Black Nationalist Civil Rights Movement

Throughout this period, African American civil rights made a massive progress. Although for any progress to be made, federal government needed to implement new laws and legislations, but usually, government were not keen to act and in some cases actually made little impact on the civil rights movement. The African Americans themselves pushed the government to make changes through the leadership of the organisations set up, that led to the change in the civil rights that they eventually gained.

The civil rights movement lays down the foundation of what most of us take for granted. In situations where racism, discrimination and sexual orientation was the justification of why one would be denied employment, a seat on the bus, or the right to vote, this movement was created to benefit all American people and has truly proven itself to be effective.

The civil rights movement made a rapid advance towards the civil rights with help of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X along with their famous speeches that rallied the people to support the end to segregation and the right for African Americans. The civil rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s helped lay the groundwork for this change. Americans face discrimination in every aspect of their lives until at at least 1950s.

One “key event” of the American Civil Rights Movement occurred when nine African- American students enrolled in an all- white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas on September 4, 1957. (History). Although, in 1954 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public school was unconstitutional, integration was not common at the time and many people were upset with the changes including the governor, Orval Faubus (History). This essay will present information on the life and achievements of the students that were apart of the Little Rock Nine.

Little Rock Nine was a group of African American students who were prevented from entering a segregated school by the Governor of Arkansas. However, they got lucky because then they were escorted in after the president called in the National Guard. This discussion will evaluate a possible impact this particular event made on the civil rights movement as a whole. Equal rights for educations was a concern in the Civil Rights movement. The level of education would certainly be impacted and would reflect on African American’s socioeconomic status in that society. The Little Rock Nine started from a group of nine African American students wanting to get an education and they acted upon their desires. This later escalated to a larger issue, in which the president got involved.

The African American Civil right movement in the late 1950’s and throughout the 1960’s was a powerful fight for equal opportunities to the basic rights and privileges outlined by the US government. During this movement thousands of African American individuals and those who believed in the power of the movement, battled against the piercing white supremacy through various tactics including grass root movements. The grass root movements in the 60’s was characterized by organizations of individuals fighting for equality on the behalf of the African Americans, ultimately shaping American history. Such movements helped to raise awareness on a political level, of the injustice all African American’s endured. Grassroots activist during the 60’s were able to organize marches, rallies and protests in order to mobilize and strengthen the Civil Rights Movement. Grass rooting activism during the Civil Rights Movement in the 60’s shaped American History by aiding in the abolished laws restricting African American’s freedom to vote, the abolishment of segregation in school, and the passage of the Civil Rights act outlawing discrimination.

The civil rights movement was and still is a crucial piece of American culture because it helped shaped our society to what it is today. The civil rights movement occurred at a time where Americans began to protest, in mass groups, against racial segregation and discrimination that was increasingly prominent in America. American began to think different about segregation, many did not believe in it.

Civil rights are the rights that every person should have no matter their sex, religion, or race. These were deprived to African Americans for hundreds of years, long before the civil rights movement of the 1960s. African Americans were slaves from the 1500s until the 1860s when the Civil War happened. After the slaves were freed, there was still a lot of segregation and racism throughout the U.S., especially in the South. The government put into place Jim Crow Laws, which were strict segregation laws that would punish people who associated with people of another race, if the law forbade them to do so. They also used poll taxes, literacy tests, and other things of the like to prevent African Americans from voting. White supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan, or rather known as the KKK, would perform violent acts to minorities. They would bomb, carry out beatings and shootings and set fires to blacks’ homes.

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.

We sometimes forget how far we have come in our struggle with discrimination and equal opportunity for all. While we still have many improvements to make in this area The Civil Rights Act has helped us make significant progress over the years. Probably the most well-known act in the Civil Rights Movement is the Civil Rights Act of 1964 but prior to this act there were two federal laws and a voting rights bill passed. These 3 acts are known as the Civil Rights Acts of 1866, 1875 and 1957. After the passing of the 1964 act came the Civil Rights act of 1991 which amended the 1964 act. All of these acts were put in place to try and decrease the amount of racial discrimination in our country. The Civil Rights Act of 1866, 1875, 1957, 1964, and 1991

There were many factors to the civil rights act of 1964 from presidents to normal “civilians”. In today’s society the Civil Rights Act is allowing equal opportunities for everyone. The Civil Rights was not just an act it was a movement fought for almost twenty years. Starting in 1948 with Truman’s executive order 9981 that gave equality in the military (infoplease.com, Brunner). Then in 1054 the case of Brown versus Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, was finalized with the decision that segregation within public schools was wrong. In august of 1955 the tragedy of Emmett Till occurred, where he was brutally murdered. There are many more effects of the Civil Rights act, but these were some of the turning points.

As mentioned before, the judicial system was taken by force within this movement by making discrimination in certain areas unconstitutional. Yet, those court cases only took up one of three political branches and so many began to protest Washington and more explicitly the president, in order to involve the Legislative and Executive branches of government. The famous March on Washington comes to mind with the giving of one of the most recognized speeches titled I have a Dream spoken on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. With millions of people joining the ranks of the Civil Rights Movement from all walks of life and ethnic groups, Congress began to take notice. With the signing of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, a domino effect took place with more and more laws being made and changed. These legal act reinforced the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments which guaranteed human and voting rights to all people regardless of skin color (it was later extended with the passage of the nineteenth amendment in 1917 which gave woman of all races the right to vote). In spite of the initial weak execution of the aforementioned law, the momentum began to pick up alongside the already started Civil Rights Movement. Coupled with the assassinations of political and religious leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Robert Kennedy, the movement and law gained even more of a backbone. Though the influences would take decades to see, they were still there. The Civil Rights Movement led to the formation of political groups like the Black Panther Party who fought against racial injustice while promoting Black Excellence. Looking for a personal perspective, the political changes allowed me to have the opportunity to vote without persecution while maintaining my dignity as a woman and an African

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 made many things possible for individuals. It outlawed all discrimination against color, race, sex, religion. It gave people of all types the equal access to public places and required that schools be desegregated immediately and gave people the right to vote. Although it was suppose to end discrimination

In 1957, one of the biggest events during the Civil Rights Movement occurred in Little Rock, Arkansas. Little Rock Central High enrolled their first African-American in their formerly all white school. It was a big step forward for the African-American community. The white citizens of Little Rock were outraged, but the African-Americans were ecstatic. They were getting closer to equality. Even though they were ecstatic, that wouldn’t cover up the rage of the rest of the city. Their cause was taking a big step forward, but everyone else was trying to hold them back.

The issue of civil rights dominated the political and social scenes during the 1950s and 1960s. Attempting to achieve equality, the members of the civil rights movement used many means to accomplish their goals and were met with varying results. Among numerous brave people who forwarded the movement, perhaps the most prominent figure is Martin Luther King, Jr. His methods and ideas greatly impacted the opinions of citizens and the decisions of government officials.