Sit-Ins The Birmingham Campaign The Democratic National
Convention
When did the 1960
event take place?
It started in Greensboro,
Where did the event NC, but it took place across
happen? universities in the United
States
Students sat down in a
What happened? diner whose policy was to
serve whites exclusively.
When asked to leave, they
refused and were not
arrested. This sparked a
movement for others to
follow suit.
Photos of the Sit-In events
What is the primary across the country from
source for this event? Life.com
They were used in a
Why/ How was the planning conference at the
Source created? Southern Christian
leadership Council at
Atlanta University. They
were taken to capture the
spirit of the Sit-Ins
Many young people took
What does this part. Families seem to be
primary source tell us involved as well. In some
about the event? of the restaurants, black
people worked but weren’t
allowed to be served.
SNCC Radicalizes
April 3-May 10, 1963 1964
Birmingham, AL Mississippi
MLK and the SCLC joined Civil rights activists fought
with ACMHR to help for black citizens right to
integration in Birmingham, vote and representation in
AL the state of Mississippi
A letter from Dr. King from A first-person testimony of
the Birmingham jail an black lady attempting to
register to vote
King was imprisoned for his Fannie Lou Hammer helped
nonviolent protests against found the MFDP, and she
segregation. gave her testimony at the
DNC
He wrote against white, It shows what the MFDP
southern, religious leaders. was fighting for: delegates
He also argues that it is in the DNC for civil rights
wrong to delay justice. activists. It also shows first-
Justice must happen now. hand accounts of the social
injustice happening in the
state.
June 16, 1966
Greenwood. Mississippi
The SNCC, a nonviolent
organization, radicalized.
They began to use the term
“black power” with militant
force.
A Newsletter
In response to social
inequality, police brutality,
and a new militant,
radicalization of the SNCC
This tells us how certain
movements used news,
events, and propaganda to
feed their purpose. Though
these headlines may have
been true, the design,
wording, and lack of context
illustrates a very extreme
image.
Discuss: Looking at all of these events together, what do we discover about the trajectory of the Civil Rights movement? How does it change from
beginning to end?
The civil rights movements started very peacefully. Black people had few rights, and social inequality was rife in the nation. It slowly progresses to
bigger goals with more radical methods. Soon, groups become violent and extreme.
Discuss: The Civil Rights movement is often described as nonviolent? Is that accurate? What role does violence play in the Civil Rights movement
during the 1960s?
As stated before, many of the movements were nonviolent. It was altogether nonviolent in the early 60s. Some groups, like the SNCC and CORE
began to fight for revolutionary movements, armed groups, and nationalists like the Black Panther Party.
Discuss: What role does the media play in the Civil Rights Movement? How does the media influence popular perception and support of the
movement?
From the primary sources given for this assignment, the media actually seemed to help the civil rights movements. Photos at Sit-Ins that were used in
conferences helped illustrate the goal of the Sit-Ins. Fannie Lou Hammer’s testimony was broadcast around the country. Even the SNCC’s newsletter
helped spread the SNCC and more radical groups’ agendas. The media portrayed black Americans without rights, fighting peacefully for equality,
and being persecuted. I’m sure that all media during this time was not this way, especially in the areas where black Americans were fighting for
equality. From the sources provided, though, it seems that the media helped invite the average American into the civil rights movement.