Essay On Civil Disobedience

Since the creation of our country, African Americans have dealt with prejudice. They have faced many challenges and obstacles, such as segregation. After all of the slaves were emancipated, most public facilities participated in the separation of colored and white people. One of the facilities that was segregated, included the bus system. African Americans had to sit in the back of the bus and, when necessary, had to give up their seat to any white bus rider. Document 1 and 4 show the segregation in schools, which invigorated children and parents, because this made many African Americans students feel inferior. The conclusion of “separate but equal” did not seem to be working in the education system. Restaurants were also segregated. White males and females were given much better service, and restaurants were often separated. Another way African Americans faced inequality, was through the denial of constitutional rights. In many instances, African Americans guaranteed rights were taken away from them. For example the 14th Amendment was violated, which guarantees equal protection of the law and it forbids any state from making laws that

Nearly a century after the civil war ended, African Americans continued to encounter discrimination, racism, inequality, and segregation. Because of their skin color, they were labeled as second-class citizens. They decided to take actions into their own hands and fight against segregation and attain equal civil liberties. They have faced countless battles, setbacks and enormous resistance. Activists from all around the country, with all types of backgrounds joined in on the fight against racial injustice. Their main strategy emphasized passive resistance and nonviolence.

Though the conclusion of the American Civil War in 1965 marked the end of slavery in the United States, African-Americans would not see anything resembling true freedom from the segregation and isolation imposed by slavery until very recently, and only after decades of difficult struggle. Some of the most important achievements occurred during the 1960s, when a generation of African-American leaders and activists, including Martin Luther King Jr., Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, and the Freedom Riders, fought against some of the last vestiges of explicit, institutionalized segregation, discrimination, and isolation in order to attain equality and civil rights. Only by examining the treatment of African-Americans throughout America's history can one begin to understand how the the ending of slavery, the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, and the contemporary issues facing the African-American community are inextricably linked. In turn this allows one to see how rather than existing as a single, identifiable turning point in the history of civil rights, African American's struggle for equality and an end to isolation must be considered as an ongoing project.

America stands for equality, freedom, and choice, but upon looking into the history behind America the everlasting struggle of racism, bigotry, and inequality are revealed. Through the 1950s to the 1970s, the fight for civil rights by African Americans was prominent throughout America. Schools, restaurants, and all public facilities were segregated, African Americans were blocked from voting through literacy tests and poll taxes, and The KKK, a white supremacist group, would lynch African American men. The need for the immediate cease of these practices and the desire for equality gave way to the Civil Rights Movement. Leaders and groups arose from this movement, such as Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, and the Black Panther Party. The overall goal was to achieve rights but there were two significantly different methods of achieving this goal, non-violent civil disobedience and “black power”. The shift from non-violent civil disobedience to “black power” was caused by the emotional toll of being complacent during personal attack and the truth that immediate change calls upon the use of force, and the result of the shift was the further spread of violence.

In the wake of the Civil War, the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were ratified which abolished slavery and in theory granted people of all races the citizenship rights, equal protection, and suffrage that society owes them. However, that did not stop a wave of backlash policies from passing especially in Southern states that felt their way of life was threatened by the newfound independence of black Americans. These laws served to perpetuate racism and white privilege, and further divide the racist,

The Constitution of the United States and the amendments that follow established the principles of our country. After the north won the civil war, reconstruction began in the south and several new laws were passed to support African American equality. In 1865, the 13th amendment was passed, which resulted in slavery being abolished. These newly freed men were made many promises. Among them were the promises of political, social, and economic justice. It seemed as though these promises would be kept as violating them was deemed unconstitutional. For example, the 14th amendment granted 3 rights to all men: the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, states cannot pass laws to abridge these rights, and the right that all men were seen equal before the law. Also, the 15th amendment was passed, which established the right to vote for all men, and thereby gave African Americans political power. In reality, however, these newly freed African Americans were still treated as inferior members of society. Reconstruction did not provide political, social, or economic justice to freed slaves.

The 13th amendment abolished slavery for African Americans. The 14th amendment gave citizenship rights and equal protection of laws to African Americans. The 15th amendment gave African Americans to have the right to vote. There was a free school for colored kids where they would be able to learn and have an education. There’s a source that says that all people born in the United States are citizens of every race and color. Source 4 says, “That all persons born in the United States are declared to be citizens … slavery or involuntary servitude.” All have the same rights if someone does a crime, they get punished as same as the others, they all treated equal. Source 4 says, “... equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of person … like punishment, pains, and penalties, and to none other, any law.” This just explains that everybody should be treated equal, no matter by their skin color or

These developments included the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments. During the Civil War African Americans were allowed to fight for the union and were paid; however, they were not paid as much as the white soldiers. This lead to the Emancipation Proclamation, which caused the 13th amendment to fall into place. The thirteenth amendment stated that slaves were now free. It is true that African Americans were considered to be free but because of elements such as, sharecropping, they were stuck in this economic slavery. The fourteenth and fifteenth amendments were ratified together. The fourteenth amendment stated that former slaves or African Americans were now considered to be citizens. The issue of African Americans being citizens could be traced back to the Dred Scott vs. Sandford trial in 1857. This case directly involved, the requirements for being a citizen. While it is true that African Americans were technically citizens, they were still not treated as if they were. However it is not completely true that they had citizenship because, “the courts will not receive negro testimony…. Is this the fruit of freedom, and the reward of our services in the field? …" as stated in a Petition from American citizens of African descent to the Union convention of Tennessee. The fifteenth amendment stated that African Americans could now vote. This played out nicely compared to the

In January 1st, 1863 Emancipation Proclamation freed all slaves in all states. Two years later the thirteenth Amendment was added to the constitution which abolished slavery in the United States in December 6. It initially met with some resistance by some Southern states making it hard for black people to live and work it was overcome a year later but was not the end of turmoil. 1868 July 9th, The 14th amendment was added which granted African Americans equal protection under the law. The 15th Amendment was added to the constitution on February 3rd, 1870, granting all African American males the right to vote. The third Civil rights act was passed due to many white business owners refusing service to African Americans.

Civil disobedience is the refusal to conform to a society or a set of laws. Civil disobedience has come a long way from its beginning. It has been developing and will continue for generations to come, as it is considered a duty of a person. The opinions and beliefs of civil disobedience cultured in our society by both Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. are still present in our modern-day society; nevertheless, these opinions and beliefs still need to be expanded in order to keep up with the fast-growing population.

The theme isn't just civil disobedience. The theme is about rights, laws, freedom, and segregation. All those things go into civil disobedience but be able to look at them   separately before putting them together. This report includes “On Nonviolent  Resistance” by Mohandas Gandhi, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther   King Jr., and the poem “Civil Disobedience” by Eric Cockrell. Just because the phrase    “Civil Disobedience” looks wrong and violent, looks can be deceiving. Civil disobedience, a nonviolent way to protest, is the best method people could've been   blessed with, but that's an opinion. Is segregation really a disease to the mind, body, and   soul?  Is civil disobedience a method that could be used to solve it?

The Civil Rights Movement was an unforgettable era in American History because it has influenced so much of this countries laws and norms, making what was at a time acceptable in this country extremely unacceptable and unpracticed. This inevitable struggle for freedom, natural human rights, and acceptance was a violent and non-violent volatile reaction to a broken and unjust system. Many leaders and citizens fought for the freedom and justice of the minorities in the United states of America during the Civil Rights movement, by using unique approached, strong strategies, and intelligence to earn this respect and freedom. Civil Rights leaders like the well-known Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and many other influential people bravely led the Civil Rights Movement and creating a new America where “the system of Jim Crow segregation and racism was reformed and eliminated”1 Additionally, the cause of the Civil Rights Movement, the various forms of protest, and the aftermath of the movement will be discussed throughout this essay, and the reader will be able to gain a stronger understanding of the Civil Rights Movement as a whole.

The idea of African American equality dates all the way back to 1865, when the Thirteenth Amendment was passed that abolished slavery in the United States. Following this great achievement, in 1868, the Fourteenth amendment was passed that states that all people that are born or naturalized in the United States are all citizens, it also stated that all citizens have equal protection. Finally, in 1870, the Fifteenth amendment was passed that allowed any man to vote, no matter what color his skin was. These accomplishments were just the start on the journey to equality.

Protest against injustice is deeply rooted in the African American experience. The origins of the civil rights movement date much further back than the 1954 Supreme Court ruling on Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka which said, "separate but equal" schools violated the Constitution. From the earliest slave revolts in this country over 400 years ago, African Americans strove to gain full participation in every aspect of political, economic and social life in the United States.

Civil disobedience definitely has a positive affect on society. The people that we have heard of taking an act of civil disobedience, like Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks, did it because they wanted to make the society they lived in better one. These two people were both trying to make a more equal society for everyone who lived in it. Civil disobedience positively affects a society because it brings people together, makes or changes laws, and creates equality