Civil Rights Movements In The 1930's

The 1930’s was a time of great struggle in the USA. The New York stock market crashed in 1929 and triggered a spiral of economic depression, which hit African Americans hard.

During the 1800s, discrimination against African Americans was apparent throughout America in varying degrees. Especially in the North, people wanted to find a solution to stop this inequality. When Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment was passed in 1865, it was a turning point and ever since then more movements have occurred to promote greater equality for African Americans. Despite these turning points, discrimination still continued to occur for African Americans, and it has led to numerous historic and political movements.

The 1930’s were hard times for the entire working class, but as usual in history, minorities were hit the hardest. Especially the African American society had to suffer the most under the effects of the great economic depression; they were the first to be discharged from their jobs and the last to be hired. African Americans were even pushed out of jobs, which were previously scorned out by whites. Even if they were allowed to keep their jobs, they still had to face daily racism. Compared to the white folks, the wages of African American workers were at least 30% below white’s wages, even when performing the same job; considering, that even the normal wage of a white American was not enough to cover the subsistent level of expanses of a household.

Social movements are one of the primary means through which the public is able to collectively express their concerns about the rights and wellbeing of themselves and others. Under the proper conditions, social movements not only shed light on issues and open large scale public discourse, but they can also serve as a means of eliciting expedited societal change and progress. Due to their potential impact, studying the characteristics of both failed and successful social movements is important in order to ensure that issues between the public and the government are resolved to limit injustices and maintain societal progress.

During World War II, America as a nation faced many challenges both at home and abroad. Some of these challenges at home included Strikes and protests in war production factories, which was due to increasing differences between the government and employers, with the workers/labor unions. Another was the Civil rights movement for African-Americans, which advocated for equal rights for all Americans, when African Americans joined the war efforts by both joining the military and working in the war factories. Eventually the government had to deal with these challenges by passing legislations and finding a way to unite the population during the war.

In the 1929 and 1940 The Great Depression in history millions of people were out of work or they will soon to be out of one. It didn’t matter if you were Black , White HIspanic or Asian you will still would be unemployment even if you were really rich. Everything was crashing down there wasn’t jobs for people. Many banks failed then markets did as well.

In this research paper, we will be discussing the African American racial and prejudicial issues during the civil rights movements in the 1950’s and 60’s. Racial injustice goes way back since the Emancipation Proclamation which took place on January 1, 1863 issued by president Abraham Lincoln, was first created for states in the South who seceded from the union to abolish slavery during the Civil War. The Fourteenth Amendment addresses citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws due to issues related to slaves during the Civil War. Although slavery was not around almost a century later African Americans were still being treated unfairly in the 1950’s and 60’s. Major Icons such as Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, Black Panthers, Malcolm

With the winning of the Civil War still in the minds of many, conducting interviews of previous slaves intrigued those wanting to know what it was like being a slave. With the interview there is a look inside the life of, a woman still in her childhood, what her life was like, and how she dealt with being a slave. The life of a slave was no easy feat, but with perseverance many made it to the wars end, although life still has many hardships for the Freedman today.

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s is one of the most significant periods of American history, but the struggle for equality began long before any March on Washington. The passage of the 13th Amendment in the 1860s was followed by a chain reaction consisting of black codes, Jim Crow, and the formation of the KKK and NAACP (Aiken et al., 2013). The 1900s saw progress in the form of Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Little Rock Nine, successful bus boycotts, and a nonviolent protest movement emboldened by wartime hypocrisy (Aiken et al., 2013). The movement came to a head with the passage of the CRA in 1964, which President Johnson pushed through after the tragic assassination of President Kennedy, a vocal supporter of civil rights (Aiken et al., 2013). This legislative success was followed by yet another tragic assassination, this time of peaceful community leader Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 (Aiken et al., 2013).

The depression swept over the nation like a wildfire, it’s flames licking each and everyone person sparing no mercy. The majority of the nation was unemployed. As for blacks, 80 percent of African-Americans were unemployed. Unemployment rates seemed to spike early into the 1920s and hit their peak around 1933 to rise again in 1935. It was a fluctuation, up and down, up and down, peak and valley. By 1945, the unemployment percentage dropped to under 5 percent, only around 1,040,000 people (Doc. J). The unemployment and general lack of concern for those who still had jobs was met with labor unrest. Employers showed blatant disregard for their hardworking employees through their refusal to grant reasonably safe working conditions and through refusal of collective bargaining. This started strikes and gave way to sit down strikes. Corporations such as U.S. Steel and General Motors were only some of the accused transgressors of law feeling above giving workers their rights (Doc. G). The homelessness in search of jobs was

The Civil Rights movement was one of the many protests going on around the world that fought for civil liberties among mass people. All over the world countries were taking down flags that once flew through the wind, which made this the peak time to join the revolution in gaining rights for African Americans in the United States. During this time many black people were sick and tired of being told how and when to do things by a white person. Entire black communities in southern states were completely alienated. They were not allowed to use the same bathrooms, water fountains, parks, theatre’s, gas stations, restaurants, or even to sit in the front of the buss. After years of this discrimination and brutality from white people, including

During the 1950s to 1970s, many Americans strived to solve problems that existed in their society. The reformers used similar methods to make people became aware of these social problems. Such as African-American civil rights movement that African- Americans were struggling in racial discrimination and the Modern Environmental Movement that advantage technologies make terrible living conditions. The two movements are significant because they gave long-term positive effects to the nation.

The American Civil Rights Movement is personified through several prominent personalities. These figures exhibited strong character throughout their careers in activism that revolutionized the ideals and opportunities of the 20th century, standing as precedents for courage and perseverance in the face of widespread systemic oppression. However, not all of these figures received the acknowledgment and acceptance that their legacy deserved. One such figure was Bayard Rustin, a lifelong Civil Rights activist in the African American and LGBTQ communities whose experiences exemplified the hardships faced by American minorities. His career was defined by perpetual conflict and confrontation as both sides of the Civil Rights Movement attempted to demonize and discredit him. Despite this obstacle, Bayard Rustin’s controversial decision-making and sheer tenacity made him an influential force in the ongoing fight for equality in the United States of America.

The Civil Rights movement is one of the most important acts to change the way not only African Americans were able to live their lives but all races and colors. It would slowly break down the social, economic, political, and racial barriers that were created by the The Age of Discovery and Transatlantic Slave trade. I believe without the Civil Rights acts our country would result to be no better than what it was when the Emancipation Proclamation just took effect. In the 1950s and long before, Southern folk, who were white had created a system that would interpret them as a superior race over blacks. The system would defend whites rights and privileges from being taken away from them while establishing terrible inhumane suffering for African Americans. In the South blacks were controlled in all aspects economic, political, and personal, this was called a “tripartite system of domination” - (Aldon D. Morris) (6) Though it isn’t as prevalent racism and discrimination towards other races that aren’t white is still found in America and can be in schools, the workplace, even when you are in the general public but you no longer see discriminating signs saying “Whites” or “Blacks” or Colored” along the front of bathroom, restaurants, and shopping malls doors. Nor do you see people being declined the right to buy a home based on their color or access to school and an equal education being declined because one didn’t meet racial requirements. The acts of violence towards

"We are tired—tired of being segregated and humiliated; tired of being kicked about by the brutal feet of oppression." Martin Luther King, civil rights activist (1929-1968). United States of America was profoundly divided both socially and racially. Moreover, minorities suffered a lot. They were not fully considered as part of the society. The insupportable conditions led them to series of movements in the 20th century known as Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement took many different actions such as civil disobedience, marches, sit-in, boycotts, non-violent and violent actions. The Civil Rights movement led to legislations that gave many rights to minorities; for instance the right to vote, the Civil Rights Act, and the Affirmative