Wealth Inequality In The 1960's

The Fair Housing Act of 1968 was brought into place when discrimination in the housing market became an apparent issue throughout the United States. While many African American and Hispanic men were risking their lives in the Vietnam War, their families back home were being denied rent and purchasing opportunities solely because of their race or ethnic background. Many others were also rejected

It also outlawed discrimination in employment and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was also set up to follow up accusations made. Socially, the position of black people had improved through this law. In 1965, the second of the four key anti discrimination laws passed in the 1960s was introduced. The Voting Rights Act stopped racial discrimination with respect to the right to vote.

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 has a long history of oppression, discrimination and injustices towards African Americans, however the 1960s has brought important political and social changes. People who have not lived through this decade of change can gather some information of this time through historical documents such as letters and films that portray true events. An example of a film that is based on a true story is “Mississipi Burning” and a powerful historical document is “A Letter from Burmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther king. Each of these materials describes/portrays some of the issues African-American faced during the 1960s, specifically in the south. After analyzing these materials, we are able to understand some of what African-Americans endured during the 1960s.

Even though President John F. Kennedy did not fully support the civil rights movement at first because of the fear of losing his voters, he still was the one who planted the seeds for the Civil Rights Act of 1964. After the riots in Birmingham he decided to support the movement to its fullest. He supported the March on Washington for jobs and Freedom and had plans to make a stronger Civil Rights Act to our conclusions. He never got to see the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because he got assassinated on November 22nd,

While, the housing act was the last major act of the civil rights movement many states still had segregated housing neighborhoods. As years progressed, whites moved from the city to surrounding suburbs leaving

According to Inequality.org, “We equate wealth with ‘net worth,’ the sum total of your assets minus liabilities. Assets can include everything from an owned personal residence and cash in savings accounts to investments in stocks/bonds, real estate, and retirement accounts. Liabilities cover what a household owes: a car loan, credit card balance, student loan, mortgage, or any other bill yet to be paid. In the United States, wealth inequality runs even more pronounced than income inequality” (Wealth). Wealth disparity affects everyone in America. When the top twenty percent of earners in America take over fifty percent of total earnings in any given year, It can be see as very unfair by anyone who is in the middle class and especially the lower class of citizens in the U.S. It is safe to say that both sides of the political world (Republicans and Democrats) are equally worried about how economic inequality will affect their children and future generations. No matter who you ask, rich or poor, and whatever their opinion on the shape of economic distribution in America is, they most likely have a unrealistic sense of the state it is actually in.

In order to eliminate the racist perception that Black poverty derives from laziness, the government should allocate public resources to restoring the predominantly African American communities by providing cheaper housing and resources for children. By restoring the communities, Blacks will have more opportunities and be seen more positively, both of which counteract the racist presumption that all African Americans are poor and lazy. Additionally, by making Black communities just as desirable as their white counterparts, the direct correspondence between race and affluence will no longer be as prevalent. As part of a new housing act in 1949, Chicago received funding for new housing projects – 98 percent of which were built in Black neighborhoods.

Wealth inequality in the United States has grown tremendously since 1970. The United States continuously reveals higher rates of inequality as a result of perpetual support for free market capitalism. The high rates of wealth inequality cause the growing financial crisis to persist, lower socio-economic mobility, increase national poverty, and have adverse effects on health and well being.

This act was amended in 1968 to protect African Americans so they could buy housing. This act was proposed in 1966 mostly to address issues of discrimination. Over 7 times the senate took consideration of the bill but each time it failed to pass. One of the main supporters of this bill was Martin Luther King Jr. who had been supporting all that he could for these acts.

In later years, other acts were passed that helped women and disabled people. Women were not allowed to be discriminated against. If they were fired because they were pregnant, they would now be able to fight back. Because of an amendment to the Civil Rights Act, institutions were not allowed to get funding if they discriminated against women. Also, schools had to have equal sports programs for men and women (http://www.cliffsnotes.com/more-subjects/american-government/civil-rights/civil-rights-for-minorities-and-women).

“Race Relations during the 1960s and 1970s.” Scholastic Publishers, Scholastic Publishing Company, 4 July 2013, www.scholastic.com/browse/subarticle.jsp?id=1437. Accessed 28 Mar.

Community leaders in the city of Atlanta knew it was time for drastic changes, and by the 1920’s Tech-woods Flats were run over by unsafe and unsanitary structures, overcrowded residency, and poor ventilation. In response to this devastation among residency of Tech-wood Flats, in 1936 Atlanta built the first ever Tech-wood Home that provide temporary housing for white families, although Tech-wood populations was 94 percent black. African American families were forced to move out of their homes and look to stay somewhere else, while white families were able to move in. Things began to change in the 1960’s, when laws were passed prohibiting officials from continuing the practice on barring single mothers and welfare recipients from there complexes.

Throughout the 1960’s, the widespread movement for African American civil rights had transformed in terms of its goals and strategies. The campaign had intensified in this decade, characterized by greater demands and more aggressive efforts. Although the support of the Civil Rights movement was relatively constant, the goals of the movement became more high-reaching and specific, and its strategies became less compromising. African Americans’ struggle for equality during the 1960’s was a relentless movement that used change for progress. In essence, the transformation of the Civil Rights Movement throughout the 1960’s forwarded the evolution of America into a nation of civil equality and freedom.

It was a way to constraint African Americans to areas that were far away from those with status, class, and power. Segregation led to discrimination in economic opportunities, housing, and education. The black culture has suffered from the barriers that were placed through segregation. However, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 tried to limit some of the discrimination associated with segregation. It was discovered that even a “rising economic status had little or no effect on the level of segregation that blacks experience” (Massey and Denton 87). The authors imply that “black segregation would remain a universal high” (Massey and Denton 88). The problem with the continuing causes in Segregation is that even though the Fair Housing act was placed, many realtors still discriminate against blacks “through a series of ruses, lies, and deceptions, makes it hard for them to learn about, inspect, rent, or purchase homes in white neighborhoods” (Massey and Denton 97). Segregation and discrimination have a cumulative effect over time. Massey and Denton argued that the “act of discrimination may be small and subtle, together they have a powerful cumulative effect in lowering the probability of black entry into white neighborhood” (98). William Julius Wilson had