Civil Rights in the USA 1865–1992

Section A Passage A (interpretation written for this paper in the style of a historian; not a real quotation): The civil rights victories of the 1960s were won in the streets. Without the courage of ordinary African Americans in Montgomery, Birmingham and Selma, no president would have risked the political cost of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts. Passage B (interpretation written for this paper in the style of a historian; not a real quotation): Grassroots protest created pressure, but change came when federal institutions acted. The Supreme Court's decision in Brown, presidential leadership under Johnson and Congress's legislation gave protest its results. Movements without federal allies were brutally defeated. Evaluate the interpretations in both of the passages and explain which you think is more convincing as an explanation of the gains made by the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.

Section B 'The Supreme Court did more to help African Americans than any other branch of government in the period 1865–1992.' How far do you agree?

Section B Assess the extent to which the position of Native Americans improved in the period 1865–1992.