Human Rights : Martin Luther King Jr. And Laverne Cox

The inhumanities of the Jim Crow law, in regards to the segregation and discrimination black Americans faced proves that not enough action had been done to advance the social position of black Americans. Despite the NAACP and various other Civil Rights organisations desegregating schools and Universities, there was still the failure to desegregate everyday necessities, such as water fountains, restaurants, movie theatres, etc. It was evident that the majority of the segregated appliances were appalling when compared to the ‘white only’ ones. It’s controversial to say the least that action wasn’t done by organisations to combat the Jim Crow laws and discrimination blacks faced, however, the biggest changes made were mostly in regards to education, which to many is either just as or more important than desegregating appliances that relate to

Despite the black codes had provided rights such as the marriage legalization and the ownership of property, they violated the free labor principle and denied the African-Americans the right to vote, and sue any white man. Foner (2014) found “In response to planter’s demands that freed people be required to work on the plantations, the Black Codes declared that those who failed to sign yearly labor contracts could be arrested and hired out to white landowners” (p. 570) . In fact, it was a totally failure of what freedom was supposed to be.

During Reconstructions, African Americans were not allowed to own property. “No negro shall be permitted to rent or keep a house within the limits of the town under any circumstances” (“Document B: Black Codes” 3). White southerners passed the “Black Codes.” These codes were made to limit blacks’ freedom. Under one of the codes, African Americans were not allowed to own property. This act removed black’s economic freedom.

Jim Crow laws were state and local laws that reinforced racial segregation in the South between the end of Reconstruction in 1877 and the beginning of the civil rights movement in the 1950’s (Urofsky). The laws mandated segregation of schools, drinking fountains, restrooms, buses, and restaurants. In legal theory, blacks received “separate but equal” treatment under the law--in actuality, public facilities were nearly always inferior to those for whites, when they existed at all. In addition, blacks were systematically denied the right to vote in most of the rural South through the selective application of literacy tests and other racially motivated criteria (PBS). Despite Jim Crow laws being abolished in 1964 when President Lyndon Johnson

The newly passed laws became known as “Black Codes” and socially, they directly impacted the lives of all freedmen and indirectly benefited the white race. These laws restricted the rights of free African-American men and women (Doc A). In Opelousas, Louisiana, some of these restrictions were the denied right to keep or own a house in the town, the denied right to enter the town without special permission, the denied right to hold public meetings, the denied right to carry firearms or any kind of weapon, and a requirement that every negro must be in service of some white person (Doc A). The elite members in the South did everything they could to prevent blacks from gaining civic power, and the reasoning for supporting these codes ranged from fearing black political influence to the comfort of knowing farmers still had a stable and reliable work force. Even in the post civil war North, people believed blacks were unfit to be government officials (Doc E). Pro-freedman presses ran racist letters arguing blacks were not fit for the proper exercise of political duties, and their generation needed a period of probation and instruction in order to learn the ways in which society ran (Doc E). Many northerners felt blacks were incompetent to hold important jobs; therefore, the government was in no way aiding the reconstruction efforts to provide equality to all people in America.

The black codes, written on July 3, 1865, were “a series of discriminatory state laws” (Open Stax page 458) which made it illegal for African American men to be in town limits unless they had a written document from their employer saying that they were allowed, (Document B). These documents aimed to maintain the social and economic structure of the previous slave society in the absence of slavery itself. The black codes made strict regulations on when African American men were allowed to be in town without a white employer, including not letting them “be on the streets after 10 pm” and that they could not “live within the town limits” (Document B). The black codes aimed to reverse the effects of the 14th amendment by allowing them to own land but only under strict guidelines. In Document C, it states that “you all are not free yet and will not be until Congress sits” meaning that African Americans were not viewed as freedmen by Southerners, but still as their slaves because Congress did not enforce the 13th and 14th amendments. The black codes also influenced white men to beat and shoot any black men or women that tried to escape the South. This was cause because white plantation owners did not want to lose their workers because then they would have to pay a significantly higher wage to any other workers. The black codes also forced freedmen and women to sign contracts saying that they would only work for one employer, making it difficult for any man to raise enough money to buy their own land. As the book states. “blacks could not positively influence wages and conditions by choosing to work for the employer who gave them the best terms” (Openstax pg 459). These contracts lowered the competition between plantation owners so they were not influenced to raise wages based on other owners. The black codes deprived African Americans of their rights to vote, serve on juries, carry or

Starting in the 1890s, segregation laws known as the Jim Crow Laws dominated the United States, specifically in the South. These laws required schools, parks, libraries, forms of public transportation and even drinking fountains to be segregated into “Whites Only” and “Coloreds”. Although the Jim Crow Laws intended to treat blacks “separate but equal”, blacks received poorer conditions in their public facilities, were denied the right to vote and were treated with no respect from the whites (Jim Crow Laws). In Richard Wright’s essay, “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow: An Autobiographical Sketch”, Wright describes his first-hand experience with these laws and the negative encounters he has faced just because of the color of his skin.

Actual laws are quoted from Alabama (1923), Louisiana (1956), and Mississippi (1945) to show the extent of discrimination and prejudice. An example of laws in Louisiana was that there should be separate facilities based on race. “All such sanitary facilities, eating places and drinking facilities shall be designated ‘FOR WHITES ONLY’ and ‘FOR COLORED ONLY’ respectively. Any person…violating the provisions… shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than $100 or more than $1,000 and imprisoned for not less than 60 days or more than 1 year.” (Paragraph 5). The Jim Crow Laws made segregation legal and formalized in society; those who disobeyed were unfairly punished with fines or even

Reconstruction occurred from 1865 to 1877 in both the North and South, and the government's goals during this time period were to return the Southern States to the Union, rebuild the Southern economy, and to gain rights for African Americans. Reconstruction started once the Civil War ended. Although the war was over, throughout most of Reconstruction the Northern and Southern States were divided. There were different views on how to accomplish the goals set by the Federal government, and this brought conflict in the government and states. Many Southern and even some Northern white people also had an extreme dislike of African Americans which lead to African American rights not being completely enforced or created.

After the Civil War, following the Compromise of 1877 and the end of Reconstruction, the protection for the rights of African American ended if there was any. Southern States had moved to impose a system of segregation on nearly all areas of life. New laws that required segregation that stirred “separate but equal” doctrine that disenfranchise African Americans for almost six decades. It is hard in this days and age to be able to imagine segregation as a law, but the remnants just change form and name. A petition file on June 7, 1892, in the supreme court Louisiana by a local shoemaker named Homer Plessy against Honorable judge John H. Ferguson. His filling set a test case to challenge Separate Car Act that prompt Plessy v. Ferguson case perhaps one of the most noticeable actions to nullify “separate but equal” doctrine.

During the 1960’s of American history violent acts were aimed at African Americans in the name of racism and segregation. In a case such as this one, many would seek refuge from the government, but to little surprise, cries for refuge went unanswered. Making matters worse was the fact that the Government allowed segregation to continue due to legal documents in many southern states. Acceptable forms of oppression were separated into four categories: racial segregation; voter suppression, in southern states; denial of economic opportunity; private acts of violence aimed at African Americans. At this time, many civil rights laws were

With the overthrow of the Republican party, Jim Crow laws were passed and many of the “black” codes became reinstated and enforced. “At the present day (1901), in the same states, the negroes

The Southern Black Codes characterized the privileges of freedmen. They predominantly confined their rights. However, the codes granted dark people a couple of more social liberties than they had before the Civil War. South Carolina's code pronounced that "people of shading" now had the right "to get, claim and discard property; to influence contracts; to appreciate the their rewards for all the hard work; to sue to and be sued; and to get assurance under the law in their people and property."

The mass incarceration of African American men and women during the 80's affected many families economically preventing many black own businesses from prospering. Even prior to the mass incarceration of blacks in the 80’s and 90’s at the time of reconstruction, there were Black Codes, a system created in the south to combat the 13th, 14th and 15th amendment. The 13th amendment plays a huge role of the mass incarceration over the years. It states

Although the conclusion of the Civil War during the mid-1860s demolished the official practice of slavery, the oppression and exploitation of African Americans has continued. Although the rights and opportunities of African Americans were greatly improved during Reconstruction, cases such a 1896’s Plessy v. Ferguson, which served as the legal basis for segregation, continue to diminish the recognized humanity of African Americans as equal people. Furthermore, the practice of the sharecropping system impoverished unemployed African Americans, recreating slavery. As economic and social conditions worsened, the civil rights movement began to emerge as the oppressed responded to their conditions, searching for equality and protected