Jim Crow Era Quizizz Activity

Jim Crow laws were a broad set of local and state laws mandating racial segregation. The name “Jim Crow” came from a popular minstrel show. In the show, a racist depiction of a black character was played by a white actor in blackface. Jim Crow laws did not simply mean separate water fountains or sections of a bus. They included restrictions on where black people could live, whom they could marry and more. There were separate hotels, theaters, ticket booths and waiting areas for white and black people. Jim Crow also disenfranchised black people. The 15th Amendment, passed in 1870, granted African-American men, including former slaves, the right to vote. Nonetheless, by 1889 almost all Southern states had restricted the right to vote for black men.

Jim Crow laws would remain on the books for decades. More than laws, Jim Crow was also a set of customs. White people upheld what was considered the “acceptable” racial order. The most segregated places tended to have few actual laws, relying instead on rigid customs and threats of violence.

Based on the passage, which of the following is true of the 15th Amendment?

• 
  The passage of the 15th Amendment in 1870 immediately gave federal protection to voting rights for all former slaves.

• 
  The 15th Amendment did not grant voting rights to former slaves, but many Southern states did.

• 
  In many places, state laws stood in the way of 15th Amendment rights.

• 
  The 15th Amendment was never passed or ratified.

Answer explanation

According to the passage, “The 15th Amendment, passed in 1870, granted African-American men, including former slaves, the right to vote. Nonetheless, by 1889 almost all Southern states had restricted the right to vote for black men.”

Fleeing violence and seeking more equality, thousands of black Americans moved to northern cities in what is today known as the Great Migration. There were many reasons for this movement. Socially, black people in the South lacked the ability to protect themselves or their families against the violence of racism. Economically, sharecropping had replaced slave labor. Sharecropping left southern black farmers in a cycle of debt and poverty. Moving to the North could be seen as a political act. It represented a refusal to live by the customs and strict racial order of the South. In the North, black migrants had more freedoms but still faced racist laws and practices. Segregation still affected housing and schools.

The Great Migration can be seen as which of these?

• 
  a political act

• 
  socially motivated

• 
  economically motivated

• 
  all of the above

Answer explanation

The passage describes many reasons black Americans in the South moved to the North, including social, economic and political motivations.

In 1896, a black man named Homer Plessy sat in a train car for whites only. He did this intentionally to challenge segregation. His case, Plessy v. Ferguson, made it to the Supreme Court. The court ruled that segregation was, in fact, constitutional. The ruling held that segregation was legal as long as there were separate but equal options for black and white people. This set a precedent that would remain in place for almost 60 years. In reality, the options for black people were usually of much lower quality, and in 1954 the concept of “separate but equal” was completely overturned. The following year, in 1955, a black woman named Rosa Parks made history in Alabama when she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger.

Why did Homer Plessy sit in a white train car?

• 
  to challenge the legality of segregation

• 
  to follow in Rosa Parks’ footsteps

• 
  to prove that separate was equal

• 
  to try to pass as a white man

Answer explanation

According to the passage, Homer Plessy “did this intentionally to challenge segregation,” and his case made it to the Supreme Court.

In 1954, Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer with the NAACP, argued that separation was inherently—meaning by nature—not equal. The Supreme Court sided with Marshall. Thurgood Marshall would later become the first black justice on the Supreme Court. The ruling in Brown v. Board of Education did not bring Jim Crow to an end. Doing so came as a result of the Civil Rights Movement. Dedicated activists and groups led initiatives focusing on different arenas of segregation. Sit-ins worked to desegregate lunch counters. Freedom Riders worked to desegregate interstate buses and terminals. Marches in Selma, Alabama, worked to ensure voting rights first promised by the 15th Amendment 85 years earlier. Slowly, and as a result of great effort and bravery, the laws and customs of Jim Crow disappeared, and new federal protections for all people were put into place.

Which of these best describes the end of the Jim Crow era?

• 
  a disappearance that left no trace or memory

• 
  the result of a single Supreme Court justice

• 
  a slow, determined chipping away

• 
  a sudden and complete reversal

Answer explanation

According to the passage, ending Jim Crow took happened “slowly, and as a result of great effort and bravery.”

After the Civil War, the era known as Reconstruction began. During this era, the federal government tried to grant rights to former slaves and rebuild the South. There was progress, including the passage of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments, granting freedom, citizenship and voting rights to former slaves.

In the 1877 presidential election, both the Republican and Democratic candidates claimed to have won. Rutherford B. Hayes, the Republican candidate, became president in exchange for withdrawing federal troops from the South. The lack of military presence meant there was no longer a way to enforce the new amendments or punish those who treated African Americans unfairly. Reconstruction came to an abrupt end. Not only that, much of the progress made in the 12 years of Reconstruction was reversed as Jim Crow laws took hold. When we look at the end of Reconstruction and the rise of Jim Crow, it is important to remember that history did not have to be this way. Reconstruction efforts could have continued if the country had committed to it.

Which of these events occurred during the Reconstruction era?

• The Civil War began.

• Rutherford B. Hayes became president.

• Progress toward racial equality in the South was reversed.

• Three amendments were passed to grant rights to former slaves.

Answer explanation

According to the passage, “After the Civil War, the era known as Reconstruction began,” and progress in this era included “the passage of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments, granting freedom, citizenship and voting rights to former slaves.”