The ‘Classical Phase’ of the Civil Rights Movement

US History – The Civil Rights Movement, 1945-70

In this course, Dr Tom Davies (University of Sussex) focuses on the struggle for civil rights in the United States from the late 1940s to the 1960s. The course begins with an introduction to race relations in the United States, before focusing more closely on the struggle for civil rights from the late 1940s to mid 1950s. In the third module, we turn to the grassroots campaign for civil rights, thinking in particular about the influence of the SNCC, before turning to the role of Martin Luther King and the campaigns in Birmingham and Selma. In the fifth module, we think about the role of Malcolm X, before moving on in the sixth and final module to look at Black Power more generally.

The ‘Classical Phase’ of the Civil Rights Movement

In this module, we provide an introduction to race relations in the United States, thinking in particular about the challenges and obstacles faced by African Americans around the middle of the 20th century.