a) Freedom riders were a group of civil rights activists working for the Congress Of Racial Equality who were determined that the supreme courts decision of desegregating buses, waiting rooms and bus terminals were enforced as buses in the Southern states were still being segregated.
b) The Second World War was important in the development of the civil rights campaign as Black Americans were given the opportunity to press for the equality of civil rights. Before the war Black Americans served in separate units to white Americans, they were not allowed to become airforce pilots, Black Americans blood could not be given to White Americans for transfusions and also black nurses could not look after white soldiers, and American companies would not employ blacks. Black people were treated like second class citizens. But during the war things began to change. President Roosevelt tried to change people’s beliefs on race and near the end of the war Black Americans were flying planes and commanding units. However General Eisenhower wanted interegated units and they increased as the war went on. Many Black Americans were fighting ‘democracy and freedom’ against Nazi Germany but they weren’t happy as they were being treated like second class citizens, many blacks weren’t permitted to vote. The war gave Black Americans the opportunity to press for equality. The black press set up the ‘Double V’ campaign. Philip Randolph was the leader to the blacks during this time who were campaigning for equal rights. He set up the ‘March on Washington Movement’ and hoped to win the support of 50,000 and 100,000 people. President Roosevelt set up the ‘Fair Employment Practices Committee’ to ensure that discrimination against blacks was ended in government agencies, job training programmes and defence contractors. As black people’s expectations for change rose they became more active in campaigning for civil rights. The arrival of large numbers of Black Americans from the South created racial tensions in some cities during the 1940’s.
