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What Are The Causes Of The Civil Rights Movement

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In the 1960’s, a decade most known for its high level of civil rights and free speech reform activity, the Civil Rights Movement reached its peak as protests spread through the nation. Upon the late 50’s, many of America’s college youth had organized themselves into activist groups, promoting their rights to support off-campus causes. The University of California in Berkeley was one of the many that faced this student commotion. A minority of the university’s students actively engaged themselves in the Civil Rights cause. In an effort to lessen the student’s ability to promote causes such as these, Berkeley officials took legal precautions towards preventing on-campus political activities by initiating a ban. In the fall semester of 1964, …show more content…
In 1961, the organization which lead Berkeley’s protests, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), orchestrated a ‘Freedom Ride’ consisting of black and white activists alike in order to gain the attention and sympathy of the federal government as their peaceful actions provoked state and local violence in the south. The attraction of the media assisted those involved in ending segregation along the highway as the national government issued the Interstate Commerce Commission. There are several other instances where the government enacted lawful actions to allow the protest movement. Though Martin Luther King Jr. was not the only activist whose leadership rocked the Civil Rights Movement, his nonviolent strategy involving peaceful marches, sit-ins, and boycotts gained much attention nationwide. The brutality faced by such peaceful actions quickly encouraged the cooperation of the federal government in enforcing African American civil rights as the sympathizers voiced their outrage. Congress’s efforts to assist equal rights activist include the Civil Rights Act of 1964, preventing private business from discriminating by race and ending …show more content…
Though modern society has grown used to its ability to freely share ideas and opinions, many fail to realize that civil liberties and equal rights are far from absolute. History has time and time again proved this to be true with the various laws that have been put into effect preventing them. I do not believe that the activists of the Civil Rights Movement overstepped their boundaries in protesting the unequal treatment they faced. Amendment I of the Bill of Rights protect our rights as citizens from any abridgement of speech set in place by Congress. As a citizen everyone has the right to protest and state their beliefs freely, whether privately or publicly as long as it does not infringe on the safety and well-being of others and is done in an orderly fashion. Furthering this concept, our 5th Amendment right as citizens hold that the national government is prohibited from depriving us of our liberties without the due process of law. Through this the national government is prevented from infringing on our protections. As lawfully recognized citizens of America, those marching for the cause of the Civil Rights Movement were well within their rights to protest. While it was quite risky to actively provoke the wrath of several states who had no qualms in killing and punishing them, the risk was well worth it as it enlisted the help of the national government in ending lawful segregation

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