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Difficulty: HardThe Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s

"We have been tax-paying citizens. We have been obedient citizens. We have fought in all the wars. We have done everything a citizen is supposed to do. And we have received nothing in return. So we are going to have to decide whether we are going to continue to try to integrate into a burning house, or whether we are going to build our own house... We are on the move for our liberation... We want Black Power. Because we want to define our own terms, and we are going to define them."

— Stokely Carmichael, address at the University of California, Berkeley, 1966

Which of the following best explains the historical shift in the civil rights movement represented by Carmichael's assertions in the excerpt?

  1. A
    A shift in focus from domestic civil rights activism to the containment of communist expansion in Southeast Asia.
  2. B
    A unified consensus among major civil rights organizations that federal legislative victories had successfully achieved racial equality.
  3. Growing frustration among younger activists with the slow pace of social change and the persistence of systemic economic inequality.Answer
  4. D
    The belief that New Deal-style federal programs under the Great Society had already resolved urban poverty for African Americans.

Answer

Growing frustration among younger activists with the slow pace of social change and the persistence of systemic economic inequality.
The correct answer is correct because Stokely Carmichael's speech reflects the transition of organizations like the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) away from the nonviolent integrationist strategy led by Martin Luther King Jr. toward a focus on Black Power and self-reliance. This shift was driven by frustration with the persistent poverty, de facto segregation, and systemic discrimination that remained even after major civil rights laws were enacted.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the source text for key arguments and ideological stance.
The author (Stokely Carmichael) critiques the goal of integration ('integrate into a burning house') and calls for self-determination ('build our own house' and 'define our own terms' through 'Black Power').
To identify the core point of view and movement philosophy expressed by the speaker.
2
Place the document in its historical context of 1966.
By 1966, major legislation like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 had passed, yet systemic poverty, police brutality, and economic inequality remained rampant, particularly in urban areas, causing disillusionment among younger activists.
To understand the broader socio-political conditions that motivated the shift from nonviolence and integration to Black Power.
3
Evaluate the options against the historical evidence.
The option identifying growing frustration with the slow pace of change aligns with the disillusionment of younger SNCC members, whereas options suggesting consensus on success, a shift to containment, or Great Society success are historically inaccurate.
To select the option that accurately explains the historical development depicted in the excerpt.

Key Concept

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s
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Topics

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s

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