The Civil Rights and the LGBT Movements Essay example

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.

Originating in the North, this movement took on a more radical stance: one that maintained racial separation and aimed to form a separate Black identity and encourage self-reliance and independence from whites (Source I). The Black Power Movement aimed to end institutionalised racism in the Northern states and call for social justice while improving the living conditions of Black people in urban areas who were living in poverty and often subjected to police brutality, although it can be noted that segregation laws were not in place in the North. (Source L). A prominent leader of the Black Power Movement was Malcolm X, who considered the Black Power Movement to be supportive of a nationalist ‘Black’ revolution which mainly focused on the accumulation of land and, as a result, independence as opposed to the ‘Negro’ revolution based on the Civil Rights Movement which focused on integration between races (Source

The emergence of the Black Power movements in the early 1960s coincided with the peak of success for the Civil Rights campaign - the legislation of 1964-65. Thereafter, the focus of campaigns had to move the practical issues related to social and economic deprivation, and the ability to exercise the rights that had been gained. By 1968 little had changed, and it is therefore easy to claim that Black Power movements achieved nothing, and in fact had a negative impact on black Americans.

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.

A debate in civil rights history appeared in the decades following the well-publicized struggles of the early 1960s and continues today. This debate is of whether the movement was finished with its goals when it attained equal treatment under the law, or whether it had changed to a new goal of fighting all forms of discrimination, not just the formal version found in Jim Crow.

In 1865, the United States government implemented what was known as Reconstruction. Its’ purpose was to remove slavery from the south, and give African-American’s the freedom in which they deserved. However, the freedom that they deserved was not the freedom that they received. With documents like The Black Codes restricting them from numerous privileges that white people had and the terroristic organization known as the Klu Klux Klan attacking and killing them, African-American’s were still being oppressed by their government as well as their fellow man. Slavery may have been abolished, but African-American’s were not yet given the freedom and rights that their white counterparts took for granted.

By the turn of the 20th century, African Americans who were once slave, less than 50 years ago were now full pledge citizens who can vote and exercise their rights as Americans. Reconstructive efforts were issued to aid the newly emancipated black population, more several in the south. Programs such as the Freedman’s Bureau, provided free blacks and poor white with food, housing, schooling and medical assistance in attempts for a better transition. However, freed blacks were met with challenges with discrimination and segregation among their white societals. These challenges came in forms of locally organized laws such as the Black Codes, and the Jim Crow Laws. When those barriers were challenged or wasn’t doing enough, violence is referred to in the epidemic of lyncing. African Americans endured these hardships under restrictions both socially and economically as blacks had little non economic mobility. Majority of the black population were sharecroppers, household personnel and many were also illiterate. Not only did African Americans suffered socially and economically but politically as well. Numerous cases are brought to the courts to exercise their rights as citizen but were often shut down. The 1896, Plessy v. Fergusson, voted in favor of segregation; as long as they are equal in what is being offered. But a break was in for the African Americans to move north. The industrial cities of NY and Philly have already attracted African Americans prior and in the year 1914,

For many years after the Civil War many African-Americans did not truly enjoy the freedoms that were granted to them by the US constitution. This was especially true in the southern states, because segregation flourished in the south wwhere African-Americans were treated as second class citizens. This racial segregation was characterized by separation of different races in daily life, such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a rest room, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home. In addition, Blacks were not afforded justice and fair trials, such as the case of the murder of Emmet Till. This unjust treatment would not be tolerated in America any more, which spurred the

Malcolm X, and the Black Power Movement were alliances of the Civil Rights Movement of 1960. However, how to reach these goals of equal rights separated African Americans. Many African Americans felt being nonviolent had achieved many victories; such as the Brown v. Board of Education (1954), desegregation of businesses in the South, Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1964. Other the other hand, other African Americans believed that without the threat of violence lingering in the background, nothing would have been achieved. These differences splintered the Civil Rights Movement. With the assassinations of Malcom X (1965) and Martin Luther King, Jr. (1968), and the crime and violence that ensued with the Black Power Movement, the Civil Rights Movement became

The tone of the civil rights movement shifted when the Black Panther movement gave birth to a new revolution as means for survival. The premise of the Panthers was to banish the brutality members among minority communities faced at the hands of a corrupt society, mainly the police department. The pointless violence endured by blacks by unjust policing was a means to challenge and address society ills. The Black Panther movement formulated plan was to gain community control, by any means. It’s concentration on the liberties of African Americans and those who were oppressed by the dominant system became a goal of the party.

The 1960s brought about changes economically and socially. The Civil Rights Movement was alive and moving. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s goal was to hopefully put an end to racial discrimination and to restore voting rights in the South. Clearly the 60s was not the beginning of the fight for civil rights in America. The 18th century in the United State was plagued by hatred, racism and slavery. Slavery affected the entire nation. Slavery destroyed families by taking members of one’s captive to work as slaves. Abolitionists of all races began protesting against slavery. As slaves grew tired of intense abuse, slaves planned escape routes, signals and even songs. By 1843, slaves were escaping

It is widely acknowledged that the African-American freedom struggle and their relentless works to end segregation, discrimination, and isolation have accomplished further than the eradication of racial and national barriers. The mass militancy not only knocked over the system introduced by Jim Crow but completely transformed the nature of traditional social relationships and civilizing medians. Moreover, the freedom struggle not only changed the legal status of black Americans but also helped in achieving the significant changes in ethnic awareness (Carson, 1993, p. 3). In simple words, the civil rights movement was not simply an attempt for the achievement of national civil rights reform. It carried within it much more than that. It facilitated the generation of embryonic norms and ethics just like any other civil movement. These reforms helped in the removal of barriers to the liberty of

The Civil Rights Movement was a tremendous movement done in the 1960s by African Americans who hoped to eventually be seen as equals to white citizens at the time. Civil Rights are defined as the rights of the people to be treated without unreasonable or unconstitutional differences. Many times, civil disobedience, or opposing a law one considers unjust by peacefully disobeying it and accepting the resultant punishment, was used by activists in order to protest various treatments they deemed unfair. One particular victory that occurred for African Americans during this time period was the overruling of Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson by Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education which allowed for one of the first occurrences of desegregation. Plessy v. Ferguson came to be after Louisiana had passed a law requiring blacks and whites to occupy separate cars on railroad trains operating in that state. When Adolph Plessy, who was seven-eighths white and only one-eighth black, refused to obey the law, he was arrested. He appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court, claiming that the law violated his fourteenth amendment right, which prohibits states from denying any person “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law” or to “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law” (“Primary”). In

Looking back throughout history at the rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender individuals, it isn’t hard to see that we have made the majority of our strides in the past 10 years. As a society we have decided the time is now to put an end to the lack of rights for people of different sexual orientations. Accepting LGBT individuals and providing them the same rights and protections as all other Americans makes us a more united, respectable Country. Everyone deserves equal treatment and opportunities regardless of what their sexual orientation may be.

The fight for the abolition of slavery was a big battle but the one for racial segregation was a bitter one. “Race should not be a source of power or advantage or disadvantage for anyone in a free society” (Steele, page509). It is quite difficult to understand that America a nation of freedom, liberty and opportunities could have allowed some people to be oppressed. Even in the court of law the injustice persisted. “Negroes have experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts” (Letter from a Birmingham Jail).