Oral History Interview

Following WW2, many African American war veterans were infuriated by the utter disrespect they received, despite having risked their lives to protect their country. This anger would be the energy that laid the foundations of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 60’s. The Civil Rights Movement in its self was a time of great civil unrest, as African American communities across the United States finally demanded their equality. Leading the Civil Rights Movement were famous faces such a Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. The movement was largely characterized by grassroots activism, mass protests, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycotts, are examples of grassroots activism. On the other hand, many “top down” administrative changes such

The Virginia Historical Society, a renowned teaching center, states that “the civil rights movements did not achieve complete equality, but greater equality.” Today most African Americans are paid less, have inferior housing, and are more inclined to crime than whites (“The Legacy”). However, without the movements, discrimination would be even worse in America today. Kevin Perry, a civil rights essay winner, believes that the Civil Rights Movement caused people “to live in peace with each other” and to have greater acceptance for diversity (Perry).

This movement affected so many people’s lives. Lloyd Gaines is one example, as he was denied admissions to study law at the University of Missouri because he was black. This doesn’t make any sense to me, as he was a high school valedictorian so he was certainly smart enough to attend the school. The fact that they wouldn’t even give him a chance just because he was black sickens me. Another important figure in the Civil Rights Movement was Jackie Robinson who became the first black American to play major league baseball in 1947. We watched the movie 42 in class which showed all the hardships he went through during his career. Fans constantly booed and threw things at him when he went up to bat. I find this extremely disrespectful and rude. Coaches from other teams made fun of him and tried to make him mad. I admire Jackie Robinson for not fighting back, even though the coaches deserved it. Even his own teammates signed a petition to get him kicked off the team. This really made me mad because teammates are supposed to support and encourage one another, not tear each other down. We also talked in class about a little black girl named Linda Brown who had to walk through a railroad yard to get to a bus stop that took her 21 blocks to an all-black school. There was a school two blocks from her house, but she could not go there because it was a white school. This is

The American Civil Rights Movement in the late 1950s and 1960s generated massive international following and controversy, which made the movement one of the most important in U.S. history. The movement’s legacy can still be felt today, with the positive aspects, such as voting rights to African Americans and wide spread desegregation of public facilities, still being felt in the United States, and in many similar models across the globe. Although there were many “battlegrounds” where civil issues were debated, many people who know of the movement today would argue that the movement’s heart was rooted in the Deep South, ironically where it could be argued that the mentality of people living in the area at the time were the most violently opposed to such civil rights. In contrast, those who championed the Civil Rights Movement chose the tactic of nonviolence, at least at first, as a tool to dismantle racial segregation, discrimination, and inequality. They followed models that Martin Luther King Jr. and other activists had commissioned, using principles of nonviolence and passive resistance. Civil rights leaders had understood that segregationists would do anything to maintain their power over blacks. So, in consequence, they believed some changes might be made if enough people outside the

The Supreme Court’s decision in the famous and landmark case, Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 set a precedent for desegregation in schools. But even still, southern activists worked to defend the practice of segregation. Following the Brown decision, grassroots African American activists began challenging segregation through protests continuing into the 1960s (Aiken et al., 2013). During the Eisenhower administration, Congress passed two measures that proved to be ineffective: the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and the Civil Rights Act of 1960. African Americans demonstrated their frustration with lack of progress on the issue through non-violent means and campaigns led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr (Bourne,

The civil rights movement of the sixties is one of the most controversial times of the last century. Many, if not all, who lived through that time, and the generations following were enormously impacted. At the time passions ran so high that violence at peaceful

I interviewed my grandparents, Janet and Earl Patterson, for this exploration. The questions that I asked where, ‘Why do you think the Civil Rights Act had to happen, and Can you tell a bit about any experiences you have had with this?’ Mrs. Patterson had a lot to say about her beliefs of why the Civil Rights Act had to happen, which made me really think about how lucky I am to live in the time that I live in. They both had a heartbreaking story about something that was done wrong to someone they knew before the Civil Rights Act, or something that happened to them even after it was put in effect. Their statements are proof enough of reasons why in our schools, we should teach more about the Civil Rights Act to make sure something like that does not repeat itself.

Imagine a world in which all men weren 't created equal. A world where skin color, ethnic origin, gender, and sexuality was what defined a person rather than character. “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood”(King). Through the decades of the 1940s-1960s, America built the foundation for civil rights, a movement in which minorities fought for equality. Groups that previously had been discriminated against began to defend themselves with greater strength and success. The civil rights movement inspired African Americans, Native Americans, women, queers, and Latinos to fight for equality. Although each social group faced their own unique challenges during the civil rights movement, each group shared a common connection through their struggles for equality.

     Being an African American in the United States during the civil rights movement was one of toughest times to live through. The African American felt as if they were treated as non-humans being sent to the United States as slaves, being deprived of their education, forced to live in separate segregated areas, and given the careers that were the lowest paying jobs. They also had no political rights or legal protection. After the North had fought for the African American population to gain freedom from slavery, they were abandoned and were forced to fight for themselves. The Blacks were then left with much ambivalence in regard on how they would go about achieving civil rights. During this time was

Many people turned to violence during this time, but Martin Luther King, Jr., a legendary front-runner of this movement, advocated for peace. In his “I Have a Dream” speech, one that is still quoted by American citizens today, he voiced his wish that “one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will he able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers” (King). Rather than using his position of power to communicate rage to the masses of people gathered before him, King relayed messages of optimism. As a result, the Civil Rights movement was one built on the notion that peaceful resistance was the key to equality. The Montgomery bus boycott, marches in Selma, Birmingham, and Washington, D.C. were all intentionally nonviolent. Protesters, calm in the face of brutal police retaliation in order to defend their rights, eventually achieved equality under the law (Simkins). Footage from the “Bloody Sunday” march in Selma, displaying passive African-American protesters being beaten down by police, was rapidly spread through the media, eventually reaching President Lyndon B. Johnson and motivating him to take action against racism, passing measures such as the 1965 Voting Rights Act (History.com) Though radical protesters did resort to violence during the movement, we remember it and teach it for its emphasis on

Civil Rights-the freedoms and rights that a person with-holds as a member of a community, state, or nation. Ever since the beginning of involvement between white and black people there has been social disagreement; mainly with the superiority of the white man over the black man. African Americans make up the largest minority group in the United States and because of this they have been denied their civil rights more than any other minority group(source 12). During the Civil Rights Movement, it was said to be a time full of violence and brutality; however, many African-Americans pulled through in their time of struggle. By records, known history, and personal accounts, this paper will show how many people fought for equality and how the

The civil rights movement wasn’t just one person, it took hundreds of leaders and decades to help society understand the changes that needed to happen. Emmett Till’s murder was not the last step in the civil rights movement and it certainly wasn’t the first. The biggest step toward equality that preceded the murder of Emmett Till was the Supreme Court case of Brown vs. The Board of Education. “The two rulings alarmed Southern leaders who feared that the federal government and North agitators planned to

One evening, my sister named Bella was trying to get a cup from the cabinet. She had to sit on the counter to reach it. In the process of getting down she caught her pants on the microwave. When she attempted to get down from the microwave, her feet couldn’t touch the ground. Trying to get her pants loose from the microwave, the microwave door came open. The microwave dish fell out and shattered when it hit the floor. She did finally get free and she was fine.

The elder person I decided to interview was Mr. N, who’s a Geek Squad Agent at Best Buy. Mr. N is 78 years old and he has been working for the company for 36 years. During the time that Mr. N was growing up John F. Kennedy had become president. For many Americans, he represented “a spirit of hope for the nation.” When Kennedy was murdered in 1963, many people especially those members and supporters of minority groups felt that their hopes had died, too. There were a lot of protests during the time due to unfair treatment, the demand to end the war in Vietnam and to demand full equality for women. The Civil Rights movement in the 1960s was a movement to extend right of full citizenship to individuals regardless

My knowledge of the Civil Rights movement is limited to what I have learned in my social studies classes. I remember watching a video that was a recreation of the Nashville, Tennessee sit ins. I remember being horrified at what I saw; African Americans sitting, peacefully at a counter at a dinner while white customers harassed them. Then, if that was not bad enough, the police came and brutally removed the African Americans from the dinner, and sprayed them with fire hoses. It was absolutely inhumane and hard to watch.