Chapter 29 Social Studies Main Ideas

What was the significance of the federal court case won by James Meredith in 1962? 916-922

In 1962, James Meredith won a federal court case that allowed him to enroll in the University of Mississippi, or Ole Miss. The University had previously been all-white, and it was a big deal that he won the case and was allowed to enroll there. When he arrived, he was not let in, but President Kennedy ordered that he be escorted to the registrar's office.

What were some of the key beliefs advocated by Malcom X? 923-929

In his earlier years, Malcom X developed a philosophy of black superiority and separatism from whites. As he got older, he urged African Americans to identify with Africa and to work with world organizations and even progressive whites to attain equality. He was able to turn around his beliefs on whites while still working towards equality.

Why did some civil rights leaders urge Stokely Carmichael to stop using the slogan "Black Power"?

King believed it would provoke African Americans to violence and antagonize whites, and that it what they were trying to avoid with their non-violent protests.

What were the roots of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s beliefs in nonviolent resistance?

King called his brand of non-violent resistance "soul force." He based his ideas on the teachings of several people. From Jesus, he learned to love one's enemies. From writer Henry David Thoreau he took the concept of civil disobedience- the refusal to obey an unjust law. From labor organizer A. Philip Randolph he learned to organize massive demonstrations. From Mohandas Ghandi, he learned to resist oppression without violence.

Cite three examples of violence committed between 1962 and 1964 against African American and civil rights activists.

On September 30, 1962, riots broke out at Ole Miss. The riots were against the acceptance of a black student, James Meredith, to the university. It resulted in two deaths and 200 arrests. In 1963, four young Birmingham girls were killed when a rider in a car hurled a bomb through their church window. Two more African Americans died in the unrest that followed. In 1965, an SCLC demonstrator named Jimmy Lee Jackson was shot and killed.

What were the Jim Crow laws and how were they applied? 906-913

The Jim Crows laws were a series of laws passed all throughout the nation, but specifically the South, to separate the races. The laws forbade marriage between races and established many other restrictions on social and religious contact between the races. There were separate schools as well as separate streetcars, waiting rooms, elevators, public restrooms, and more. The facilities provided for blacks were always inferior to the ones designated for whites.