1. Describe the lunch counter sit-ins that were a key part of the American civil rights movement. Who provided the leadership?
2. What were the major factors leading to victory for the movement in Nashville?
3. What was the idea behind the Freedom Bus Rides? What kind of reception did the integrated bus riders get as they rode through the deep South?
4. What was the role of the federal government in relation to the Freedom Bus Rides?
5. What role did the local criminal justice system play in all of this?
1. Why do you suppose the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and l960s was successful in bringing an end to the system of laws supporting separate and unequal treatment of African-Americans in public accomodations, voting, jobs, schools, and housing? Hint: Use the political process model outlined in lecture.
2. Why did black college students play a particularly crucial role in this movement? What gave these students the strength to stand up to beatings, jailings, and possible loss of life?
3. What was the importance of nonviolence? To what extent do you think nonviolence was just a tactic--something that was used because it had a good chance of being effective--as opposed to a deep philosophical/religious commitment?
4. Why was the federal government so slow to intervene, and so desirous of working through the local power structure, in relation to the Freedom Bus rides?