Introduction Despite the passage of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 many African Americans faced economic and social
discrimination Began to lose patience with the slow change Created
a divide in the Civil Rights Movement Nonviolent protest Militant
protest
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Malcolm X Malcolm Little son of a Baptist preacher in Nebraska
His father was follower of Marcus Garvey After fathers death he
turned to crime in face of moving around At the age of 20 he spent
seven years in jail for burglary and while there joined the Nation
of Islam
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Nation of Islam Group of African American Muslims Also called
Black Muslims Views of the organization White society was
oppressive Black separation Self-help
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Black Nationalism Belief in separate identity and racial unity
of African Americans Malcolm changed his last name to X and became
a minister for the Nation of Islam
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Opposition to Integration Malcolm X rejected the Civil Rights
Movement Begging of the white man Why want to join white
society?
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Change of Heart 1964 Malcolm X took a pilgrimage to Mecca He
was deeply affected by joint worshiping of various races Changed
his views on separatism When he returned to the U.S. he began to
work with whites and civil rights leaders This created many enemies
for him February of 1965 he was shot at a rally by a member of the
Nation of Islam
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Black Power Movement Stokely Carmichael rose to power in the
SNCC Frustrated w/ nonviolence movement after being repeatedly
beaten during protests Encouraged SNCC members to carry guns for
self-defense Worked toward making the membership of the group
entirely black Coined the phrase black power
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Black Panthers Founded in 1966 by Bobby Steale and Huey Newton
Wanted: US government to clean up ghettos African Americans to
create separate communities Often engaged in direct confrontation
with authorities Followed the saying: power flows from the barrel
of a gun
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Black is Beautiful Phrase generated by the Black Panthers to
create racial pride
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Rioting De jure segregation Segregation by law De facto
segregation Segregation by social conditions (i.e. poverty)
Frustration over continued segregation despite new laws led to a
series of riots Greatest violence in Watts, California
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Watts Riots August 11, 1965 Police pulled over an African
American for drunk driving The man began to resist arrest Officers
began swinging batons A gathering crowd reacted and six days of
rioting followed Burning cars and stores Looting stores 34 people
died Set off a series of riots over the next two years with the
slogan burn, baby burn
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Assassination of MLK April of 1968 Martin Luther King, Jr. is
assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee Subsequent riots resulted in the
death of 50 people across the nation Initially James Earl Ray is
convicted of killing MLK He confessed and then recanted three days
later
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Other theories Late 1990s investigations looked at whether the
US government was involved in MLKs assassination On grounds that he
was communist It was found that the FBI had been wiretapping King
All FBI surveillance of King has been ordered sealed in the
National Archives until 2027
Slide 20
Assassination of Robert Kenney After JFKs murder Robert took up
his brothers causes Spoke out against the Vietnam War Reached out
to minorities Announced plans to run for president in 1968
Democratic fundraising dinner at hotel in LA killed by anti-Zionist
Sirhan Sirhan Angry at Roberts support of Israel He is currently
serving a life sentence in a CA prison