The American Civil Rights movement was a very treacherous and horrific time in American history. African Americans were long censored in this country and they finally took a stand to make American citizens follow what the constitution says, “All men are created equal”. For activists, such as Malcom X and Martin Luther King, Jr., this journey to bring their people justice would certainly not be an easy one. Although they both wanted the same thing, both of these activists had very different thoughts and ways to make it happen. In order to reach this desired goal that they have been awaiting, strategies were much needed.
According to Bowles, 2012, slavery began the civil war which led to further violence which in turn led to segregation. But just because this was the end of slavery, does not mean that the military leaders nor politicians can change the ingrained cultural beliefs of a people. The country was split between the North and the South; Northern white and in the Southern Blacks. African-Americans such as Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, and even more recent Barrack Obama have made significant steps to improve and even stop segregation. According to Bowles, 2011, American History 1865 to present End of Isolation, The Black Codes codified some of these feelings into law when in 1865 southern state governments created legislation that restricted and controlled the lives of the ex-slaves.
Woodson also stressed that society did not make a valid effort in trying to domesticate the African-American after the oppression of slavery ended. Instead of having shackles around their wrists and ankles, African-Americans now had to deal with an industrialized world which purposely got a head start and left them behind. However, it was also stated by Woodson that African-Americans should forgive but never forget how they were placed in such an economical, physical, emotional, and social deficit, but use it as a tool of hope and determination for the
Shipler in his essay “Jefferson Is America and America Is Jefferson,” Jefferson represents the most powerful contradiction of American society, because his declaration of individual liberty showed the brilliance of his extraordinary mind but also he claims that black people are inferior. Shipler considers that Jefferson had a deep understanding but at the same time he was such an ignorant person about what was happen, at that time concerning liberty and slavery. Slavery was a contradictory subject in Jefferson’s life. Although he was a defender for individual freedom and at one point he was against of slavery in America, but he owned slaves throughout his life. He was a politician that would speak out about slavery but would still employ slaves for his own use.
We all know what discrimination is, but most of us don’t know how it feels to be discriminated against. It is usually not until we go through something like this ourselves, that we begin to fully realize how cruel prejudice is. Throughout history, African-American people have experienced first hand how hurtful these practices can be. They have had to endure much suffering and negativity, before they were able to rise to the standing they have today in society. The first injustice to this race occurred when they were forced to be slaves.
Assess the view that divided leadership was the most important factor in preventing the advancement of African-American civil rights between 1865-1914 After the end of the civil war, there was much optimism amongst African-Americans that they would finally have civil rights after decades of slavery in the South. However, there were many problems facing the advancement of civil rights for blacks. Firstly, people in the south were still very hostile towards them as they still saw them as slaves. Also, segregation was a key issue because it highlighted the fact that there was no equality between blacks and whites. The failure of a common goal between African-American leaders did not help solve these issues, but it was not the main problem facing blacks and was not the most important factor preventing advancement of civil rights.
We are taught to blame slavery on the Southern states but we learned that the Northern states were just as responsible due to their lack of action, fear of the results due to abolishment, and most importantly their double standard on the stance of slavery. Professor Nash gives us and insightful view from the eyes of free blacks and their contribution in the fight for freedom and equality of African Americans. This book has given me an insight of our history of slavery that I was unaware of, people involved and events that took place. The struggle for equality that we have in our country now is evident that it stem from our past. Using these events we can understand ourselves and continue to build a stable and free America which our forefathers based their fight for liberty and freedom from England and strengthen the words written within our Constitution that establish freedom and equality for “ALL
Instead of the government allowing slavery, it looked like it found a loop hole to not treat people of color equally for anything whether it was sports, school or public facilities blacks were still treated as inferior. Thankfully the civil rights movement that occurred during the 1950’s and 1960’s would turn out successful after years of civil demonstrations (some which would become riots e.g. : Birmingham, Alabama), marches, and speeches. One might say that one of the most famous speeches of the civil rights movement, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech, would see fruition when looking at today’s society despite some traces of racism. Now we live in an era where different races can co-exist.
Julie Huynh English/History February 29, 2012 Word Count: 449 The Civil Rights Movement The African-American civil rights movement was an act trying to get rid of the racial oppression in America. This movement wanted to win equal rights for African Americans. In the 1900s, racism against African Americans was very popular among cultures. White Americans would not share the rights that they had with the African Americans; instead, they put more labor and burden upon the African Americans’ shoulders. Because of this, the African Americans had many motives for the start of the Civil Rights Movement.
After the civil war ended, the United States of America was still being exposed to vast amounts of racism, while people continued to fight for equal rights and freedom. Slavery was officially over in 1865, but there was still no equality for the blacks. In place of having the Negroes enslaved, the former white slave owners and racists alike would instead continue to oppress them by further segregation and assault, while the white authorities turned a blind eye because they were often part of the problem. In society, they were viewed as second-class citizens; forced to use segregated areas of washrooms, entrances, restaurants, public transit, and recreational facilities; such as churches. It took nearly one hundred years for the black population