Glossary
Booker T. Washington
A prominent African American leader who advocated for vocational education and economic self-sufficiency as the primary means for Black Americans to achieve equality, rather than direct political agitation. [14, 20, 42]
Example:
Booker T. Washington founded the Tuskegee Institute, emphasizing practical skills and industrial training to help Black Americans gain economic independence. [14, 20, 42]
Civil Rights Cases of 1883
A Supreme Court decision that ruled the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional, asserting that Congress could not regulate private acts of racial discrimination. [24, 42, 43]
Example:
The Civil Rights Cases of 1883 effectively opened the door for widespread private segregation, as the federal government was deemed unable to prevent it. [24, 42, 43]
Fourteenth Amendment
Ratified in 1868, this Reconstruction Amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States and guaranteed equal protection of the laws. [12, 17, 20, 24, 33, 40, 49]
Example:
The Supreme Court's decision in Plessy v. Ferguson was a major setback for civil rights, as it interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment in a way that allowed for racial segregation. [12, 17, 20, 24, 33, 40, 49]
Grandfather clauses
Legal provisions that allowed individuals to bypass literacy tests and poll taxes if their ancestors had been eligible to vote before a certain date (typically before 1866 or 1867), effectively disenfranchising African Americans. [4, 14, 20, 32, 39, 44, 46, 47]
Example:
Even if a Black man could read and pay a poll tax, a grandfather clause might still prevent him from voting if his enslaved grandfather had been denied suffrage before 1867. [4, 14, 20, 32, 39, 44, 46, 47]
Henry Grady
An influential editor of the *Atlanta Constitution* who popularized the term 'New South' and advocated for its economic modernization through industrial growth and diversification. [1, 6, 11, 21, 42]
Example:
As a leading voice for the 'New South,' Henry Grady tirelessly promoted Atlanta as a symbol of the region's progress and potential for industrial prosperity. [1, 6, 11, 21, 42]
Ida B. Wells
An African American journalist and activist who led an anti-lynching crusade in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, documenting the horrors of racial violence in the South. [14, 42]
Example:
Ida B. Wells bravely investigated and exposed the true motives behind lynchings, often revealing they were used to terrorize Black communities rather than punish actual crimes. [14, 42]
Jim Crow Era
The period from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century in the Southern and some border states, characterized by widespread racial segregation laws and practices that disenfranchised and discriminated against African Americans. [3, 13, 18, 25, 27, 46, 48]
Example:
During the Jim Crow Era, signs designating 'whites only' and 'colored' were common sights on public transportation, in restrooms, and at water fountains across the South. [3, 13, 18, 25, 27, 46, 48]
KKK (Ku Klux Klan)
A white supremacist terrorist organization that used violence and intimidation to suppress the rights and political participation of African Americans, particularly after the Civil War. [14, 33]
Example:
The KKK engaged in widespread lynching and voter intimidation to reassert white supremacy and undermine Reconstruction-era gains for Black citizens. [14, 33]
Laissez-faire capitalism
An economic system where the government has minimal interference in the marketplace, allowing individuals and businesses to operate freely based on supply and demand. [7, 19, 22, 23, 26, 38]
Example:
Proponents of laissez-faire capitalism believed that unrestricted competition would naturally lead to economic growth and innovation, without the need for government regulation. [7, 19, 22, 23, 26, 38]
Literacy tests
Difficult reading and writing tests administered as a prerequisite for voting, primarily used in the South to disenfranchise African Americans and poor whites. [4, 9, 14, 20, 24, 32, 34, 39, 43, 44, 46]
Example:
A Black voter in Mississippi might be given a complex constitutional passage to interpret as a literacy test, while a white voter could be asked to simply write their name. [4, 9, 14, 20, 24, 32, 34, 39, 43, 44, 46]
New South
A vision for the post-Civil War South that emphasized industrialization, economic diversification, and modern capitalist values, moving away from the agrarian, slave-based economy of the Old South. [1, 6, 11]
Example:
Despite the aspirations of the New South movement, the region largely remained agricultural and faced significant poverty due to its late start in industrialization. [1, 6, 11, 21]
Plessy v. Ferguson
A landmark 1896 Supreme Court case that upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the 'separate but equal' doctrine, legalizing Jim Crow laws. [3, 12, 13, 17, 18, 20, 24, 37, 42, 46, 49]
Example:
The ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson meant that segregated facilities, from schools to train cars, were legally permissible as long as they were deemed 'equal,' which was rarely the case. [3, 12, 13, 17, 18, 20, 24, 37, 42, 46, 49]
Poll taxes
Fees required to be paid in order to vote, used in Southern states after Reconstruction to disenfranchise low-income individuals, especially African Americans. [9, 14, 20, 24, 32, 34, 39, 40, 41, 43, 46]
Example:
Many African Americans, struggling with poverty, found the cumulative annual poll taxes to be an insurmountable barrier to exercising their right to vote. [9, 14, 20, 24, 32, 34, 39, 40, 41, 43, 46]
Separate but equal
The legal doctrine established by *Plessy v. Ferguson* (1896) that allowed for racial segregation in public facilities as long as the segregated facilities were ostensibly equal in quality. [12, 13, 17, 18, 24, 37, 49]
Example:
The concept of separate but equal was a legal fiction, as facilities for African Americans were almost always inferior to those for whites, perpetuating systemic inequality. [12, 13, 17, 18, 24, 37, 49]
Sharecropping
An agricultural system that emerged in the post-Civil War South where landowners allowed tenants to use their land in exchange for a portion of the crops produced. [1, 2, 10, 21, 31, 33, 35, 36, 38]
Example:
Many formerly enslaved African Americans and poor whites were trapped in a cycle of debt under sharecropping as they often owed more to the landowner than they earned from their harvest. [1, 2, 10, 21, 31, 33, 35, 36, 38]
Tenant Farming
An agricultural system where farmers rent land from a landowner and pay rent either in cash or through a portion of the crops produced, often having more control or owning some equipment compared to sharecroppers. [1, 10, 21, 28, 29, 33, 38]
Example:
Unlike sharecroppers, a tenant farmer might own their own tools and animals, paying a fixed rent rather than a share of the crop, though still facing economic hardship. [1, 10, 21, 28, 29, 33, 38]
W.E.B. DuBois
An influential African American scholar and civil rights activist who advocated for immediate political and social equality for Black Americans, emphasizing higher education for the 'Talented Tenth' to lead the fight against discrimination. [5, 14, 42, 43, 45, 50]
Example:
In contrast to Washington, W.E.B. DuBois believed that Black Americans should demand full civil rights immediately and co-founded the NAACP to pursue legal challenges against segregation. [5, 14, 42, 43, 45, 50]
White primaries
Primary elections held in the Southern United States that effectively excluded Black voters from participating, ensuring that only white candidates were nominated by the dominant Democratic Party. [8, 15, 16, 20, 32, 46, 48]
Example:
Even if African Americans could register to vote, white primaries often meant they had no say in who would actually run for office, as the primary election was the only meaningful contest. [8, 15, 16, 20, 32, 46, 48]