With their very bodies they obstructed the wheels of injustice

1
With their very bodies they obstructed the
wheels of injustice
-James Farmer

• An Overview of the Civil Rights Movement

2
The groups involved

• NAACP (National Association for the Advancement
  of Colored People)
• An interracial group working for racial equality
• Made up of mostly middle class folk
• Early efforts were to stop lynching
• At first tried to effect change through elected
  officials
• Found using the courts more effective

3

• SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference)
• Founded by Martin Luther King Jr. and other
  clergy
• SNCC (Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee)
• Split from the SCLC
• Shifted focus away from churches and towards youth

4
The Tactics

• Integrating Schools
• Little Rock Nine
• Ole Miss
• Boycotts
• Montgomery bus boycott
• Freedom Rides

5
Sit-Ins

• On February 1, 1960, four African American
  college students from North Carolina AT
  University began protesting racial segregation in
  restaurants by sitting at White Only lunch
  counters and waiting to be served.

6
Sit-Ins

• This was not a new form of protest, but the
  response to the sit-ins spread throughout North
  Carolina, and within weeks sit-ins were taking
  place in cities across the South.
• This form of protest demonstrated clearly to
  African Americans and whites alike that young
  African Americans were determined to reject
  segregation.

7
Sit-Ins

• In April 1960, the Student Nonviolent
  Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was founded to help
  organize and direct the sit-in movement.
• King encouraged SNCCs creation, but the most
  important early advisor to the students was Ella
  Baker, who worked for both the NAACP and SCLC.
• SNCC adopted Bakers approach and focused on
  making changes in local communities, rather than
  striving for national change.

8
Standards of behavior for the sit-ins

• DO NOT1. Strike back nor curse if abused.2.
  Laugh out.3. Hold conversations with floor
  walker.4. Leave your seat until your leader has
  given you permission to do so.5. Block entrances
  to stores outside nor the aisles inside.
• DO1. Show yourself friendly and courteous at
  all times.2. Sit straight always face the
  counter.3. Report all serious incidents to your
  leader.4. Refer information seekers to your
  leader in a polite manner.5. Remember the
  teachings of Jesus Christ, Mahatma Gandhi and
  Martin Luther King. Love and nonviolence is the
  way.

9
The Response

• Some who participated were
• Yelled at
• Spit on
• Beaten
• Covered in food
• Dragged off of stools by their hair

10
The Results

• People were shocked by photos of the attacks on
  protesters.
• Many lunch counters were desegregated across the
  country.

11
March on Washington

• In June 1963, President Kennedy proposed civil
  rights legislation.
• National civil rights leaders decided to keep
  pressure on both the Kennedy administration and
  Congress to pass the civil rights legislation.
  The leaders planned a March on Washington to take
  place in August 1963.
• Over fierce opposition from Southern legislators,
  Johnson pushed the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  through Congress

12
Voter Registration Drives

• Starting in 1961, SNCC and CORE organized voter
  registration campaigns in the predominantly
  African American counties of Mississippi,
  Alabama, and Georgia.
• These activities caused violent reactions from
  Mississippis white supremacists.
• Led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act