African American Civil Rights Act

Since the creation of our country, African Americans have dealt with prejudice. They have faced many challenges and obstacles, such as segregation. After all of the slaves were emancipated, most public facilities participated in the separation of colored and white people. One of the facilities that was segregated, included the bus system. African Americans had to sit in the back of the bus and, when necessary, had to give up their seat to any white bus rider. Document 1 and 4 show the segregation in schools, which invigorated children and parents, because this made many African Americans students feel inferior. The conclusion of “separate but equal” did not seem to be working in the education system. Restaurants were also segregated. White males and females were given much better service, and restaurants were often separated. Another way African Americans faced inequality, was through the denial of constitutional rights. In many instances, African Americans guaranteed rights were taken away from them. For example the 14th Amendment was violated, which guarantees equal protection of the law and it forbids any state from making laws that

Though the conclusion of the American Civil War in 1965 marked the end of slavery in the United States, African-Americans would not see anything resembling true freedom from the segregation and isolation imposed by slavery until very recently, and only after decades of difficult struggle. Some of the most important achievements occurred during the 1960s, when a generation of African-American leaders and activists, including Martin Luther King Jr., Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, and the Freedom Riders, fought against some of the last vestiges of explicit, institutionalized segregation, discrimination, and isolation in order to attain equality and civil rights. Only by examining the treatment of African-Americans throughout America's history can one begin to understand how the the ending of slavery, the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, and the contemporary issues facing the African-American community are inextricably linked. In turn this allows one to see how rather than existing as a single, identifiable turning point in the history of civil rights, African American's struggle for equality and an end to isolation must be considered as an ongoing project.

Racism was a larger issue back in the 1930’s than it is today. During the 1930’s many Black Americans were unable to find jobs. With the Great Depression came the “last hired first fired” mindset. Many African Americans felt that this was targeted towards them (Racial 5). This along with Jim Crow laws kept most blacks in a level of poverty, which added to the discrimination (Racial 7). Throughout this time, all the way up into the 1960’s and 1970’s African Americans were under great segregation. During this thirty years, great strides toward social equality were made, but at the cost of numerous racial driven incidents. Many great African American icons were assassinated during this time. Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965 because he stood up against racial oppression as well as Martin Luther King Jr. who was assassinated in 1968. Both of these two men were part of the leading force in the desegregation of America (Rosenberg 1). This movement led to great tension between the African American culture and white culture, which led to many very violent cases between the races. A great

Freedom is a fundamental human right that all Americans enjoy today. Foner defines freedom as the ability of an individual to do as he/she wishes as long as long as the actions are within the law and respect the right of others (2). Accordingly, freedom is among the rights that are anchored in American constitution to protect the civil liberties of all Americans. Today, America is regarded as a democratic country that operates within the rule of law partly because of its respect for human rights (Romano 3). However, history shows that the freedom that African Americans enjoy today did not come easily; rather came after a long and enduring struggle by Civil Rights Movement (1954-1968). It is noted that, unlike white Americans who enjoyed freedom to do as they wished in the early 19th century, African Americans were denied the freedom to operate freely like their white counterparts (Foner 6). Therefore, because curtailing the freedom of African Americans were denying them the opportunity to advance socially, economically and politically, the Civil Rights Movement was formed by Martin Luther King Junior and colleagues to fight against racial segregation and to ensure that African Africans gain equal rights as the whites. This essay seeks to explore the Civil Rights Movement (1954-1968) struggle for freedom and

President Lyndon B. Johnson and President John F. Kennedy made many notable advances to outlaw discrimination in America. They fought against discrimination on race, color, religion, and national origin. Although the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments outlawed slavery, provided for equal protection under the law, guaranteed citizenship, and protected the right to vote, individual states continued to allow unfair treatment of minorities and passed Jim Crow laws allowing segregation of public facilities. America would not be the country it is today without their effort to make this country better and of course without the help of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark legislation that resulted from a unique combination of public pressure, historical events, previous failed legislation, and a large-scale social movement. Many regard the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as the most successful civil rights legislation in history. There is no doubt that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 changed the way the society addressed race and gender, but it in the context of current events resulting in racial tension, it is worth examining the true impact of the legislation and how society can continue to move forward in matters of civil equality. This paper will provide an overview of the historical context of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and examine the legislation’s impact on society

Before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation in the United States was commonly practiced in many of the Southern and Border States. This segregation while supposed to be separate but equal, was hardly that. Blacks in the South were discriminated against repeatedly while laws did nothing to protect their individual rights. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ridded the nation of this legal segregation and cleared a path towards equality and integration. The passage of this Act, while forever altering the relationship between blacks and whites, remains as one of history's greatest political battles.

Discrimination has afflicted the American society since its inception in 1776. The inferiority of the African American race – a notion embedded within the mindset of the white populace has difficult to eradicate – despite the efforts of civil rights activists and lawmakers alike. Many individuals are of the opinion that discrimination and racism no longer exist and that these issues have long since been resolved during the Civil War and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. However such is not the case. Discrimination is a complex issue – one that encompasses many aspects of society. The impact of discrimination of the African American race is addressed from two diverse perspectives in the essays: “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King .

In 1865, the United States government implemented what was known as Reconstruction. Its’ purpose was to remove slavery from the south, and give African-American’s the freedom in which they deserved. However, the freedom that they deserved was not the freedom that they received. With documents like The Black Codes restricting them from numerous privileges that white people had and the terroristic organization known as the Klu Klux Klan attacking and killing them, African-American’s were still being oppressed by their government as well as their fellow man. Slavery may have been abolished, but African-American’s were not yet given the freedom and rights that their white counterparts took for granted.

Even after about a century since the ratification of the Emancipation Proclamation, African Americans in the southern part of the United States still experienced severely hateful and unequal treatment. The saying “separate but equal” was used mostly to justify this unfair treatment as well as things like the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws separated African Americans from being in places that were of the same quality as those that white people went to. These places were always of poorer condition and mostly unbearable but African Americans went to them nonetheless because they could only work with what they were given. As the plights of African American became worse the Civil Rights movement, a campaign intended to better the living conditions

The African American civil rights movement was a long journey for African American nationwide. The success involved many people, hardships and time in order to advance the African American community in America. The purpose of the movement was to achieve their rights, cease discrimination, and racial segregation.

Affirmative action from the 1960s has generated a more diverse society and it focused mainly on opportunities for middle-class African-Americans pursuing an approach to exceptional jobs and higher education. “Affirmative action has done more to advance fair treatment across racial lines than any other recent public policy. If affirmative action did not exist, the United States would be a vastly more segregated country. Without such efforts, most white Americans would have far less contact with their fellow black citizens.” (171) In other words, without affirmative action, diversity could no longer survive. Black Americans would be stigmatized and condemned as a subordinate group even more so. In the 1978 Supreme Court case of the Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, Justice Lewis Powell offered firm standards for racial modification. He argued that adjustments to color-blind strategies could be commenced to remedy race-based detriments when two circumstances are met. There has to be a pure connection to affirmative action’s remedies and past harms based on race. Also, the tie between past actions and present policy must be sturdy and accurate. Powell also believed if there is a non-racial way to chase a specified goal, that way should always be the preferred route. Affirmative action is legitimized because the detriment of blacks in the Roosevelt and Truman years satisfies Powell's “strict-scrutiny” test. “Combining Powell’s principles and Johnson’s ambitions . . . push us forward to a framework for public policies that can respond to the injuries inflicted by officially sanctioned

During the twentieth century the judicial system extended the spectrum of civil rights to the black population based on constitutional provisions and its universalistic scope (Kluger, 2011). The profound racial division of American society started to change in the courts, particularly with historical rulings of the Supreme Court of Justice which promoted the abolition of segregation and a real equal access to social security and services (see Chafe, 2003 and Dudziak, 2004). Amongst the most emblematic cases can be mentioned the "Brown v. Board of Education" case in 1954, were was defeated the former doctrine of “separate but equal” in access to schooling facilities; the case of "Montgomery Bus system" in 1956, where segregation in public transport

August 28, 1963 (Eidenmuller) marked a very important day in history that had an impact not only on America, but the whole world. On this day, Martin Luther King Jr. presented his well known I Have a Dream speech that aimed to eliminate racism, inequality and discrimination. He strongly believed that one day people would put their differences aside and come together. So, what happened to that dream? Along with other equality initiative ideas, they rarely make it past the idea stages or end in the actual eradication result. It is clear to us that even after 51 years, our societies still struggle with accepting full equality. Within those 51 years we have made a mass amount of progress but, a common thought would be that after this long the issue should have been eradicated. Two essays that can be used as an example of proof that racial inequality still exists in our society are, Black Men in Public Spaces by Brent Staples and Who Shot Johnny? by Debra Dickerson. In these essays, both provide solid evidence to support their main goal with the use of different writing styles, tone, and rhetorical devices to display how African Americans are perceived and treated by society.

From the 1930s to the 1960s, many events, such as World War II, the Cold War, and the Civil Rights Movement took place. During World War II, Japanese Americans were wrongfully interned, African Americans were discriminated against in the military and the workforce, and American citizens were lied to about the Manhattan Project. Within the Cold War, as well as the Post World War II era, The Un-american Activities Committee was formed, women were discriminated against in the workforce, and African Americans faced racism from those who dealt with the GI Bill of Rights. From the 1950s to the 1960s, during the Civil Rights Movement, Emmett Till’s murderers and the Ku Klux Klan members who bombed a church were not found guilty, as well as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. These events did not show the core values that the United States does not always adhere and promote the democratic values of liberty, equality, and justice upon which it was founded in a moral, political, and social standpoint.