...Was the legislation that gave African Americans equal rights to ‘whites’ the result of famous, glorified leaders such as Martin Luther King and Lyndon Johnson or was it those who worked behind the scenes, the local groups and individuals, who set the stage for these legal amendments to be possible? The Civil Rights Movement was one of the most significant events in the modern history of the United States that has formed the basis of many of its core values and laws today. The Civil Rights Movement unofficially ended with the passing of the long awaited “1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act” which legally saw an end to the racial discrimination faced by African Americans. However the historiography of the Civil Rights Movement has “undergone some serious revision” since 1965 as it ‘gained popular appeal.’ Initially the Civil Rights Movement was “romanticized” and considered to be a “heroic narrative of moral purpose and personal courage by which great men and women inspired ordinary people to rise up and struggle for their rights” such as the famed Martin Luther King, who was painted as the ‘driving force behind the movement’ ,President Lyndon Johnson and Kennedy and organisations such as ‘The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People’ (NAACP) This idea of the federal government, prominent leaders and organisations playing the defining role in the passing of these bills soon became less plausible in the 1970’s and 1980’s as the “second...
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...Political Movements in the 20th Century HUM/300 Political Movements in the 20th Century During the 20th century several major political events took place that changed the worldwide view of civilization and shook up the collective consciousness. World War I and II showed the dark side of technology when used to hurt humanity. Civil movements surged around the world as a result of minorities trying to regain their identity, which various governments throughout the world restricted. The authors will examine major political events that had a notable effect on the 20th century, including, the influences of World War I and II, the surge of the Civil Rights Movement, and the Gender Equality Movement. The author’s examination will consider the works of artists and how his or her creative expression reflected the mood of the era. Political Events: World War I and II World War I (WWI) started in 1914, and lasted through 1918. The political event that triggered this war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The war tactics employed in World War I changed the methods and strategies in future conflicts bringing more devastation. Some of the new strategies included trench warfare, chemical warfare, and upgraded technology; it introduced chemical weapons including chlorine and phosgene, which produced devastating damages. The exposure to high levels of these gases resulted in temporary blindness, difficulty...
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...of the Civil War Through the 1970s History 1312 The University of Texas at Arlington December 16, 2011 Improving Social Justice for Minorities and Women From the End of the Civil War Through the 1970s I. At the end of the Civil War in 1865, most African American slaves held a renewed hope that with President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 would come economic opportunity and social mobility. There was the expectation that they would have political representation and the assurance of at least the beginning of attaining equality1. After the end of the war in 1865, there were enough states to ratify the 13th Amendment which outlawed slavery. However, it did not provide any equal rights or citizenship. As time passed and minorities began to assert themselves into American society, social justice movements that were led by blacks and whites alike began to become more commonplace. However, the struggle to become fully recognized as equal members of American society has been a battle that was fought through the 1970s—and in some measure, continues today. Like minorities, women have struggled with inequality and social injustice. However, their decision to fight for equality began before the start of the Civil War. The Seneca Falls Convention in New York was held in July of 1848, and can be referred to as the starting point of feminism. The inspiration for the first ever women’s rights convention...
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...SMIT S PATEL Al-min, Nashid ENGLISH 096 4/24/16 If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favour freedom, and yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters.” Frederick Douglas said this in 1857 because of the constant struggle blacks had to face to gain their civil rights. Like many sociological ideas, racism has a familiar use and countless everyday meanings. The sociological viewpoint gives race as basically a social category and examines race relations with reference to societal constructions and development. According to Philomena Eased in her book Understanding Everyday Racism, “The specific forms racism takes are determined by the economic, political, social, and organizational conditions of society.” Many people are unaware of racism; people may ask how racism is incorporated in our lives? Why do blacks even believe that individuals are racist towards them? These are constant questions that maybe aren’t asked but definitely questioned. The answer is control. Control is the factor to racism. The more you can bring a group down and make them feel belittled, the easier it is to control them. Now let’s take a look at the history of slavery with blacks. It all started in Jamestown, Virginia which is where the first slave ships had entered in August of 1619. While blacks became upset because of being enslaved as an indentured servant they started to...
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...Does one believe we were made to be separated? The Civil Rights Movement was about African Americans trying to achieve being equal to the whites. Also, gaining equal opportunities like the right to vote, to get a job, education, and the right to be free of discrimination. Americans believed African Americans weren't good enough to be in the same building as whites. They showed that whites were more superior and that they were better and higher above. It was a struggle for justice and a fight for equality. It was a struggle for equality, but we got through it and fought for our rights. The Civil Rights Movement changed Americans point of view of everything. Plessy v. Ferguson was one case that segregated public facilities. This case began in Louisiana and it was a decision made by the US Supreme Court that it was created to be "separate but equal." Which means that we are all the same, but just different as individuals. It still separated blacks from going to the same bathroom as white people, or riding the same bus, but having blacks sit only in the back and whites in the front. Africans were brutally beaten up by whites if they do not obey the law....
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...interpret the civil rights movement in a different, more direct way, far removed from the "I Have a Dream" Idealism of the 1960s. This movement was pioneered by Spike Lee's film Do the Right Thing, and the civil rights themed song Fight the Power composed by Public Enemy. In the Fight the Power music video, which was also directed by Spike Lee, Chuck D denounces the marches and speeches of the 60s and calls for more radical action, promising that "the young black America... ain't goin' out like that '63 nonsense." The clip documents a large rally in Brooklyn’s, Bed-Stuy against the racially motivated violence that had plagued the city. This landmark song and video are widely considered hip-hop greatest, and helped to mobilize a new youth culture with a civil rights movement of their own. The song became more than just a feature in a movie. Fight the Power means something big, refusing to let racism keep Black African Americans down. Furthermore, it's about not just talking the talk, but also walking the walk (Shmoop). In our dissertation, we will concentrate on why Spike Lee wanted to write Do the Right Thing and the message he wanted to send to America. Then, we’ll move into Public Enemy rising as civil rights leaders for black youth and their aggressive approach for equality along with their composition of Fight the Power. We’ll then shift into text and the meaning behind the lyrics of Fight the Power. In addition, we’ll also focus on the civil rights movement that followed...
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...Civil Rights in the Sixties The 1960s brought about social change in America. America elected the second youngest and the first Catholic president (John F. Kennedy) and the Anti-War Movement began. The Anti-War Movement was based on people mostly the youth of America protesting a war (Vietnam War) that they believed America could not win. At the same time people were protesting the war they were objecting to the social injustice surrounding minorities; thus began the Civil Rights Movement. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was instrumental in starting The Civil Rights Movement the yearlong battle for equal treatment on buses gave minorities the strength to fight for more equal treatment and gave rise to Martin Luther King Jr. who was elected by the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) to lead the boycott. During The Montgomery Bus Boycott whites tried to use the media to put out false stories by claiming the boycott have come to an end and that minorities settled for the same moderate desegregation plan that they received before the boycott. Public opion in Montgomery Alabama at first was against the boycott, but once the business community realized they were losing money because minorities were no longer shopping downtown their opion began to wane. Throughout the civil rights movement the media was a constant force some believe that without the media exposing the at times moving and often unsightly events of the movement that it would not advanced as much as it did. Some Southern...
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...Civil Rights Revolution When looking at all the revolutions to take place, the civil rights is a revolution that thoroughly impacted how the world works today. Although there was lots of divide in people during the civil rights time, the unity and strength of people with the same belief is what made the largest impacts. I evaluated History.com as it is an offical website which has great credibility. It explains in detail of historical events and focuses on facts and lets you form your own opinions. It also states stories told by witnesses and victims. The Thirteenth Amendment was the first point in history when the world started to adjust more to equality. The amendment states: “Abolish slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment...
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...To what extent did the aims of the Campaigners for Civil Rights remain the same 1865-1992? Throughout the period 1865-1992 Civil Rights Campaigners changed their aims across the Period from the idea of Assimilation led by Washington with the Atlanta Compromise to Black Power and Marcus Garvey, moving the focus away from political issues and instead focusing on the economic implications of Black Civil Rights. Whilst all campaigners were fighting for Civil Rights for African Americans their ideas were influenced by their aims and the actual period in which they were working. Assimilation was the idea of bringing blacks and whites together and therefore giving equality to both sides. Book T Washington as a civil rights leader was involved in the Atlanta compromise between Washington and other African American leaders. It meant that Southern Blacks would work and submit to White political rule but in return they received a basic education and due process in law. Washington realised that to expect equality at the time was unreasonable yet he provided many African Americans with a technical education and above all else a role model. Although it still wasn’t equal it was progress in achieving assimilation despite Du Bois opposing the idea strongly. Along with Monroe he took issue with the compromise believing instead African Americans should engage in a struggle for Civil Rights. Du Bois called it the compromise to denote the agreement and after Washington’s death in 1915 supporters...
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...The African Americans: The Birth of Equality after 1865 Leonard Stinson HIS204: American History Since 1865 Instructor John Durr December 5th, 2011 The African Americans: The Birth of Equality after 1865 This was a time when America was trying to find herself. These were the years known as the Reconstruction Period from 1865-1877. During this time period, the African-American people became free from slavery but one can only imagine what free really is. While the nation search for ways to establish true meaning of equality, African-American people continued to struggle to find out just what equality means and to have the same rights and freedom as the white people in the nation. Whether as slaves or free people, the political and social status of African Americans has always been to obtain the ability to participate in the nation’s economy. While many historians believe that slavery and politics can be attributed to the Civil War, more than 600,000 Americans died and with the help of the Emancipation Proclamation to start the motion to free the slaves, America became even more a divided country in 1865 than the previous earlier years (Bowles, 2011). Although freedom in the post-Civil War years did not guarantee equality, African Americans continued to struggle from racism, segregation and discrimination for many years, but the birth of equality is beginning to grow and show that all men and women are created equal. The effort to integrate...
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...African Americans and the Struggle for Racial Equality After the Civil War and the reorganizing of the Southern states, Black Americans inaugurated a crusade and difficult journey for sanctioned racial equality. Members of the Radical G.O.P. assisted Blacks by bringing forth legislations such as the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendment; however, White anti-Black supremacists in the Southern States ignored these laws and made certain that Blacks remained fearful, and away from the voting booths. Several strategies employed by the Whites hindered and kept Black Americans from acting upon their newfound Civil Rights laws. Some of these tactics included: poll taxes, testing Blacks for their ability to read, and write and that also familiar, public lynching’s were employed by the Black Codes. Even though the Civil War ended, racial disapproval, and destruction in the Southern States continued (Bowles, 2011). The Compromise of 1877 ruined the chances of Blacks to depart from a life of farmers and inferior citizenship. Along with many injustices Black Americans faced following the Civil War, only strengthen their efforts, and never once consider giving up the fight for equality. After Black Americans battled in the war between the North and South, the social and racial environment was very crucial in America, and insisted upon immediate attention. Blacks were thought of as contraband of war before they were authorized to contribute to the war effort;...
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...Civil Rights African Americans, like numerous ethnic groups in the U.S., had a long struggle in gaining their civil rights. When most people think of the Civil Rights Movement in America, they think of Martin Luther King, Jr. Delivering his "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963 and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize the following year, secured his fame as the voice of non-violent, mass protest in the 1960s. But "the Movement" achieved its greatest results, the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, due to the competing strategies and agendas of diverse individuals. Even black Americans, the primary beneficiaries of this landmark legislation, did not agree on the tactics that should be used to secure the equal protection of their rights. Several important black leaders shaped the debate over how to achieve freedom and equality in a nation that had long denied them their civil rights. Martin Luther King, Jr. first came to national prominence through his leadership of the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955-56. This mass protest helped desegregate public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama. A gifted preacher and committed pacifist, King thought that non-violent, direct action against racial segregation provided the best means of securing the full integration of blacks into the mainstream of American life. As he wrote in his famous "Letter from Birmingham Jail," "I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means...
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...the world best boxer but also being known for being a familiar face in the civil rights movement. Pre-war struggles and the events of the Second World War set the conditions for a mass civil rights movement, beginning in the early 1950’s, which would last nearly three decades. It brought about a lot of struggles, particularly for African Americans. Although Ali didn't deal with the majority of the issues that most lower class African Americans had to deal with, Ali still felt the need to defend his people using his celebrity status as a way for people to listen. (Pierre) Minority groups within the United States struggled for nearly a century to gain racial equality. In the mid 1940s a movement began assembling that would later bring about change, it was known as the Civil Rights movement. It reached its apex in the mid 1960s, around the same time a heavy-weight fighter named Cassius Clay was making his bid for a belt. In 1964, the young boxer shocked the world, making his conversion to Islam and his new name public. He announced that he had become a member of the Nation of Islam, a group that would influence his ideology and involvement with Civil Rights. (Pierre) It is widely believed that Ali joined the Nation of Islam because of his friendship with another Civil Rights activist of the time, Malcolm X. Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam urged blacks not to cooperate with the Mass Civil Rights movement and not to coalesce with their white...
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...Event | Who Involved | What Happened | Why Important | Jackie Robinson | Jackie Robinson, Brooklyn Dodgers, and African-Americans. | Jackie Robinson became the first African-American in U.S history play for a major league baseball team in 1947. After he retired, he joined the Civil Rights Movement, playing a huge role. | Jackie Robinson’s achievements broke down racial barriers and helped wake up America’s conscience. Within the first five years of his career, over 150 African-Americans joined the minor and major leagues. | Montgomery Bus Boycott | African-American Bus Boycotters, Rosa Parks, Supreme Court | On December 1, 1955, African-American Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus for a white man and was later arrested for it. After this incident, African-Americans refused to ride the city buses in Montgomery to protest the segregated seating. | The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ordered Montgomery to integrate its bus system, and one of the leaders of the boycott, a young pastor named Martin Luther King Jr.), emerged as a leader of the American civil rights. | Little Rock Nine | The Nine African-American Students, President Eisenhower, Orval Faubus, National Guard, 101st Airborne Division. | After the U.S Supreme Court decision after Brown v. Board of Education, all segregated schools were declared unconstitutional. So after a group of nine African American students enrolled in Little Rock Central High School, they were prevented from entering by Orval Faubus...
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...The Civil Rights Movement Sharon L. Jordan HUM410 Contemporary History Instructor: Lila Griffin-Brown October 16, 2011 African Americans’ efforts to stop the segregation of trains and streetcars, the organizations created to contest Jim Crow laws, and segregationists’ attempts to silence the protests all provide rich testimony to the spirit of agitation present even in this bleak time in American history (Kelley, 2010, p.5). The Civil Rights Movement was a struggle by African Americans in the mid-1950s to late 1960s to achieve civil rights equal to those of whites, including equal opportunity in employment, housing, and education, as well as the right to vote, the right of equal access to public facilities, and the right to be free of racial discrimination (Law, 2005). This movement sought to restore to African Americans the rights of citizenship guaranteed by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. The words civil rights often raise images of Martin Luther King Jr. delivering his soul-stirring “I Have a Dream” speech before the nation’s capital. "The practical cost of change for the nation up to this point has been cheap," Martin Luther King Jr. conceded “(LITWACK, 2009). Martin Luther King Jr., and other leaders of the movement anticipated, the movement provoked gains not only for African Americans but also for women, persons with disabilities, and many others. Organized efforts by an African American, W.E.B. Du Bois, who exhorted blacks to fight for the rights was...
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