Civil Rights Movement Sit-Ins Essay

In the 1960’s, black and white individuals were not recognized as being equal. The two races were treated differently, and the African Americans did not enjoy the same freedoms as the whites. The African Americans never had a chance to speak their mind, voice their opinions, or enjoy the same luxuries that the white people attained. Through various actions/efforts like the lunch counter sit-ins, freedom rides, and bus boycotts, the black people confronted segregation face on and worked to achieve equality and freedom.

The civil rights movement was one of the main elements that were responsible for agitation and protest that greatly expanded in the 1960s. This social movement “originated among black Americans in the South who faced racial discrimination and segregation, or the separation of whites and blacks, in almost every aspect of their lives” (“Protests in the 1960s,” 3). There was constant racial

On February 7th, 1960, a week after the Greensboro sit-ins, The Nashville Student Movement had begun their first real sit-in. The objective of these sit-ins was to desegregate lunch counters in downtown Nashville. Book 1 goes into detail about the preparation for these sit-ins. Months before this

In the first presentation, I noticed an event called the Greensboro Sit-ins. This was a single event that sparked a nationwide movement and flood of support for the civil rights movement and the issue of business owners withholding service from those who were not white. On February 1st, 1960, 4 students of the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University sat at a whites-only lunch table, requested service, and were then denied and asked to leave. When they left, they went to tell campus leaders what had happened and as a result gained people that wanted to participate in the sit-in. It is said that “the next morning twenty-nine neatly dressed male and female [NCATSU] students sat at the Woolworth’s lunch counter,” the same counter where those first four students sat (NorthCarolinaHistory.org). After this happened, protests occurred each week and hundreds of students were showing up at Woolworth’s. Following this, more and more students from around the US were staging sit ins at segregated lunch counters as a form of non-violent protest against discrimination.

“The Jim Crow regime was a major characteristic of American society in 1950s and had been so for over seven decades. Following slavery, it had become the new form of white domination, which insured that blacks would remain oppressed well into the twentieth century.” (Morris) Civil rights and segregation were the two main issues during the 1950’s and 1960’s. While the Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka,

Throughout the book of March the people of color are continuously fighting for equal rights. Even when they are faced with countless acts of violence they continue to fight back but in non-violent ways such as Marches. Even when there seems like there is no light at the end of the tunnel John Lewis along with many of his peers also known as the SNCC(Student Nonviolent Reconciliation Commitee) begin to see results. Slowly but surely it all pays off in the end when people start to realize the segregation between races is not only morally wrong but also against the law. There are many different marches/ sit-ins throughout the book but the most important ones begin on...

The 1960s was an era of the civil rights movements that African Americans held to end segregation and racism. Although African Americans faced abundance of hindrances throughout their strive for equality, they responded with increased courage, hope and determination.

“We want the world to know that we no longer accept the inferior position of second-class citizenship.” (“Martin Luther King Jr. And The Global Freedom Struggle”). The sit-in movement was vital to the civil rights movement because it showed that African-Americans felt that they were not being treated as true Americans. The most important conclusion that I have drawn from my research is that African-Americans were treated differently because of the color of their skin, and because of that, they weren’t served at lunch counters, restaurants, or cafes (“Martin Luther King Jr. And The Global Freedom Struggle”).

On an early morning in November 1959, the group of students and John would test sit-ins in lunch counters to test if they would actually serve them their food or not. Like the usual, they had to leave the place because due to store policy they could not serve colored people there. After this, they will continue to go to the same restaurant and sit there and here the same words they heard daily. Nothing was going to stop them. Not only were they kicked out but they were called niggers and were told to leave back to Africa. It was these sit-ins that started the march for

The 60s were the years were the fight for the civil right for African Americans was at its peak, sit-ins were regularly used by congress for racial equality such as CORE and SCLC. The sit in that occurred on February 1,1960, at Woolworth’s i Greensboro, North Carolina was made by four African American college students, Ezell A. Blair, Jr., Franklin E. McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David L. Richmond, when the sat at a counter lunch, and politely asked for lunch. Their request was denied because the counter had a strict “whites only” policy. They were asked to leave, but the four young adults refused to do so. Even though they were beaten up several times by white people their passive resistance and peaceful Sit-down demand helped ignite a youth led movement to challenge racial inequality throughout the South, and was a contributing factor for the SNCC to be created.

The success of the boycott of the Montgomery buses and the court case Brown vs. Board of education led African Americans into the 1960’s with the belief that non-violent protest and legal action could make a difference. In the beginning of the 1960’s, students held sit in’s at segregated lunch counters throughout the south. February 1st 1960, was the day of the first sit in at a segregated lunch counter. Four seventeen year old freshman at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro- Franklin Mccain, Ezell Blair Jr., Joseph Mcneil, and David Richmond- peacefully and politely took seats at the lunch counter and asked for coffee. “By the end of the month similar protest were beginning in thirty one cities and seven southern states” (“The

Another significant transformation took place in the Civil Rights Movement in terms of its strategies. In analyzing this facet of the movement, we notice a great shift from nonviolent demonstration to forward, forceful action. Specifically, at the start of the Civil Rights Movement, lunch counter sit-ins were evident throughout the nation, as were Freedom Riders. Starting in Greensboro, North Carolina at a luncheonette called Woolworths, young black citizens would seat

Many of the youth activists joined the SNCC, the student non-violent co-ordinating council, which allowed them to more effectively work as a group to accomplish common goals. A great example of this co-ordination was the lunch counter sit-ins. This movement was primarily about desegregating lunch counters in the south and it was also the moment when many say that the student movement really began. On February 1960 four African American students walked into a Woolworths, bought school supplies from one part of the store and then sat down to be served at the white’s only lunch counter. (Cozzens, 1998) They were denied service but refused to leave, sitting patiently and quietly at the counter until closing time. (Independance Hall Association, 2010) By the next day the movement had grown triple fold, with many students joining together to organise more sit-ins. The students were trained to remain respectful and non-violent during these sit-ins while many white customers would verbally and physically assault them. Eventually the police were called to arrest the protestors yet despite this backlash from the white community the sit-ins continued. One protestor stated “no matter what they did and how many they arrested there was still a lunch counter full of students there”. (Erin & Leanna, 2005) After continued protests and rising racial tensions it was

I agree with the idea that there were several influential reasons that contributed to the development of the sit-ins and the nonviolent movement for the civil rights. At the same time, I also highly evaluate the role that the students have played in the process of the establishment of the new social approach. The four courageous students managed to show to the community that peaceful actions can bring results, and “After resisting for five months, Woolworth’s in July agreed to serve black customers at its lunch counters” (Foner, GML, p. 769). Having shown a successful example of the application of non-violent means of resistance, the students attracted also the attention of their colleagues, and the movement spread to other colleges of the

The popularity of sit-ins can be reflected in the involvement of the N.A.A.C.P. (The National Association of the Advancement of Colored People). An article published by the New York Times talks about planned demonstrations that will occur in New York City which will be headed by the N.A.A.C.P (Robinson 54). This example shows how large the movement had become by summer 1961 because a nationally recognized organization was already actively involved in demonstrating. Another article, printed in late 1961, reports that the national director of the Congress of Racial Equality would begin planned sit-ins nation wide, with a focus in the South and the Midwest (“Negroes to Broaden” 18). This again proves how effective sit-ins were because a nationally recognized organization was taking the movement and organizing a nation wide effort to end discrimination.