The document discusses various barriers to civil rights for African Americans in the United States up until 1941, including legal impediments like Jim Crow laws, a lack of political influence due to black disenfranchisement, and violent activities by the Ku Klux Klan aimed at intimidating and terrorizing the black community. Legal segregation and the Supreme Court's endorsement of the "separate but equal" doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson cemented racial discrimination into law. Widespread voter suppression tactics prevented most black Americans from participating in the political process.

1. Higher History
USA : Barriers to Civil
Rights

2. KEY
If you see this symbol you must take notes
If you see this symbol you must not take
notes

3. Today’s lesson
We are developing our knowledge and understanding of
obstacles facing civil rights protestors in America
Today will be able to:
1) Explain the barriers to race equality in the USA up to 1941.
Today’s lesson will involve:
1) Build up notes on the topic.
2) Plan a 20 mark essay.
3) Pass a 20 mark timed essay.

4. Issue 2
An evaluation of the obstacles to the achievement of civil
rights for black people up to 1941:
Factor 1: Legal Impediments (the ‘Separate
But Equal’ Decision of the Supreme Court)
Factor 2: Lack of Political Influence
Factor 3: The Activities of the Ku Klux Klan
Factor 4: Divisions in the Black Community
Factor 5: Popular Prejudice (In The North)
AIMS OF
ESSAY:
To be able to
discuss the
factors which
prevented
African-
American's
achieving equal
rights to whites

5. Past Paper Essay Questions
2018
2015
2013
2019

6. Factor 1: Legal Impediments (Knowledge)
After the 13th, 14th & 15th Amendments were passed by the Federal
Government, Southern States reacted with their own laws to restrict
the rights of blacks in their states. (These became known as Jim Crow
laws and were mostly passed between 1870-1900).
These laws made sure black and white people were kept separate
(segregated) and that black people were denied their legal rights.*
The 1896 Plessy vs Fergusson Supreme Court case ruled that
segregation was lawful as long as facilities were equal. This famously
coined the phrase ‘Separate but Equal’. This gave Southern States the
backing of the law to continue to segregate facilities between all blacks
and whites. (Mainly as a result of this ruling, segregation did not break
down until 1954)

7. Nurses No white
female nurse to
nurse in wards in
which negro men
are placed. Alabama
Textbooks Books
shall not be used
between the white
and coloured schools,
but shall continue to
be used by the race
first using them.
North Carolina
Restaurants It
shall be
unlawful to run
a restaurant, at
which white and
coloured people
are served in
the same room,
unless they are
separated by a
solid partition
and unless a
separate
entrance from
the street is
provided.
Alabama
Intermarriage All marriages
between a white person and a negro,
or between a white person and a
person of negro descent to the
fourth generation, are hereby
forever prohibited. Florida
Prisons White convicts shall have
separate apartments for both eating
and sleeping from the negro convicts.
Mississippi 7
Separate but equal

8. Factor 1: Legal Impediments (Analysis)
This was a significant barrier to equal rights because Jim Crow laws meant that
black people were relegated to ‘second-class’ citizens - public facilities provided
for black people were of a much inferior quality which resulted in a poorer
standard of life in all areas for blacks (education, healthcare, leisure (A)
Furthermore, many found it difficult to find jobs and buy or rent property due to
segregation. As a result many black people lived in sub-standard housing with few
prospects or opportunities. (A)
The Plessey v Fergusson case upheld segregation and made it lawful. This allowed
Southern States to impose the tough laws even though they were very rarely
‘separate but equal’. This was a barrier to equal civil rights as Blacks could not
appeal or oppose these laws as the Supreme Court (highest authority in the USA)
had ruled in its favour. (A)
However, even with Jim Crow laws in place Blacks proved they could be ‘separate
and equal’. Before 1921, Tulsa showed that Blacks could be prosperous and
successful in their own communities. In Tulsa Oklahoma, most of the city’s 10,000
black residents lived in a neighbourhood called Greenwood, which included a
thriving business district sometimes referred to as the Black Wall Street. (A+)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdT8edPYQ7E

9. Legal Impediments Q
1. What is the Supreme Court of the USA?
2. Explain what the 1896 Plessy v Fergusson ruling
decided.
3. Give 5 examples of Jim Crow Laws – what impact do
you think each had on the black community?
4. What was life like in Tulsa for African Americans
before 1921? Why was it called ‘Black Wall Street’
5. Explain what happened with the Tulsa Race
Riots/Massacre of 1921
6. Why do some people call them race riots and others
race massacre?

10. Paragraph Task
Using the basic guideline – write an introduction and a first paragraph
to the following question:
‘To what extent were legal impediments such as the Jim Crow Laws the
key obstacle that prevented African Americans achieving civil rights by
1941?’ – 22 Marks.
INTRODUCTION
2 significant points of background
knowledge.
Explain the factors the essay will
discuss.
Have a line of argument (Answer the
question – unable to do at this stage)
PARAGRAPH 1 – Legal
Impediments
K – Knowledge point 1
K – Knowledge point 2
A – The Jim Crow Laws were
significant because…
A+ - However…

11. Factor 2: Lack of Political influence
(Knowledge)
Blacks were also denied from voting. States introduced a number
of laws and used intimidation to stop them despite the 15th
Amendment. In 1900 there were 180,000 black people with the
right to vote in Alabama. When that state made it difficult for
blacks to register, the number of actual black voters fell to 3,000.
Poll taxes, residency qualifications & literacy tests & were all
introduced so stop blacks from being able to vote. ‘One Senator from
Virginia summed this up very clearly in 1900: “We are here to do all we can to
stop as many Negro voters as we can from voting. We will try to do it legally.
We will not harm the right of white people to vote.”
These voting restrictions would apply to all citizens of the state,
including poor, illiterate white voters. This was not acceptable, so
the states also included a ‘grandfather clause’. This allowed those
whose ancestors had the right to vote before the Civil War to
vote. Since virtually no black American had an ancestor who could
vote before the Civil War, they were excluded from registering to
vote.

13. PAY A POLL TAX
The tax rate was set so high that most blacks
could not afford to pay it
Therefore they could not vote.
RESIDENCY
QUALIFICATIONS
In Mississippi, blacks
had to prove that they
had lived 2 years in
the state and 1 year in
the election district
This affected black
tenant farmers who
were in the habit of
moving yearly in
search of a better
chance
GRANDFATHER CLAUSE
Invented in Louisiana in 1898
Allowed illiterates to qualify to vote if their
fathers or grandfathers had been eligible to
vote on January 1st 1867
Blacks did not have the vote at this time!
LITERACY TESTS
Black men had to take literacy tests
This meant reading out a difficult document in
front of a white listener who judged if it had
been read well enough
In 1900 two and half million blacks in the
south were illiterate
UNDERSTANDING CLAUSE
This was designed as a loophole for
illiterate whites who could not read the
Constitution
They could qualify by showing that they
could ‘understand it’ to the satisfaction of
the registrar
Fraud was institutionalised
In 1898 the Supreme
Court had ruled in the
court case of Mississippi
vs. Williams that they did
not think that it was
discrimination for states
to impose voting
qualifications as these
were applied to all voters

14. Literacy Test task
In front of you is the Louisiana literacy test which you need to pass to
vote in the USA.
https://sharetngov.tnsosfiles.com/tsla/exhibits/aale/pdfs/Voter%20Tes
t%20LA.pdf#:~:text=The%20Louisiana%20Literacy%20Test%20was%20
designed%20so%20that,any%20answer%20correct%20or%20incorrect
%2C%20at%20his%20whim.

15. Factor 2: Lack of Political influence (Analysis)
By 1915, almost every southern state had introduced voting
qualifications and only 3% of blacks could vote. Politicians in the
South relied on white voters for election success, and as most of the
Southern voters were seen as racist and would not support a politician who
wanted to help black people; there was therefore no incentive for them to
give rights to black people as they would lose their vote. to campaign for
black civil rights.
This is important and stopped black Americans achieving Civil
Rights because if they could not vote then they could not elect
politicians to fight against Jim Crow Laws and help improve their
position in America;
Furthermore, they could not serve on a jury as they were not
registered to vote, therefore there were very few blacks on
juries and verdicts were enforced via racism. Once blacks were
deprived of the vote, it was easier to pass laws enforcing rigid
segregation in practically all public facilities, obstructing the fight
for civil rights.

16. Factor 2: Lack of Political influence (Analysis+)
However, there was of political influence for many Northern blacks.
They became freer to speak and act away from Jim Crow and voting
restrictions. Black voters in Northern cities became increasingly
important to white politicians, which ultimately opened up
opportunities for black politicians.
However, Republicans and Democrats actively sought out the support
of African Americans. This political power enabled them to elect
representatives to State legislatures and Congress, and to put
pressure on political parties in closely contested elections to make
assurances for black civil rights.

17. Factor 3 – Activities of the Ku
Klux Khan

18. Intro to the Klan
https://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=yyGZISG134Q

19. Factor 3: Who were the Ku Klux Khan?
(Knowledge)
Ku Klux Klan were a white supremacist group made up of WASP Americans. They
were first active after the Civil War and made up by ex-confederate (South)
soldiers. The first Klan didn’t last long but a 2nd wave of Klan was born in 1915.
Largely motivated by the blockbuster movie ‘Birth of a Nation’. The earlier Klan
had not worn the white costumes or burned crosses; these were aspects
introduced in the film.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYCaob7MDA8
The film glorified the KKK as the saviours of white society. It
showed the white population of post-war Southern states at the
mercy of newly-freed black slaves who were only stopped from
rape, theft and murder when challenged by the heroic Klan. It
was the first film ever to make over $10 million and the first to
be shown in the White House where President Wilson publicly
endorsed it. The famous white robes were meant to portray
the ghosts of Confederate soldiers from the war.
By 1925, the Klan had 3 million members, including police officers, judges and politicians. All
members of the KKK had to be native-born Americans. They had to be white, protestant, male
and 16 years of age or older. No black Americans, Roman Catholics or Jews were allowed to be
in the Klan.

21. Factor 3: Activities of the Ku Klux Khan
(Knowledge)
They did not believe in Civil Rights and thought Black Americans were inferior.
They wanted to promote ‘White Supremacy’ through fear and intimidation. They
justified their actions by saying they were protecting the ‘American way of
life’
Most Klansmen were uneducated, lower-class white people who felt that they were
doing what they could defend their jobs and homes from new immigrants and blacks
who were demanding equal rights.
Klansman often burned large crosses on hillsides and near the homes of people they
wished to frighten. If their victims still did not do what the Klansmen wanted them
to do, victims might be kidnapped, whipped, mutilated, or murdered. Klansmen wore
white robes to protect their identities and also to intimidate blacks. Masked
Klansmen marched through the streets of towns and cities carrying posters
threatening various persons with punishment and warning others to leave town. The
Klan used fear to stop black Americans registering to vote. They also used
‘lynch-law’ to brutally murder Blacks accused of a crime before any legal trial
could take place.
From 1918 to 1927, 416 blacks were lynched, mostly in the south

22. Factor 3: Activities of the Ku Klux Khan
(Analysis)
Klan activity was very rarely punished because they had influence over local
police forces and local businesses. This meant that they could threaten,
intimidate and even lynch Blacks with no consequences. This stopped blacks from
protesting/seeking more rights as they knew the Klan could use force against
them and their would be no punishment. The fear instilled by incidents of
lynching prevented black people from fighting for their rights.
“Half the town belonged to the Klan when I was a boy. Most of the police were
members. On nights when the Klan had its meetings there were no policemen
around but instead Klansmen worked as traffic patrolmen.” Robert Coughlan, a
Catholic boy in 1924.
The Klan also interfered with the political process in many states. In some state
elections, only candidates who were ‘Klan-approved’ were allowed to stand for
election. Furthermore, Politicians were reluctant to speak out against
segregation and anti-lynching legislation, let alone full civil rights for black
Americans due to the threat from the Klan.
“In Colorado the Klan elected a Governor of the State, several judges and even
the Denver chief of police. In one county of Alabama the Klan controlled judges,
sheriffs and lawyers.” Adapted from A History of the Klan.

23. Factor 3: Activities of the Ku Klux Khan
(Analysis)
The violent atrocities committed by the KKK were unprecedented and
were directed not only against black people, but also at anyone who
supported them or furthered their cause. Hence, politicians and any
white men who furthered the cause of equality for black Americans
felt the full force of their hatred and prejudice. Anyone involved in
helping black people were attacked.
Even Presidents supported or sympathised with the Klan.
Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921) Birth of a Nation was “…like writing history
with lightning. And my only regret is that it is all so terribly true.”
In 1925 President Coolidge approved a KKK paraded down Pennsylvania
Avenue in Washington D.C, showing their power and influence at that time.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/08/17/the-day-30000-white-supremacists-in-kkk-
robes-marched-in-the-nations-capital/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.00870b711c24

24. Factor 3: Activities of the Ku Klux Khan
(Analysis +)
However, the Klan's membership significantly declined by the end of
the 1920s to an estimated 30,000 members. Immigration levels had
significantly dropped and the Klan suffered embarrassing sexual
assault and rape claims. This went against the moral viewpoints of
WASP’s.
Stream of members who left in frustration became a flood by the end of 1925 after the
conviction of David Stephenson, the leading Klansmen in Indiana, for murdering a young woman
he had also brutally raped.
Because the Klan membership dwindled this meant that their
significance as a barrier to Black Civil Rights was much less and Klan
activity was not as active after the 1920s.
Even in Alabama (birthplace of the 2nd Klan founder William Simmons), membership was down to
6000 by 1930.

25. Ku Klux Klan
1. Who were the Ku Klux Klan? (K)
2. Why did the Ku Klux Khan become popular? How popular were they by
1926 – give statistics. (K)
3. What were the key beliefs of the Ku Klux Klan? (K)
4. What were some of the methods used by the Ku Klux Klan to target
minorities? (Give detail of at least four) (K)
5. How effective were the Ku Klux Klan in restricting the civil rights of
African-Americans? (Analysis) (A)
6. Summarise the quote by Robert Coughlan – What does this show? (A)
7. What happened in Colarado? What would be the impact of this on
people achieving civil rights? (A)
8. Read and summarise the article from the Washington Post on the March
on Washington. How does this show how powerful the Ku Klux Klan
were? (A)
9. What happened to the Klan in the 1920’s? Did this limit their power?
(A+)

26. Task: write your paragraph on the
activities of the KKK (15 min)
Success Criteria
A topic (opening) sentence – links to question.
At least two points of knowledge (tactics, political/police
influence, size of group)
One point of basic analysis (intimidation and fear stopped any
progress, no political support)
&
One point of Analysis + ‘On the one
hand…however on the other hand (decline of the Klan late
1920s)

27. Scotland & the Klan
https://online.clickview.co.uk/exchange/videos/31403359/scotland-
and-the-klan
Watch the following documentary and write down any additional
knowledge points you can use in your essay.

28. Recap Task
Intimidation of
KKK
Legal Impediments
(Jim Crow laws)
Lack of Political
Influence
Draw the flow chart and explain how each factor can be argued as influencing the
other – e.g. KKK caused a lack of political influence as they intimidated blacks from
voting and also stopped politicians introducing acts to support black civil rights….

29. Factor 3: Divisions in the Black community
(Knowledge)
Despite all the obstacles in their way blacks did not lie down and accept
their place in society. Especially after fighting for their country in WW1
they began to demand more rights.
Three early civil rights campaigns emerged after 1896 as a reaction to the
Plessy vs Ferguson case.
The problem was that each group had different ideas about how to win Civil
Rights. Later, these organisations would combine into the Civil rights
Movement, but not yet. The divisions within the black community as to how
best to achieve civil rights did not help the cause.

30. Factor 3: Divisions in the Black community
(Knowledge)
Booker T Washington – The Tuskegee Institute
Ex slave who educated himself and became a teacher. In 1881, he founded the Tuskegee
Institute in Alabama, which focused on training African-Americans in agricultural pursuits.
He argued that the best way to advance the African-American race was through
education first, demanding civil rights second. He reassured whites that nothing in the
Tuskegee programme would threaten white supremacy or pose any economic competition to
whites.
William du Bois - National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP)
First Black person to get a degree from Harvard. Set up the NAACP to challenge the laws
that stopped blacks from voting in South. Its mission was to secure for all people the rights
guaranteed in the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the United States Constitution. It
used legal campaigns to fight battles in court and demand equal civil rights for blacks.
The NAACP saw Booker T as a traitor that was lying down to the whites.
Marcus Garvey - Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)
Jamaican born, wanted blacks to be proud of their roots and eventually return home to
Africa. Garvey believed that developing separate black institutions would make most
progress. Therefore, the initial focus of the movement was to inspire black people to see
their self-worth, he used phrases like ‘Black is Beautiful’ & ‘Back to Africa’. The UNIA
encouraged blacks to begin in commercial business ventures and get financial independence
from Whites.
Marcus Garvey
UNIA
William du Bois
NAACP

31. Factor 3: Divisions in the Black community
(Analysis)
Because each organisation had a different view of how to best achieve Civil
Rights (Booker T – education. Du bois – legal battle, Garvey - develop separate
black institutions) they did not work together effectively and pool all their
limited resources. They even argued with each other which stopped them from
making significant progress in the campaign for equal rights.
W.E.B. Du Bois of the N.A.A.C.P. called Garvey, "the most dangerous enemy of
the Negro race in America.“
Garvey was critical of the NAACP’s push for racial integration. He had nothing
but contempt for whites and organisations like the NAACP that aimed to bring
blacks and whites together.
Du Bois criticized Washington for not demanding equality for African-
Americans, as granted by the 14th Amendment and called Booker T a traitor.
Analysis (+)
However, a lot of success did come from these groups and even though they did
not work together they did make their own progress for the Civil Rights of
Blacks and prove that change was possible.

32. In 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington to the
White House, making him the first African-American to be so honoured.
Both President Roosevelt and his successor, President William Howard Taft,
used Washington as an adviser on racial matters
A series of early court battles attacked segregation and racial inequality,
including a victory against a discriminatory Oklahoma law that regulated
voting by means of a grandfather clause, used by many southern states to
prevent blacks from voting, (Guinn v. United States, 1910). This helped
establish the NAACP's importance as a legal advocate. It later won a
Supreme Court decision in 1915 against the grandfather clause.
In August 1920, UNIA claimed 4 million members and held its first
International Convention at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The
movement had swollen to 6 million members by 1923 to become the biggest
and best known African-American organisation.
Evidence of the success of NAACP

33. Questions on Divisions in the Black
community.
1. Who was Booker T Washington? (K)
2. Who was William Du Bois? (K)
3. Who was Marcus Garvey? (K)
4. What does NAACP stand for? (K)
5. Why did divisions between Washington, Du Bois & Garvey lead to a barrier stopping
African Americans achieving civil rights? (A)
6. Why do you think Du Bois was critical of Garvey? Why was this a barrier to civil rights?
(A)
7. In what ways did these groups help the civil rights movement? (A+)
8. Why is the relationship between Washington & 2 US Presidents significant? Why
would this help civil rights? (A+)
9. Was UNIA a successful organisation by 1920? Why would this help civil rights? (A+)

34. Task: write your paragraph on Divisions
in the Black Community (15 min)
Success Criteria
A topic sentence (even with all the barriers facing them blacks
campaigned for civil rights. However, an obstacle emerged from the
fact that they could not work effectively together. The main groups
had different beliefs of what the best way of achieving CR was)
At least two points of knowledge
One point of basic analysis
&
One point of Analysis + ‘On the one hand…however
on the other hand

35. Factor 5: Popular prejudice in the North
(Knowledge)
Between 1910 & 1970 over 6 million blacks migrated to escape the brutal life
in the south to the cities of the North, Midwest and West (The Great
Migration)
This migration greatly changed the racial makeup of northern cities which
increased racial tension particularly over competition for housing & jobs…
By moving north, Blacks saw a chance for a better life & escape prejudice.
However… many whites blamed the housing shortages in cities like New York
on the swift population growth from the South.
Popular prejudice led to rents being higher for Blacks than Whites: in
Chicago in 1910, a 7 room apartment for working class whites cost $25 a
week but $37.50 a week for blacks. Therefore Black people could only afford
to live in the poorest areas of northern cities and these developed into
ghettos with very poor standards of living.
If a migrant black was more educated and skilled than a white, the white
would get the priority in the job market. Most Blacks were excluded from
skilled work by trade unions and racially prejudiced employers.

36. Factor 5: Popular prejudice in the North
(Knowledge – Examples)
In the North Racial Tensions exploded.
In 1917, white ethnic mobs had attacked blacks in St. Louis and East St. Louis race riots
over competition for work and punishment for strike-breakers.
-A white mob invaded the black area of the town
-Black women and children were beaten up
-Black men lynched
-50 dead
-White police officers stood and watched
Race riots erupted as Black soldiers returned from France and were not willing to put up with being
treated badly
By 1919, these riots erupted in 20 US cities but the worst was in Chicago were many people, both white
and black were killed.
A riot in Chicago lasted for thirteen days with 23 black and 15 white people being killed, hundreds
injured and over a thousand, mostly black people being made homeless.
At this time across the nation a further 70 black people were lynched and these were largely ignored
by the Federal government who still refused to make racially motivated lynching a Federal crime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gvoq7oWkqRg

37. Factor 5: Popular prejudice in the North (Analysis)
This was a barrier to equal Civil Rights because even in the North,
where Blacks were supposedly free from the KKK and Jim Crow they
were being treated unfairly, discriminated and even lynched.
There was popular prejudice amongst politicians which also stood as a
barrier to equal civil rights – the 1922 Dyer anti-lynching bill (wanted
to make Lynching a federal crime because Southern States weren't
punishing it) was blocked by the House of Senates
Even Presidents had racist attitudes – Woodrow Wilson claimed
“Segregation is not a humiliation but a benefit, and ought to be so
regarded by you gentlemen.”
Analysis (+)
However, black culture began to spread through Northern cities like
New York (Harlem Renaissance). Black music like jazz was being
appreciated by white musicians and they became involved in black
culture.
This brought hope that racial prejudices could disappear as the groups
interacted and mixed as one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAN42382vxo

38. Questions – Popular Prejudice in the North
1. What was the Great Migration? (K)
2. Give two examples of prejudice in the North. (K)
3. What were blacks excluded from in the North? (K)
4. What happened in 1919 in Chicago? Why is this related to prejudice? (A)
5. Why did popular prejudice in the North create a barrier to civil rights? (A)
6. Why is Woodrow Wilson’s quote significant to the progress of civil rights?
(A)
7. Using the notes and watching the clip – Why do you think popular
prejudice in the North did not pose a threat to Civil Rights? (A+)

39. To what extent were legal impediments the most significant
obstacle for African Americans achieving equal civil rights
by 1941?
Background (2 points)
- At the end of the Civil War a series of laws granted blacks greater rights and freedom from slavery.
- The 14th & 15th Amendment said that blacks were to be treated equally and have the right to vote.
- However, in the South in particular, who did not support freeing slaves, blacks were still treated as second class citizens.
- Life was extremely difficult and equal civil rights were not a reality as lynching's were common, restrictions were placed on
voting and basic freedoms were taken away.
Combination of Factors were significant including legal impediments and segregation/ a lack of political
influence/ the activities of the KKK/divisions in the black community over how to best achieve equal civil
rights/continuing popular prejudice even in North
Line of Argument is that……………………………………………..

40. Overall many reasons were significant but biggest barrier
was ______.
Compare each factor directly to Line of Argument
Although Legal Impediments stopped _______________ it less significant than a lack of political
influence as _____________________________________________________________.
Despite the KKK causing ________________________ it wasn’t a big of a barrier as lack of political
influence as _____________________________________________________________.
Two clear reasons why Line of Argument was most
significant
Overall __________________________________________________________________________.
Furthermore _____________________________________________________________________.

41. Essay Question
22
(3) Introduction – B.A.T
(6) Knowledge – Relevant Accurate Detailed
(6) Analysis – Both sides of argument about each factor. Links between factors
(4) Evaluation – Clear Line of Argument throughout essay. Compare significance to main factor
(3) Conclusion – Balance of factors, clear main factor and 2 pieces of evidence to support
To what extent were legal impediments the most
significant obstacle for African Americans achieving
equal civil rights by 1941?