Race Relations In The USA 1945
Race Relations in the USA 1945-1968
‘Why did the Freedom Rides and Freedom Marches Take place in the USA in the early 1960’s?’ – 8 marks
The Freedom Rides and the Freedom Marches took place in the USA in the early 1960’s for many reasons. During this time, segregation was enforced by law and African Americans were heavily oppressed so they were fighting for their civil rights as promised to them by the constitution of the USA. The Freedom Rides were organised by the NAACP (Nation Association for the Advancement of Coloured People) and they were a way of getting publicity and sympathy for the cause. The Freedom Rides were a group of supporters of the civil rights act, who travelled in a bus across Southern states. These journeys were known as ‘peaceful protests’ as they did not retort with violence when attacked by the Ku Klux Klan. For example, in 1961 in Alabama a selection of the Ku Klux Klan set a Freedom Rider bus alight hoping that the riders would be burnt alive.
The Freedom Marches were predominantly led by Martin Luther King and they also took place in the early 1960’s for similar reasons. King was the president of the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) and he was the face of the civil right movement. He led one particular march into Birmingham in 1963. He chose Birmingham because he knew full well that the chief of police ‘Bull’ Connor was known to be hotheaded and would retort with violence. King was correct in this assumption and the violence him and many African Americans were greeted with as they marched into Birmingham, showed the whites to be violent and not the blacks. Police with truncheons, police dogs and fire hoses met the protesters and images of the harsh treatment in the media, made people aware of what was going as far as segregation and discrimination was concerned. As a result of the Birmingham march, President Kennedy decided to send a major Civil Rights Bill to Congress. Small acts of defiance by ordinary people had a
‘Why did the Freedom Rides and Freedom Marches Take place in the USA in the early 1960’s?’ – 8 marks
The Freedom Rides and the Freedom Marches took place in the USA in the early 1960’s for many reasons. During this time, segregation was enforced by law and African Americans were heavily oppressed so they were fighting for their civil rights as promised to them by the constitution of the USA. The Freedom Rides were organised by the NAACP (Nation Association for the Advancement of Coloured People) and they were a way of getting publicity and sympathy for the cause. The Freedom Rides were a group of supporters of the civil rights act, who travelled in a bus across Southern states. These journeys were known as ‘peaceful protests’ as they did not retort with violence when attacked by the Ku Klux Klan. For example, in 1961 in Alabama a selection of the Ku Klux Klan set a Freedom Rider bus alight hoping that the riders would be burnt alive.
The Freedom Marches were predominantly led by Martin Luther King and they also took place in the early 1960’s for similar reasons. King was the president of the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) and he was the face of the civil right movement. He led one particular march into Birmingham in 1963. He chose Birmingham because he knew full well that the chief of police ‘Bull’ Connor was known to be hotheaded and would retort with violence. King was correct in this assumption and the violence him and many African Americans were greeted with as they marched into Birmingham, showed the whites to be violent and not the blacks. Police with truncheons, police dogs and fire hoses met the protesters and images of the harsh treatment in the media, made people aware of what was going as far as segregation and discrimination was concerned. As a result of the Birmingham march, President Kennedy decided to send a major Civil Rights Bill to Congress. Small acts of defiance by ordinary people had a