Civil Rights
The Civil Rights unit covers the early days of the expansion of slavery in the United States through the momentous 1950s and 60s and into the modern Civil Rights Movement. Use primary documents, readings, activities and more to introduce your students to key concepts, events, and individuals of this facet of American history.
From the basics about slavery to the attitudes that defended it and the efforts of those who wanted to see it abolished, in this lesson students learn about this dark part of America's past.
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The debate over slavery ultimately helped drive the United States into civil war, but before it did, there were decades of careful balance between slaves states and free states. In this lesson, students learn about that balance and its geography, including the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850.
The Civil War and Reconstruction Era brought about the end of slavery and the expansion of civil rights to African Americans through the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. Compare the Northern and Southern states, discover the concepts of due process and equal protection, and understand how the former Confederate states reacted to the Reconstruction Amendments.
Use primary documents and images to discover the ways state and local governments restricted the newly gained freedoms of African Americans after the Civil War. Compare, contrast, and analyze post-war legislation, court decisions (including Plessy v. Ferguson), and a political cartoon by Thomas Nast to understand life in Jim Crow states.
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Discover the people, groups, and events behind the Civil Rights Movement. Learn about means of non-violent protest, opposition to the movement, and identify how it took all three branches of the federal government to effect change. Protest posters, fictional diary entries, and a map of the movement's major events develop a greater understanding of the struggle for civil rights.
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In this video, students learn about a team of lawyers dedicated to achieving racial justice through the legal system. Formed in 1940 as part of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) raised money, amassed lawyers, and launched lawsuits throughout the country to fight segregation.
In this video, students learn about the activism of teenager Barbara Johns. In 1951, she organized over 400 students to protest in support of better conditions at their segregated high school in Prince Edward County, Virginia. The students' actions would lead to a lawsuit that became one of the five cases represented in the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education.
When President Eisenhower authorized troops under federal authority to desegregate Little Rock Central High School in 1957, he became the first president since Reconstruction to use federal forces to help enforce equal rights for African Americans. Using the example of Executive Order 10730, students will explore how executive orders can be used to enforce the law and examine how Eisenhower justified his actions.
What makes a movement successful? The people? The actions? The outcome? Students find out that answering this question is more involved than it may seem. Each of the three primary sources reveal a new perspective on the Nashville Sit-In Movement of 1960, and lead to a deeper understanding of what it means to work for change.
Students will hear from a local businessman, student activist, and view newspaper coverage of the event.
Students learn the basic steps of civic action and what it takes to make change, following the "I AM" model (Inform, Act, Maintain). Along the way, they explore the change-making examples of four key movements: women's rights, disability awareness, Native American rights, and migrant farm worker rights.
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