5/23/13
Civil Rights Vocab

Desegregation-
Ending of the separation of the black and white races.

Racial integration-
Bringing together blacks and whites in American society.

Plessy v. Ferguson-
An 1896 Supreme Court case which supported segregation by declaring “separate but equal” public facilities legal.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.-
Black civil rights leader who based his movement for equality on the philosophy of non-violent civil disobedience.

Little Rock Nine-
African American students who enrolled at an all white school; when the governor of Arkansas refused to allow them entry, federal troops were sent to enforce the law.

Jim Crow laws-
Regulations which enforced segregation after the Civil War by discriminating against black people. Some of these laws continued in force until the early 1960s.

14th Amendment-
Granted citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States,” which included former slaves recently freed, and extended the Bill of Rights protections to citizens of the states. Key phrases include "nor shall any state deprive any of person life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Voter registration-
Recording the name, address, and other vital information of residence in each voting district throughout the United States prior to a general election.

Civil rights movement-
Organized opposition, which began in the 1950s and gained strength in the 1960s, to state and federal policies and laws regarding the legal and social position of blacks in America.

Civil Rights Act of 1964-
Approved during the Johnson administration in 1964, this act protected the voting rights of all Americans, desegregated public facilities, such as hotels, stores, and restrooms, and set up a commission to protect equal job opportunities for all Americans.

Bus boycott-
In 1955, Rosa Parks, a black woman in Montgomery, Alabama, refused to give up her seat to a white man and move to the back of the bus, as required by state law. She was arrested, and her action inspired a prolonged boycott of the city's buses by the black populace.

Separate but equal-
Principle associated with the Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) case which held that segregation of public facilities was legal.

Civil rights-
Rights guaranteed to citizens of the United States by the Constitution and by the laws of the nation and states.

Voting Rights Act-
Passed by Congress in 1965, this act eliminated the last vestiges of the Jim Crow laws, by ending the use of literacy tests and authorizing federal examiners to conduct the registration procedure in places where it was suspected blacks were being denied their right to vote.

Boycott-
A campaign by workers to discourage people from buying the employer's products. This is designed to put economic pressure on the employer.

Brown v. Board of Education-
The 1954 Supreme Court decision that overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) case that had established the doctrine of “separate but equal.” The Court now believed that facilities could not be both separate and equal, and that such facilities were inherently unequal and were psychologically damaging.

Affirmative Action-
The adoption of positive measures to recruit minorities and women, that is plans of action to hire minorities, rather than simply a policy stating that certain practices are illegal because of discrimination.

Discrimination-
A government policy or an attitude exhibited by people who deny the rights of others based on religion, sex, race, or other characteristics.

Integration-
Opening to people of all races or ethnic groups without restrictions; for example, the desegregation of public schools.

Racism-
A belief that one race is superior to another.