Post WWII and Modern Georgia DT #3 Remediation Lesson

In 1956, the Georgia Assembly approved the state’s most controversial flag. The 1956 flag offended African Americans and progressive whites because two-thirds of it looked like a Confederate battle flag. Most people believed the legislature’s new flag decision to be symbolic of Georgia’s resistance to the federal government’s integration laws (Brown vs BOE). The flag represented Georgia until it was finally replaced in 2001. 

Lester Maddox became a public figure when he chose to close his Atlanta restaurant rather than comply with the Civil Rights Act and serve African Americans. In 1966, he was elected as Georgia’s governor, despite being a strict segregationist. Maddox surprised many people by hiring more African Americans into office than any governor before him.

Andrew Young became well known as a civil rights activist and aide to Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1972, he won a seat in Congress and was Georgia’s first African American representative to the House since Reconstruction. In 1977, President Carter appointed Young to be America’s ambassador to the United Nations. In 1981, he succeeded Jackson as Atlanta’s mayor.

Maynard Jackson was elected as Atlanta’s first African American mayor in 1973. As mayor, Jackson made sure that Hartsfield Airport added a new international terminal that helped the economy. The city of Atlanta honored Maynard for his work and added his name to the airport in 2003: Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Maynard also was instrumental in helping to bring the 1996 Olympics to Atlanta.

In 1970, Jimmy Carter won the governor’s race and quickly began to create a “new Georgia”. In his inaugural address, he informed Georgians that it was time for segregation to end. Carter favored integration and often butted heads with his lieutenant governor, Lester Maddox, over promoting civil rights.

For centuries, Arabs and Jews have fought over land in the Middle East. President Carter invited Egypt’s president and Israel’s prime minister to Camp David (the president’s personal retreat) to try to work out a peace agreement. On September 17, 1978, the leaders negotiated a peace treaty and signed the Camp David Accords. Many saw this as a diplomatic miracle and Carter was given credit for his role in negotiating the agreement.