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To Be Black And Blue: Louis Armstrong's Conflict and Compromise of the Civil Rights Movement

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The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 9, 1957 and was originally proposed by Attorney General Hebert Brownell. This Act was the first legislative civil rights action since the Civil Rights Act of 1875 during the Reconstruction period. It took 82 years for the federal government to commit to the cause of civil rights.

The Act did not create new rights but established:

Protection of voting rights set out in the Fifteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

The Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice empowering federal prosecutors to obtain court injunctions against interference with the right to vote.

A Civil Rights Commission within the executive branch with the authority to investigate discriminatory conditions and to recommend corrective measures.

The purpose of the bill was to increase the number of registered black voters in the South since only 20% were registered with lower numbers in communities in the Deep South.

Even though some civil rights activist were not convinced about the efficacy of the Act, it was a stepping stone for more legislative action to come such as the Civil Rights Act of 1960 which strengthened voter registration rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which banned discrimination by businesses, public places and schools.

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The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 9, 1957 and was originally proposed by Attorney General Hebert Brownell. This Act was the first legislative civil rights action since the Civil Rights Act of 1875 during the Reconstruction period.

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The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 9, 1957 and was originally proposed by Attorney General Hebert Brownell. This Act was the first legislative civil rights action since the Civil Rights Act of 1875 during the Reconstruction period. It took 82 years for the federal government to commit to the cause of civil rights.

The Act did not create new rights but established:

Protection of voting rights set out in the Fifteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

The Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice empowering federal prosecutors to obtain court injunctions against interference with the right to vote.

A Civil Rights Commission within the executive branch with the authority to investigate discriminatory conditions and to recommend corrective measures.

The purpose of the bill was to increase the number of registered black voters in the South since only 20% were registered with lower numbers in communities in the Deep South.

Even though some civil rights activist were not convinced about the efficacy of the Act, it was a stepping stone for more legislative action to come such as the Civil Rights Act of 1960 which strengthened voter registration rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which banned discrimination by businesses, public places and schools.

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The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 9, 1957 and was originally proposed by Attorney General Hebert Brownell. This Act was the first legislative civil rights action since the Civil Rights Act of 1875 during the Reconstruction period.

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1/2 of white families earned between 7000 - 15000 annually

Just over a 1/5 of non whites earned this

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Median income of African Americans was $4344 - the white median was $7643!

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34% of African Americans still worked in the service industry thoughout the US

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1950 - 1960 African Americans represented 6.7 m workers in the US economy (increased by 1.2 in the decade)

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Egypt had successfully rebuked imperialist efforts in the Suez Crisis - it seemed that white Western dominance was on the decline

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During the Second World War, black musicians - who played majority jazz instruments like the saxophone, trumpet and piano - were making powerful strides aspects of popular culture. Charlie Parker would later become a revered musician before his death at age 35. In response to some of his work, established critics were "at a loss for words".

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Decolonisation and increased viability of emerging African democracies like Ghana & Nkrumah's Convention People's Party inspired political thought in the US

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"Toward the end of the 1950s, the image of Africa as a cultural and political entity began to reassert its impact on African Americans" Marable

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As the desegregation movement became more popular, white supremacists and terrorists began using more violent measures. For example, in December 1951, NAACP leader Harry T. Moore was murdered, but this wasn't investigated by the federal government.

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http://www.african-american-civil-rights.org/civil-rights-act-of-1957/

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The rising popularity of black musicians and Harlem nightclubs allowed for the Jazz of the 1950s and 1960s to popularise the plight of black people - famous names such as Louis Armstrong, Thelonius Monk and Charlie Parker raised awareness of African American status to whites and non whites due to their almost universal appeal

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1950s Middle Class movements not echoing that of the African Americans - this increased difference in middle class whites and blacks encouraged  "a significant outpouring of energy, talent and hope for the future"

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Changes of Civil Rights from 1945 - 1960s 

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Changes of Civil Rights from 1945 - 1960s 

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[Marable Chapter]

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Improvements in school desegregation came about between 1953-55, with 723 school districts abiding by the new Brown v. Board Education of Topeka, Kansas case by 1956.

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After 1956, white reaction began to "mushroom" - politically, white supremacy parties increased their electoral share in the former 11 confederate states - e.g. 29.5% of S. Carolina voted for the States Rights Party

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Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and cities in Delaware and West Virginia all desegregated their public schools by September 1954.

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Required federal guarantees for voting rights of blacks

Justice Department given powers to sue states and local governments

Southern democrat, Lyndon B Johnson helped Eisenhower get the first CRA through Congress.

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Even before the Supreme Court's decision to desegregate schools, the courts had set a pattern of desegregation in their decisions

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By 1956 9 states had desegregated - 300,000 black students had been enrolled in previously segregated institutions ( however 2.4m still remained in segregated education)

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As early as 1938, the Supreme Court ordered the state of Missouri to guarantee its black residents equal educational provisions.

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Brown V. Board of Education ruled in 1952 that "Separate but equal" had no place in modern America - Justice Warren agreed that segregated education negatively impacted black lives. This was a significant step forward

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The legality of segregation in schools had been questioned by lawyers and parents since the early 1950s. By 1952, these cases had reached the Supreme Court.

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How did global events influence the Civil Rights Movement in the USA?

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How did black culture influence the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s? 

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Electoral status of the African Americans?

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What legal changes occur during Eisenhower’s presidency?