer in affirmative action, Jackson supportedlegislation that required a quarter of the city projects be given tominority businesses. However, his zeal to mandate affirmativeaction on city contractors led to friction with some in the white

business community who fled Atlanta for the suburbs, leaving aneconomic void in the inner city.

Despite these economic issues, Jackson won a second term by alandslide in 1978. Prohibited from a third consecutive term, hesupported Andrew Young. In 1990, after Young left office,Jackson won another mayoral race. His third term, however, wasovershadowed by allegations of fiscal mismanagement that led to
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the prosecution of several of his associates. He left office in 1994to manage an investment firm, yet he remained an active politicalvoice for the African-American community until his death on June23, 2003.

His election marked a milestone in Atlanta politics, ushering theage of black political power that has resulted in many African-Americans holding the mayors office.

Click here to see the WSB-TV newsfilm clip of a reporterinterviewing Mayor Maynard Jackson on the impact of the CivilRights Movement (Atlanta, Georgia, 1980, January 3. WSB-TVnewsfilm collection, reel 0017, 34:40/38:55, Walter J. Brown MediaArchives and Peabody Award Collection, The University ofGeorgia Libraries, Athens, Ga, as presented in the Digital Libraryof Georgia):

Maynard Jackson on the impact of the Civil Rights Movement
http://crdl.usg.edu/cgi/crdl?action=retrieve;rset=001;recno=1;format=_videohttp://crdl.usg.edu/cgi/crdl?action=retrieve;rset=001;recno=1;format=_videohttp://crdl.usg.edu/cgi/crdl?action=retrieve;rset=001;recno=1;format=_video


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VI. Andrew Young

Credits: Photograph from Corbis.

Andrew Jackson Young is one of the most celebrated activistsand diplomats in Georgia. He became the first African Americansince Reconstruction to be elected to the U.S. Congress from thisstate. Today he is seen as a positive symbol for the progress in

racial equality and social justice.

His father pressured him into becoming a dentist, but Youngdeveloped a social consciousness that pushed him towardsactivism and politics. Inspired by Gandhi and Martin Luther King,Jr., he passionately engaged in the historic civil rights campaignsin Birmingham, Selma and Chicago as well as the Poor PeoplesMarch on Washington. Young quickly perfected his diplomaticskills, becoming instrumental in organizing voter registration and

desegregation campaigns across the South. He developed closerelationship with Martin Luther King and rose to executivedirector of the Atlanta-based Southern Christian LeadershipConference (SCLC). His memoirs describing the Civil RightsMovement are among the most powerful and inspiring insideraccounts of this time in the U.S. history. They showcase thecourage and stamina of those who fought for social justice.
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Young became actively involved in Georgia politics in early 1970swhen he won a congressional seat. After serving as PresidentJimmy Carters Ambassador to the United Nations (1977 -1979), he

was elected a mayor of Atlanta in 1981. Young improved theimage of Georgia, making it a more progressive and forward-looking place. His legacy of political activism and socialconscience made him an icon of civil rights in Georgia and asymbol for the positive changes in race relations.


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Tom Murphy

Credits: Thomas B. Murphy Collection, Ingram Library, Universityof West Georgia.

Thomas Bailey Murphy presided over the diversification of thestate legislature while he served as the speaker of the GeorgiaHouse of Representatives for twenty-eight years (1974-2002).

After the passage of the Civil Rights legislation, more and moreAfrican-Americans and women entered the Georgia House andclaimed their long-overdue right to shape the states politicaldiscourse. Unlike other Southern legislators who used varioustactics to deny political influence to African Americans, Murphyaccommodated and supported black representatives.

Murphy appointed African Americans to important positions andassigned them to chair major House committees. The role of thisstatesman in the rising electoral strength of African American

communities in Georgia is largely underestimated.

Click here to see GPB documentary about Thomas B. Murphy:http://www.gpb.org/tommurphy/story

Click here to see a Time Line for Thomas B. Murphy:

http://www.timerime.com/en/timeline/679608/Thomas+B+Murphy/
http://www.gpb.org/tommurphy/storyhttp://www.gpb.org/tommurphy/storyhttp://www.timerime.com/en/timeline/679608/Thomas+B+Murphy/http://www.timerime.com/en/timeline/679608/Thomas+B+Murphy/http://ss8h11.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/civil_rights_leaders-e1304470555576.jpghttp://www.timerime.com/en/timeline/679608/Thomas+B+Murphy/http://www.gpb.org/tommurphy/story


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Look at the photographs below. How did the Georgia Housechange between 1911 and 2000?

Credits: Thomas B. Murphy Collection, Ingram Library, University of West Georgia.
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Credits: Thomas B. Murphy Collection, Ingram Library, University of West Georgia.
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ss8h11_section b & c summary

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