8.9 DOMESTIC POLITICS AND REFORM: The civil rights movement and the Great Society were attempts by people and the government to address major social, legal, economic, and environmental problems. Subsequent economic recession called for a new economic program. (Standards: 1, 4, 5; Themes: TCC, SOC, CIV, ECO)
8.9a The civil rights movement began in the postwar era in response to long-standing inequalities in American society, and eventually brought about equality under the law, but slower progress on economic improvements. Grades K-8 Page 109
Students will compare and contrast the strategies used by civil rights activists, such as Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.
Students will explain the significance of key civil rights victories, including President Truman’s desegregation of the military, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Students will examine the extent to which the economic situation of African Americans improved as a result of the civil rights movement.
8.9b The civil rights movement prompted renewed efforts for equality by women and other groups.
Students will examine struggles for equality and factors that enabled or limited success on behalf of women, farm workers, Native Americans, the disabled, and the LGBT community.
Students will examine judicial actions taken to protect individual rights, such as Miranda v. Arizona (1966) and Tinker v. Des Moines School District (1969).
8.9c The Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson strengthened efforts aimed at reducing poverty and providing health care for the elderly, but the Vietnam War drained resources and divided society.
Students will explain the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.
Students will examine the connection between the Vietnam War, especially the draft, and the growth of a counterculture and peace movement.
Essential Questions:
How did civil rights activists improve life for African Americans?
How did the Civil Rights Movement address social, economic, and political equality?
What role did civil disobedience play in the Civil Rights Movement?
5 Main Ideas of the Civil Rights Movement:
The Civil Rights Movement was the fight against segregation and discrimination, mainly in the South.
The Civil Rights Movement gained momentum after three major events; World War II, the murder of Emmett Till, and the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision.
Most people only recognize the work of Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks, but the Civil Rights Movement was made up of many influential leaders, as well as ordinary citizens that put their lives on the line to protest for equal rights.
Early protests such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Freedom Rides, lunch counter sit-ins, and marches all followed the principles of civil disobedience, or peaceful protest.
The Civil Rights Movement found success in changing laws like ending segregation in schools, and the passage of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. It would be more difficult to the change the racism ingrained in the culture. Discrimination and racism are still issues our country faces today.
Vocabulary:
Civil Rights - rights that every person should have regardless of his or her sex, race, or religion, in the U.S. civil rights are guaranteed in the Constitution
civil disobedience- the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest
sit-in - form of protest that involves one or more people occupying an area and refusing to move
boycott - to refuse to buy, use, or participate in (something) as a way of protesting
segregation- to separate groups of people, the U.S. segregation was by race
Jim Crow laws - laws passed by Southern state after Reconstruction; based off the ideas of black codes; enforced segregation in all aspects of life
integration/desegregation - to eliminate segregation, to bring once separated people together
Brown v. Board of Education- Supreme Court decision, justices declared segregation in schools was unconstitutional and could no longer be enforce
Civil Rights Act of 1964 - a law passed by Congress, ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin
Voting Rights Act of 1965 - a law passed by Congress, prohibited racial discrimination in voting, no more literacy tests and poll taxes in order to vote
What materials and resources do I need for this unit?