Boycott — Social Studies definition
Defined in 2 courses:
- An organized refusal to buy or use specified goods or services to apply pressure. (U.S. & New York History: Indigenous Nations to Reconstruction)
- Coordinated refusal to buy, use, or participate in something to apply pressure. (United States History & Government: Colonial Foundations to the Early 21st Century)
Where it is taught
- Road to Revolution: Taxation, Representation & Resistance — Empire, Revolution & Independence, U.S. & New York History: Indigenous Nations to Reconstruction, Grade 7
- Civil Rights: Organizing, Law & Enforcement — Civil Rights, Social Change & Public Access, U.S. History: Reconstruction to the Early 21st Century, Grade 8
- Civil Rights: Organizing, Courts, Legislation & Enforcement — Civil Rights, Social Movements & Government, United States History & Government: Colonial Foundations to the Early 21st Century, Grade 11
In use
The Montgomery bus boycott began in 1955 and depended on coordinated transport, fundraising, local organizations, and sustained participation.
Civil Rights: Organizing, Law & Enforcement
Questions using boycott
Problem 1
Answer and explanation
Sustained reductions in purchases could pressure commercial interests, while coordination and public discussion maintained a broader campaign; actual effects require evidence.
Problem 2
Answer and explanation
Dated import and sales records, merchants’ accounts, correspondence, and records of organization could test extent and consequences.
Problem 3
Answer and explanation
By coordinating participants to withhold purchases or use, it applied economic and public pressure. Explain organization and targeted institutions.
Problem 4
Answer and explanation
Community planning, organizations, transport arrangements, fundraising, and participants’ accounts show how collective action sustained the boycott.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Use relevant evidence and explain how it supports the claim.
- Represent perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify a limitation, counterevidence, or information still needed.