Example 8
Rights and Protest: The US Civil Rights Movement
13.
a) According to source A, why was there resentment towards the civil rights workers? [3
MARKS]
Firstly, source A suggests that there was resentment to civil rights workers as it was felt by
many that they were too forceful in their approach and very invasive. This can be inferred from the
source when it describes how the civil rights workers “invaded the state”, making a “great show” and
displaying “arrogance” in their desires to reform the state, thus suggesting they invoked much
resentment from the people of Mississippi due to the way they conducted themselves in their actions.
Secondly, the source also suggests resentment was generated due to the civil rights workers
attempt to change the customs of the state. This can be seen in that the source refers to the “breaking
up of [their] customs” and “challenging of social practices” which had been “respected” by the
residents of the state. This demonstrates that the civil rights workers were resented for the challenge
they presented to the established order.
Finally, the civil rights workers were also resented for the negative stereotypes they were perceived to
represent. The source repeatedly refers to how the workers “conducted themselves in hippie ways”
and were “not the types of models” that should be aspired to, thus creating resentment due to the
counter culture they represented.
b) What message is conveyed by source C? [2 MARKS]
One message which is conveyed by Source C is that the civil rights volunteers were weak
compared to the federal government of Mississippi which blocked the civil rights movement. This
message is conveyed through the difference in size between the large Sherriff who has aggressively
grabbed the small civil rights worker, representing the power difference between these two figures
and the groups they represent. This is only confirmed by depicting the sheriff standing on a black
man, suggesting that the federal government crushed the hopes of the advancement of black civil
rights.
A second message conveyed by the source is that the civil rights workers were unwelcome in
Mississippi. This message can be seen in how the civil rights workers are described as ‘trespassin’’
whilst the fact they were ‘caught’ on ‘private property’ suggests they were not given permission to be
there. Further to this the sheriff’s aggressive actions towards the worker further strengthen the sources
message that the civil rights workers were unwanted.
14) With reference to its origin, purpose and content, analyse the value and limitations of source
B for the historian studying the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.[4 MARKS]
The origin of source B is that of an academic text, in the form of a study of the Civil Rights
Movement by Charles Patterson. The purpose of this particular extract is to detail the origin, course
and results of Freedom Summer in relation to the black civil rights movement and demonstrate its
significance to the movement as a whole.
Source B is valuable to historians studying the Civil Rights Movement due to its content in
that it gives readers an insight into how important freedom summer was in relation to the Civil Rights
Movement as a whole and its political significance.
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Example 8
Source B also holds value in that due to it being an academic, historical text, it can enjoy the
benefit of hindsight and a wide range of sources on which to draw, perhaps allowing Patterson to
create a more complete picture of the place of the Freedom Summer within the Civil Rights
Movement.
However, Source B is also limited for historians in that, through its purpose to highlight the
importance of freedom summer, it neglects to mention other important aspects of the Civil Rights
Movement and moreover the shortcomings of the Freedom Summer, restricting the amount of insight
that can be gained from the source.
15) Compare and contrast what sources B and D reveal about the consequences of Freedom
Summer. [6 MARKS]
Sources B and D both agree that violence was a consequence of Freedom Summer. For
example, source B makes reference to the “shootings and burnings of churches” in response to the
movement, whilst source D notes that “35 black churches were burned in Mississippi” and moreover
that “volunteers were beaten”, thus both confirming that violence was a significant consequence of
this movement.
Sources B and D also agree that a consequence of Freedom Summer was to give publicity to
the Civil Rights Movement as a whole. This can be seen in that in source D highlights that
participants actions “brought the nation’s full attention to Mississippi’s second-class citizens”, while
source B follows a similar line, suggesting that Freedom Summer “moved the struggle to a new
level”, therefore agreeing that Freedom Summer boosted the profile of the Civil Rights Movement.
However, sources B and D, although agreeing on the violence that was produced as a result of
Freedom Summer, disagree on the consequences of this violence for the volunteers. While source B
notes that this violence, especially the abductions, “terrified the other volunteers”, source D states the
opposite that in fact “the disappearance of the civil rights workers failed to deter the volunteers”, thus
disagreeing on the impact Freedom Summer had on the attitude of the volunteers.
Finally, sources B and D disagree over the political failings of Freedom Summer. On the one
hand, source B emphasises the successes of the movement as volunteers managed to enlist “80,000
blacks to MFDP”, whilst conversely source B takes a more negative view of Freedom Summer’s
achievements in asserting that volunteers “did not register as many voters as they had hoped” and that
their challenge to Mississippi’s all-while delegation “came to nothing”, starkly contrasting in their
view on the achievements of Freedom Summer.
16) Using the sources and your own knowledge, evaluate the success of the Freedom Summer in
furthering the cause of black civil rights in the United States. [9 MARKS]
Freedom Summer, a drive to register black voters in Mississippi in the summer of 1964, has
often been identified as a pivotal moment in the progress of the civil rights movement. In order to
examine its success in furthering the cause of black civil rights, different aspects of its achievements
must be assessed. Thus Freedom Summers practical achievements, its success is raising the profile of
the movement and lastly its effect on attitudes towards the movement will all be discussed in order to
come to a conclusion on its overall success in furthering the cause of Black Civil Rights in the United
States, becoming clear that it enjoyed only partial success in this.
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Example 8
There has been much debate over the practical achievements of Freedom Summer amongst
historians. On the one hand, sources such as source B emphasise the scope of the movement as
“80,000 blacks signed up to MFDP” whilst the movement also succeeded in establishing “freedom
schools” and “community centres”, and indeed it has sometimes been suggested that freedom summer
was part of the progress towards the Voting Rights Act 1965. However, the tangible achievements of
Freedom Summer have been convincingly disputed. Source D highlights that the campaign “did not
register as many voters as they had hoped” whilst source C demonstrates how the movement was
blocked by the lack of federal support; certainly, although 80,000 were registered for a mock election,
only 1,600 actual applications out of 17,000 were accepted by local registrars. Thus it appears that
although the movement had some initial practical successes, these have been overemphasised and in
fact Freedom Summer only succeeded in registering a tiny amount of the black population to vote,
calling into the question the success of the movement in furthering black civil rights.
Freedom Summer also aimed to raise the profile of the wider black civil rights movement,
and in this respect it can be said to be extremely successful. Although not necessarily noted for the
right reasons, seen in source A which brands the volunteers as ‘hippies’, sources D and B confirm the
symbolic significance of the movement as it “brought the nations full attention to Mississippi’s
second class citizens” and showed that they were “fighting for more than just a seat at a lunch
counter” moving the “struggle to a new level”. Indeed, the level of publicity the movement achieved
for black civil rights is confirmed by the support it gained from Martin Luther King, undoubtedly the
figure head of the civil rights movement. It is therefore evident that although limited in practical
successes, Freedom Summer certainly helped raised the profile of the Civil Rights Movement through
the publicity it generated.
Finally, the ability of Freedom Summer to change attitudes must also be accounted for in any
evaluation of its success in furthering black civil rights as a whole. Once again the success of
Freedom Summer in this respect has been questionable. On the one hand, the participation of “more
than 700 college students” who were mostly from white middle and upper class backgrounds is
certainly suggestive of a shift in attitudes towards the cause. However, much evidence still stands that
indicates prejudice persisted. For example, rather than coming to support the movement, newspapers
warned of an invasion from the north whilst source A brands the movement’s participants as
‘hippies’. Indeed source C, a contemporary cartoon, highlights the lack of federal support the
movement enjoyed, further emphasising the failure of the movement to change public and
institutional attitudes towards black civil rights. Even sources B and D who highlight the role of
volunteers acknowledge the violent opposition to freedom summer, only further exemplifying the
failure of the movement to change widespread attitudes to black civil rights.
Thus it is clear that Freedom Summer enjoyed mixed success in furthering the cause of black
civil rights. Although it was able to raise the profile of the movement as a whole, this did not translate
into a change in attitudes for the better, nor was it always backed up by practical achievements in
terms to gaining greater rights for black citizens.
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