What Are Melba's Obstacles

Throughout her experience, Melba’s views and attitudes changed quite a bit. When she first volunteered to be one of the first black students who would attend Central High School in Little

When I was young I didn’t really realize the impact of being African-American until high school. I went to a predominately white school for elementary and middle school. I was just like any other youth. I had my group of friends who were white; I was active in school activities and clubs. I was a student athlete and I got along well with my teachers. Everyone saw me as an upbeat person with a bubbly personality. Surprisingly, race was never brought up it wasn’t an issue for me during that period of my life. However, as I got older I realize there was a difference. As an adult I could really see the prejudice in others. I recall working a on a special project for the

A person I really admire is Rosa Parks. Growing up in Alabama, Rosa came from a black family with poor health. The only education she received was until she was 11, but went on to finish high school later on in life. Rosa was very self conscious growing up and being black in a small Alabama town. She often got bullied by the white kids in her neighbourhood, but she always fought back physically. As Rosa got older, she became well aware of the very less rights black people had. They were forced to enter through the front of the bus, pay their fares, get out, and reenter through the back, where they got their seat in the ‘coloured-section’. In 1945, Rosa entered through the front of the bus, paid her fare, and went straight to her seat, instead

A major US figure who truly exhibits courage is Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks, or Rosa Louise McCauley, was born in Tuskegee, Alabama on February 4, 1913. Her parents separated early in her childhood, so she lived with her grandparents, Rose and Sylvester Edwards. Her grandparents were both former slaves, and were very outspoken about racial inequality. During Parks’ life, discrimination against African Americans was very common, especially in Alabama. Jim Crow laws, which

Melba Pattillo Beals, the main character in the memoir “Warriors Don’t Cry”, never gave up and persevered when fighting for racial equality. When Melba was walking into school one day she thought to herself, “‘I squared my shoulders and tried to remember what grandma had said: God loves you child; no matter what he sees you as his precious idea’” (Beals 76). Melba along with her eight schoolmates made history when they decided to integrate Central High School. They wanted to show their friends that you always hold your head high, be determined, and never give up. While enduring, Melba taught her family and friends to also persevere. Fortifying her family in faith helped her to make it through the year. While standing her ground after many challenges Melba thought to herself, “‘I knew for certain something would have to change it I were going to stay in that school. Either the students would have to change the

In her memoir Warriors don’t cry, Melba Pattillo Beals describes her experiences as she became one of the first nine black students educated in an integrated white school called central high school. The author describes how she survives a harrowing year helping to integrate central high school in Little Rock Arkansas in 1957. The three main ideas that I’m going to talk about are integration, racism, and courage.

In her early years, Shirley Chisholm was separated from her parents and lived in the Barbados. Through this experience, she was able to prove her willpower by being a studious student in school despite the hardship she faced of being away from her parents. This determination benefited her when she came back home to the racist and misogynistic United States at ten years old. Her exceptional grade statuses helped her graduate at the top of her class and earn a scholarship to college so that she could pursue her dream as a school teacher. After she became a teacher, she was content with her position; but after observing lower wages, verbal assaults such as a woman being asked, “Do you type?” when given an interview, and many other discrepancies that blacks and women endured, she became more alert in the brutal society around her and turned to politics.

Rosa Louise Parks, an American Civil Rights activist, name “ the first lady of civil rights” , has shown perseverance throughout her entire life. She had a strong mind for civil rights and didn’t settle for being discriminated against for being an African American women. Rosa’s childhood was influenced by segregation she used separate bathrooms, water fountains, and more. One examples of Rosa showing perseverance is through all of the racism and being treated as if she was subhuman , she still stayed strong and fought for what she believed in. Another example of her showing perseverance is when being told she couldn’t sit in the back of the bus because she was black she stayed persistent and didn’t move or let that stop her fight. After being

Unlike the black girls, she is truly confident and accepted the fact that no one is perfect and that everyone is different. This acceptance allows her to talk openly about the fact that the girls of troop 909 are “delayed learners”, and that many of them “just have special needs” (25). The troop 909 leader’s approach to deal with difference is completely the opposite than the black girls’ approach because she focuses on the best while the black girls try to find something bad even if there isn’t

Rosa Parks' refusal to relinquish her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus was a slap in the face to hard line Jim Crow Southerners who thought that blacks are inferior to whites; it also happened to be illegal, and Parks was swiftly and promptly arrested for breaking a Jim Crow law. Little did the police arresting her know that this arrest would lead to the downfall of the very law they felt they needed, and wanted, to enforce. Along with MLK's protests and marches, a Federal Court determined segregation on buses to be unconstitutional. That would not have happened had it not been for Parks' refusal to obey a law that was both ludicrous and morally wrong. Every human on this earth, regardless of skin color or ethnicity, is exactly that: human, and therefore they deserve

Going up as a young African American girl in Philadelphia was not always easy, however having a strong family structure, old fashion southern culture, and beliefs has molded me into the strong women that I am today. Now that I am a mother, following my family’s culture and beliefs are not always the easiest thing to do, because time has changed and I feel like I am forced to conform to the everyday social norms of America. Yes, growing up was not easy, but my family and youth kept me in the dark when it came to how society treats individuals of darker complexion, what to expect once I left the confines of my family and neighborhood, and how to befriend or interact with individuals of other racial groups. All of the things that I listed were things that I had to learn throw trial and error, which makes life a little harder than it already is.

Amanda Berry, a woman of color, was born into slavery in 1837. She spent her early years working as a slave until her parents freed them out with the help of the white people. After Smith’s family had moved to Pennsylvania, her parents started helping our other slaves that got away and needed protection. Smith’s parents were brave, and I believe that is where is got her courage from. Throughout Smith’s life,

Rosa Parks became tired of the segregation and the fact that she had to sit in the back of the bus to make room for the white people, so one day she refused to get out of her seat when the bus driver told her to, leading to her getting arrested and starting the freedom movement. Martin Luther King Jr., was an American Baptist minister who was also tired of the segregation and wanted to live in a world where the whites and blacks could both be treated equally. He began leading non-violent freedom movements ending legal segregation, changing the way society lived for many years, and making history. In a Talk to Teachers Baldwin explained that if he was a teacher, he would teach his students “ that there are currently very few standards in this country which are worth a man’s respect. That it is up to him to change these standards for the sake of the life and the health of the country,” which is an important thing for teachers to do, because while he doesn’t change society as a whole, he is changing the way this kid sees the world and they way he is going to live his life and changing the perspective of one person makes all the difference. Baldwin also states that “In order for me to live, I decided very early that some mistake had been made somewhere. I was not a “nigger” even though you called me one. But if I was a “nigger” in your eyes, there was something about you –

No one can take that away from me. The struggles and achievements we have made have shown me the resiliency that runs through my blood. The school I attend only strengthened that when I realized in freshman year that it was a microcosm of the racist America we live in today. Not even 4 months in a close friend of mine was harassed by a group of boys in their truck. They revved the engine at her and waved the confederate flag. It ran through the grapevine that current Northwest students called a friend of hers racial slurs outside of school before his freshman year even started. Everywhere I turned blatant racism stood and no one did anything about it. Outside of school police brutality took over cities and honestly I'm surprised at myself. I don’t feel hatred for America I feel disappointed. This is supposed to be the land of the free, but what limited freedom we truly have and it's all based on the color of our skin or income. The only thing I could do was push my word across. News traveled about my mind and my thoughts and next thing I know school news articles featured my thoughts and stance on the struggles I face. I found my voice. A power in myself I wouldn’t have found if it wouldn’t have been for a school’s negligence or a country’s ignorance. I found a voice that doesn’t only want to embrace and uplift my people, but people of color as well. I found my drive to teach and to better America in its quest to truly be the land of the

Life is not always easy as we think, each and every one had a bad experience in your life that teaches you a lesson for us in order to win the journey of our life. In the essay, "Graduation", Maya Angelou states about the unfair treatment of whites against the African Americans during the graduation. There are situations in life where we feel discriminated but no matter what we have to gain the strength to prosper.