The Struggle IntensifiesThe Struggle Intensifies

The Civil Rights Movement21.3

The Civil Rights Movement21.3

Sit-ins Challenge Segregation

Sit-ins Challenge Segregation• CORE created the sit-in, a

technique in which a group of CORE members simply sat down at a segregated lunch counter or other public place• If refused service they stayed• Often the targets of racial

violence• Sit-ins worked: forced business

owners to decide between serving protestors or risking disruption and loss of business

• CORE created the sit-in, a technique in which a group of CORE members simply sat down at a segregated lunch counter or other public place• If refused service they stayed• Often the targets of racial

violence• Sit-ins worked: forced business

owners to decide between serving protestors or risking disruption and loss of business

The Freedom Rides

The Freedom Rides

• Supreme Court expanded its ban on segregation of buses to include bus station waiting rooms and restaurants

• CORE and SNCC organized the “Freedom Rides”• a test to see if the

South would obey the Supreme Court ruling

• Supreme Court expanded its ban on segregation of buses to include bus station waiting rooms and restaurants

• CORE and SNCC organized the “Freedom Rides”• a test to see if the

South would obey the Supreme Court ruling

Freedom RidesFreedom Rides• Riders met

violence• 13 freedom riders

departed from Washington in 1961

• Anniston, Alabama a heavily armed white mob met the first bus

• More Freedom Riders joined and the movement pushed on

• Riders met violence• 13 freedom riders

departed from Washington in 1961

• Anniston, Alabama a heavily armed white mob met the first bus

• More Freedom Riders joined and the movement pushed on

National ReactionsNational Reactions• Photographs of the

smoldering bus in Anniston horrified the country

• Violence continued for the riders in Birmingham and Montgomery• Volunteers were arrested• new volunteers replaced

them - also arrested

• Photographs of the smoldering bus in Anniston horrified the country

• Violence continued for the riders in Birmingham and Montgomery• Volunteers were arrested• new volunteers replaced

them - also arrested

National ReactionsNational Reactions• Attorney General

Robert Kennedy sent federal marshals to protect the Freedom Riders

• RFK pressured the Interstate Commerce Commission to prohibit segregation in all interstate transportation (trains, planes, and buses)

• Attorney General Robert Kennedy sent federal marshals to protect the Freedom Riders

• RFK pressured the Interstate Commerce Commission to prohibit segregation in all interstate transportation (trains, planes, and buses)

Integration at “Ole Miss”Integration at “Ole Miss”• The NAACP filed a lawsuit

claiming that an AA student’s application was turned down on racial grounds

• The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the NAACP

• Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett personally blocked the way to the admissions office

• The NAACP filed a lawsuit claiming that an AA student’s application was turned down on racial grounds

• The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the NAACP

• Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett personally blocked the way to the admissions office

Integration at “Ole Miss”Integration at “Ole Miss”• President Kennedy

sent federal marshals to accompany Meredith to campus

• Cowards of angry white protesters destroyed vehicles and violence broke out

• Tear gas used, JFK had to send troops to restore order

• President Kennedy sent federal marshals to accompany Meredith to campus

• Cowards of angry white protesters destroyed vehicles and violence broke out

• Tear gas used, JFK had to send troops to restore order

Clash in BirminghamClash in Birmingham• The head of the Alabama

Christian Movement for Human Rights, invited Marin Luther King Jr. and the SCLC to visit in 1963

• King called it, “the most segregated city in America”

• King and others planned boycotts in downtown stores and local churches

• Birmingham police commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor, had MLK jailed

• The head of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, invited Marin Luther King Jr. and the SCLC to visit in 1963

• King called it, “the most segregated city in America”

• King and others planned boycotts in downtown stores and local churches

• Birmingham police commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor, had MLK jailed

From Birmingham JailFrom Birmingham Jail• Some white clergy

criticized the campaign as an ill-timed threat to law and order

• King responded from his cell with a “Letter from Birmingham Jail”

• Some white clergy criticized the campaign as an ill-timed threat to law and order

• King responded from his cell with a “Letter from Birmingham Jail”

From Birmingham

Jail…

From Birmingham

Jail…• When King was released, he organized a march of both adults and young people• Police commissioner

arrested more than 900 young people

• Policed used high-pressured fire hoses, police dogs, and clubs on the protestors

• When King was released, he organized a march of both adults and young people• Police commissioner

arrested more than 900 young people

• Policed used high-pressured fire hoses, police dogs, and clubs on the protestors

The Nation WatchesThe Nation Watches• The nation watched the violence in

Birmingham with shock• Many moderates began to be sympathetic to

the civil rights movement• Compromise reached:• desegregate the city facilities• fairer hiring practices

• Success in Birmingham was just one example of how nonviolent protest could work

• The nation watched the violence in Birmingham with shock

• Many moderates began to be sympathetic to the civil rights movement

• Compromise reached:• desegregate the city facilities• fairer hiring practices

• Success in Birmingham was just one example of how nonviolent protest could work