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Formation and Goals of the United States Farm Workers Movement
In 1962 the National Farm Workers Association held it's first convention in Fresno California. This initiated a multiracial movement that would result in the creation of United Farm Workers. They redefined farm labor activism and contributed to a new era of social justice. Their strategies continue to influence movements for farmworker justice today. -
Purpose and Impact of the Equal pay Act 1963
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was signed into law by John F. Kennedy. This law was designed to take out the wage disparity based on sex. It caused labor disputes, thereby burdening and obstructing commerce. It also contributed to an unfair method of competition. It was designed to create fair pay for jobs that are preformed under similar working conditions. -
California Grape Boycott
In 1965 members of the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee, went on strike against Delano-area grape growers. They were protesting years of poor pay and poor working conditions. The strikes turned to boycotts which spread across North America. The strikers were willing to risk it all starting with their financial security. -
Brown Berets
The Brown Berets was an influential social justice organization. The Brown Berets was created to involve Latinos in politics and get them active in the community. They were also created in response to discrimination based on ethnicity. In the 1960s Latinos had no support with issues that occurred around them and the Brown Berets was a way for them to get help. -
Formation and goals of N.O.W.
The National Organization for Women was founded by 28 women at the Third National Conference of Commissions on the Status of Women, held in Washington D.C. They created this organization when the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission failed and to end sex discrimination in employment. They were mad because the federal government wasn't enforcing the anti discrimination laws. They also worked to promote feminist ideas. -
American Indian Movement
AIM was founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Its original purpose was to help Indians in Urban Ghettos who had been displaced by government programs that had forced them from their native reservations. It then evolved into an advocation group for an entire spectrum on Indian demands. AIM was involved in the protests for the occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1972. In the 1970s AIM efforts were focused on the rpevention of resourse exploratiion. -
Chicano "blowouts"
Several hundred Mexican American and Chicano students at Wilson High School staged a walkout to protest the cancellation of their, school play. The movement then shifted to equal rights. They wanted bilingual education, and ending of unfair punishments. They fought for civil disobedience in schools. -
Purpose and impact of the Stonewall "riots"
The Stonewall riots were violent demonstrations in Manhattan New York. These demonstrations were held by members of the LGBT community. They were protesting against a police raid that took place at the Stonewall Inn. This was a very important event leading to the gay liberation movement. -
La Raza Unida
La Raza Unida was a political party formed in the early 1970s by Mexican Americans. They were concerned about the lack of Mexican American representation in local adn county politics. They were also very concerned with the few number of Mexican Americans registered to vote. They were part of a broader group of social adn political movments that focused on labor rights, education, and sexism. -
Occupation Of Alcatraz
Native Americans took over Alcatraz Island for 14 months after the Federal government abandoned it. Citing the Treaty of Fort Laramie all Native American land would be returned when retired by the federal government. The Native Americans issued the Alcatraz Proclamation. The Americans were later removed by the federal government, -
Trail of Broken Treaties
The Trail of Broken Treaties was designed to generate media coverage towards the goals and changes that were to occur in the federal Indian policy. They wanted to bring attention to treaties between the US and Native Americans. Activists created a 20 point paper to identify their position and define their demands. The federal government was unwilling to listen to demands until protesters occupied the Department of Interior headquarters building for a week. -
Phyllis Schlafly and the defeat of the ERA
Phyllis Schlafly was an American constitutional lawyer. She campaigned against the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. She was an organizer for the STOP ERA campaign. STOP stood for stop taking our privileges. She said that if this did pass it would take way gender-specific privileges, separate restrooms for men and woman, and the exemption from Selective Service. She joined the Republican Party and defeated the ratification of the ERA. -
Introduction and goals of the Equal Rights Amendment
National Woman's Party campaigned for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would guarantee women to have equal rights as men. It said that the United States, or any one of the States shall uphold the equality of rights for everyone. People feared however, that women would lose privilege and protection from exemptions from military service and combat duty. They also feared that they would struggle with economic support if they didn't get it from their husbands. -
Roe v. Wade
The United States Supreme Court decided on wether laws that criminalized or restricted access to abortions were constitutional. They ruled that is was a women right, under the 14th amendment, that women can have abortions. This was necessary for protecting women health and the potentiality of human life. Religious views should also be taking into account, when looking at the issue. -
Siege at Wounded Knee
200 followers of the American Indian Movement seized and occupied the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The protest followed the failure of an effort of the Oglala Sioux Civil Rights Organization to impeach tribal president Richard Wilson. Wilson was accused of corruption and abuse. Additionally, protesters criticized the United States government's failure to fulfill treaties with Native American people and demanded the reopening of treaty negotiations. -
Murder of Harvey Milk and Impact
San Francisco's Mayor George Moscone and the Supervisor Harvey Milk were shot and killed. The killer was Dan White, a man who was angry that the Moscone had refused to reappoint him. They had to find a new mayor, so they turned to the first female mayor of San Francisco, Dianne Feinstein. Later on she became a U.S. Senator for California. -
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
United States federal law that establishes the jurisdictional framework that governs Indian gaming. The use of gaming to generate profit did not begin until the late 1970s and early 1980s within Indian communities. The act stated purposes of the act include providing a legislative base for the use of Indian gaming. Also protecting gaming as a means of generating revenue for the tribes, encouraging economic development of these tribes. -
Murder of Matthew Shepard and Impact
Matthew was a gay student at the University of Wyoming. He was beaten and tortured and left to die. He died several days later due to severe head injuries. Matthew's sexual orientation played as a motive in the crime. His murder got national attention to hate crime legislation at a federal level. In 2009, the U.S. Congress passed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and President Obama signed it into law. -
Repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell
The Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 ended the DADT policy which allowed gay, lesbian and bisexual people to serve openly in the United States Armed Forces. They no longer had to keep their sexual orientation as secret. This act did not ban discrimination because of sexual orientation. Barack Obama helped to put this repeal this act, and it was no longer a policy in 2011. -
Obergefell v. Hodges
Obergefell v. Hodges was a case where the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that same sex marriage was a fundamental right. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of same sex marriages. It required all states to recognize same sex marriages as a normal marriage. State level bans on same sex marriage were also found to be unconstitutional.
