What Was The Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Movement symbolized the challenge and opposition to the racial injustices and segregation that had been engrained in American society for hundreds of years. Events that took place in the 1950s and 1960s, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, sit-ins, speeches and numerous protests define this momentous time in United States history. Speeches during this period served as a means to inspire and assemble a specific group of people, for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X it was the black community that needed to rise up in hopes of achieving equal rights and voting rights for the blacks.

The Civil Rights Movement’s mission was to end segregation and advance equality for African Americans (Hanks, Herzog, and Goetzman). Almost one hundred years after the civil war, African Americans were still struggling to gain the same rights as white Americans. The movement was led by leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Rosa Parks. Gaining momentum in the 1950’s with the Supreme court’s ruling of Brown vs. Board of Education where public schools were desegregated, the Civil Rights movement flourished in the 1960’s. One of the group’s main goals was to take on the Jim Crow South. Segregation prevented African Americans from drinking out of the same water fountain, using the same restroom, and even sitting at the same lunch table as white people. By promoting peaceful protest, they were able to educate others on their issues.

In order to achieve this, civil rights activists “used nonviolent tactics” such as “boycotts, marches and sit-ins” (Thomas). From this united black movement rose many prominent figures such as Rosa Parks who “refused to yield her seat” on bus to a white man to rebel against segregation on transportation as well as Martin Luther King Jr. who gave his famous speech and led countless marches (Kronenwetter). These individuals inspired many to come forward and join the movement. Organizations such as Congress of Racial Equality were formed and groups such as Freedom Riders and Freedom Summer took action in different states in the south to fight for equality and justice. Black power finally started to take a major step forward in the late 1950s and 1960s as the “Brown v. Board of Education ruling desegregated schools” (Thomas). The final bill proposed by Kennedy and finally signed by Johnson was the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which “ended segregation in public places and employment based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin” (Thomas) and ultimately propelled black power forward. However, the civil rights movement ended abruptly when king was assassinated in 1968 (Kronenwetter). All in all, during the 1950-1960, America went through great change. The civil rights movement changed American society forever; all the blood, sweat, and sacrifice paid off as the black society gained more opportunities and improved

Martin Luther King was an influential figure and contributed greatly towards the civil rights movement. Despite aspiring in being a fireman, he instead chose a different path in successfully leading a movement to end racial motives throughout the world. On August 28, 1963, more than 250,000 Americans gathered in Washington, D.C., for a political rally known as the ‘March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.’ The march rallied American to stand up against the continuous social and political justice that black African Americans faced. The March was most notable as Martin Luther King “I have a dream speech”. The following year Martin Luther King was awarded the ‘Nobel Peace Prize’ for being a dynamic leader leading the Civil Rights Movement and achieving the racial justice people needed throughout the world. King Accepted the award on behalf of the Civil Rights Movement and pledged the prize money to the movements development. At the age of 35 he had been deemed the youngest man to had received the award as well as the second African American having receive the award. This Feat has

Martin Luther king Jr, and his followers stood for non-violent protests, despite being victims of threats. Although King was highly recognized, and praised amongst the black community not all African American’s agreed with his ideology of obtaining their civil rights through peaceful non-violence protest. Therefore other movements were created such as the Black Power Movement which was a group that emphasized that blacks should claim their civil rights through violence. Overall Martin Luther King Jr had an major impact on the civil rights movement, and will always be remembered for his famous impactful “I have a dream speech” which was his vision of black & white people coinciding with one another, and ultimately living in peace together where blacks do not have to worry about being judged by their skin color, but instead their actions. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

The Civil Rights movement was a very important event that helped in the forming of our country. Probably the most famous and influential civil rights movement leaders, Martin Luther King Jr. were assassinated on April 4, right outside of his hotel room in Tennessee. There were many civil rights movements and protests during this year. One example is when Jeanette Rankin, former congresswoman, lead 5000women to Capitol Hill in protest for women’s rights and the Vietnam War. This same year, the EEOC ruled that sex-segregated help wanted ads in newspapers were illegal. This opened the way for women to apply for higher-paying jobs that were open only to men at the time.

The Civil Rights Movement was a pivotal time in American history, leading us toward the acceptance and advancement of African Americans in society, and eventually the same for other minority groups. The movement as a whole spanned from around the beginning of the 1950’s to around the beginning of the 1970’s. All across the nation, African American people fought for their rights through numerous protests and boycotts. Some notable events are the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, and the Greensboro lunch counter sit-ins. Many forms of legislation and many judiciary decisions were made during this era, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1968, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and Brown v. Board of Education (“A Timeline of the Civil Rights Movement FOOTSTEPS OF COURAGE”).

The Civil Rights Movement began in order to bring equal rights and equal voting rights to black citizens of the US. This was accomplished through persistent demonstrations, one of these being the Selma-Montgomery March. This march, lead by Martin Luther King Jr., targeted at the disenfranchisement of negroes in Alabama due to the literacy tests. Tension from the governor and state troopers of Alabama led the state, and the whole nation, to be caught in the violent chaos caused by protests and riots by marchers. However, this did not prevent the March from Selma to Montgomery to accomplish its goals abolishing the literacy tests and allowing black citizens the right to vote.

The Civil Rights Movement had a lot going on between 1954 and 1964. While there were some successful aspects of the movement, there were some failures as well. The mixture of successes and failures led to the extension of the movement and eventually a more equal American society.

The Civil Rights Movement marked a turning point for African Americans in schools, transportation, and society. First, victory was made in education in 1954. Brown v. the Board of Education was

They struggled for equality and took part in some of the greatest civil rights movements ever known. Although the civil rights revolution came as a surprise, the causes fought for were necessary. According to Foner, “the United States in the 1950s was still a segregated, unequal society with half of the nation’s black families living in poverty.” (902) Many whites paid little attention to segregation because they felt it had no impact on their everyday lives. Segregation impacted blacks, especially in the South, on a daily basis. They had separate restrooms, drinking fountains, schools, entrances to public places, and were unable to enter many public institutions altogether. (902) The arrest of Rosa Parks sparked a year-long bus boycott and marked the beginning of the civil rights movement in the South. (904) With Martin Luther King Jr. leading the movement, the freedom of justice and equality finally seemed within reach. According to the text, “King was a master of appealing to the deep sense of injustice among blacks and to the conscience of white America. He presented the case for black rights in a vocabulary that emerged the black experience with that of the nation.” (906)

The history of United State has shown many racial discriminations since colonists arrived America. African Americans have suffered unequal treatments and punishments in comparison to white people and European immigrants. Even when slavery was abolished in 1865, African Americans were still victims of many inequalities like employment, rights, housing, and transportation. However, due to these inequalities and mistreatments like the Jim Crow Laws, many African Americans started to make a change during the 1950’s, also called the Civil Rights Movement. Rosa Parks, that was arrested for sitting in the front of a bus in Alabama. Rosa Parks case made the supreme court to ban segregation in public transportation. The social difference during the 1950’s was very notable and obvious, and voting was a big example of the huge discrimination suffered by African Americans and minorities. In the south, white people would take away minorities’ right to vote by making them take a test that would decide if they were or not capable to make a political decision. Fortunately, big characters like Martin Luther King vouched for the end of this inequalities. Martin Luther King played a big role in the 1960’s making everyone aware about the change that was about to come.

The Civil Rights was a social it began in the mid 1950s and lasted until the 1968. Movement fought to the end of the African Americans of the U.S. Small movement by ordinary citizens is what created foundation for this resolution. In Montgomery Alabama when a bus is full seats near the front are given to white passengers.

Martin Luther King was an influential figure and contributed greatly towards the civil rights movement. Despite aspiring to become a fireman, he instead chose a different path in becoming a civil rights leader which lead the movement to end racial motives throughout the world. (Boycott, 2017) On August 28, 1963, more than 250,000 Americans gathered in Washington, D.C., for a political rally known as the ‘March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.’ The march rallied American to stand up against the continuous social and political justice that black African Americans faced (HISTORY, 2017). The March was most notable as Martin Luther King “I have a dream speech”. The following year Martin Luther King was awarded the ‘Nobel Peace Prize’ for being a dynamic leader leading the Civil Rights Movement and achieving the racial justice people needed throughout the world. King Accepted the award on behalf of the Civil Rights Movement and pledged the prize money towards the movement’s development. At the age of 35 he had been deemed the youngest man to

The Civil Rights Movement started with a 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which outlawed segregated education. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was were Africans would not ride the bus because they were forced to go to the back as for whites would sit at the front, they boycotted so that the bus companies would lose half of their business. – (From Nationalhumanitiescenter.org) (From M.Taylor, World