Why Did Americans Challenge Racist Laws Essay

Langston Hughes was the leading voice of African American people in his time, speaking through his poetry to represent blacks. His Influence through his poems are seen widely not just by blacks but by those who enjoy poetry in other races and social classes. Hughes poems, Harlem, The Negro speaks of rivers, Theme for English B, and Negro are great examples of his output for the racial inequality between the blacks and whites. The relationship between whites and blacks are rooted in America's history for the good and the bad. Hughes poems bring the history at large and present them in a proud manner. The injustice that blacks face because of their history of once being in bondage is something they are constantly reminded and ridiculed for but must overcome and bring to light that the thoughts of slavery and inequality will be a lesson and something to remember for a different future where that kind of prejudice is not found so widely.

Thesis Statement: In this paper, I’m going to explore how the Civil Rights Movement first started, and the brutal events and forms of protest during this monumental moment in history. Looking at first-hand accounts from pivotal figures such as the leaders of the social movement organizations, I can properly recount the conditions and struggles in the fight for equality for African Americans. Covering these topics, I can properly describe the effects that came from each movement and the change that subsequently followed. Brown v. Board:

Through the rise of groups such as the Black Panther Party, violence became increasingly prevalent. “The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense calls upon the American people in general and the black people in particular to take careful note of the racist California Legislature which is now considering legislation aimed at keeping the black people disarmed and powerless at the very same time that racist police agencies throughout the country are intensifying the terror, brutality, murder, and repression of black people (Document F).” As a result of the lack of movement on the bill previously proposed my Kennedy to remove segregation, many African-Americans began to give up on this method of peaceful protest. “All of these efforts have been answered by more repression, deceit, and hypocrisy (Document F).” This is because as it appeared to them, it was not working and had no effect on the government. Instead, they discovered a much more direct approach which, was assured to catch the eye of the government. This method was violence. “The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense believes that the time has come for the black people to arm themselves against this terror before it is too late (Document F).” Through violent “black power” groups such as the Black Panthers, the previously peaceful Civil Rights movement began to take on a new

This paper explains a very important moment in the history of our government that took place in Illinois in 1917. As World War I was beginning for the United States things were heating up in East St. Louis, Illinois. Anti-black riots killed or injured over one hundred black civilians. Then a Silent Parade of over ten thousand black citizens from New York broke out. Civil rights have always been an issue in our government, and according to www.kidzworld.com, after these anti black riots, things eventually led to the development of the The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and from that, Rosa Parks did not give up her seat on the bus. The creation of the NAACP also influenced the Little Rock, Arkansas incident, Martin L. King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech, and many other things which eventually led to equal rights for everyone with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This paper will explain the riots and how it shaped our government into providing equal jobs for all races.

Despite nearly one hundred years passing since the Emancipation Proclamation, African Americans in Southern States were still faced with the most distinct forms of racism. The so-called “Jim Crow” laws that were present in United States at the time, served to segregate blacks and whites from all aspects of public life, including schools, public transport and juries. Often faced with extreme right-wing terrorist groups such as the white supremacist Klu Klux Klan, many among the African American community chose to live in a society of oppression that to actively campaign for equal rights for all humans regardless of the colour of their skin. It wasn’t until the 1950’s and 60’s that the people attempted to challenge the established order by engaging in influential protest movements with the help of key activist groups and their leaders. In particular, one key example of a powerful protest campaign was that which occurred in 1965 in Selma, a small town in Alabama. Here, the African American community united in an effort to ensure that all citizens were equal before the law in regards to their ability to register to vote. Their work in banding together and marching from Selma to the state capital Montgomery, was vastly important to both the Civil Rights Movement as a whole, as well as the assurance of the Black vote within the United States. Consequently, this essay seeks to emphasize just how influential this act of protest was to the movement as a whole, whilst analysing the

In 1866, Congress passed The Civil Rights Act of 1866 which allowed them to be genuine citizens and thus granted them federal protection under the law. Score for the blacks. Furthermore, the South was placed under military rule to ensure that this act was being enforced. During this tremendous time of freedom, blacks were allowed to vote and hold office – something that finally extended a voice and position in our country to their community. Meanwhile, whites were growing tired of all the nonsense. They wanted their beloved Old South back. Many refused to attend the integrated Reconstruction-era state constitutional conventions. Southern whites would use highly exaggerated and publicized incidences of “social injustices” to protect their claims of being thrown over to so-called negro domination. Any action was necessary that could help clinch their argument and overturn the Reconstruction

Civil Rights-the freedoms and rights that a person with-holds as a member of a community, state, or nation. Ever since the beginning of involvement between white and black people there has been social disagreement; mainly with the superiority of the white man over the black man. African Americans make up the largest minority group in the United States and because of this they have been denied their civil rights more than any other minority group(source 12). During the Civil Rights Movement, it was said to be a time full of violence and brutality; however, many African-Americans pulled through in their time of struggle. By records, known history, and personal accounts, this paper will show how many people fought for equality and how the

During the 1960’s of American history violent acts were aimed at African Americans in the name of racism and segregation. In a case such as this one, many would seek refuge from the government, but to little surprise, cries for refuge went unanswered. Making matters worse was the fact that the Government allowed segregation to continue due to legal documents in many southern states. Acceptable forms of oppression were separated into four categories: racial segregation; voter suppression, in southern states; denial of economic opportunity; private acts of violence aimed at African Americans. At this time, many civil rights laws were

Early in the 1950s education in Mississippi was segregated. The Brown versus Board education decision caused complete panic in Mississippi due to the fact that it challenged everything Mississippi had ever known. Throughout the state opinions and reactions carried, but in Sunflower county the opinion of prominent whites were clear: Blacks would not be welcome in schools with their children. Two months after the Brown vs Board decision was announced the first Indianola County Citizens Council was held. At this first meeting men of power met to discuss how they were going to stop blacks from organizing in their county. “Herman Moore, president of the Indianola Bank, open the convocation; “This meeting should have been held 30 years ago.. when it was noticeable that the Negro was organizing.”(Moye65) this statement set the tone for how a whole

The Black struggle for Justice is clearly seeing through the history of the United States of America, all the abuse suffering from the Black people coming from West and Central African to the United States who were bringing in against their will , leaving behind their families not knowing if they will be seeing heir love ones again, traveling long distance in infrahuman condition inside those overloaded ship ,where people were exposé to disease which some one of them died and for those able to survive their situation was also deplorable, males were punished with the most horrendous method of torture if they disobey or try to rebel , for the woman the treat wants easy because they were place them separated form male the were expose to be rape by the member of the ship crew.

The United States Constitution was written by the founding fathers, also known as the framers, in the 1700’s which structured the government, as well as government policies. When writing the Constitution, the framers expected that future governing of the United States would be done so by individuals that would think and look like themselves; therefore, the framers did not take into account individuals of a different race or of a different ethnicity. As a result, the foundation of which the Constitution is written and the interpretations the framers put in place, reflect embedded racial hierarchy within the political system. The United States political system has policies in place that perpetuate racism; the census is one such policy.

“E Pluribus Unum”, “Out of Many, One”; Originally used to suggest that out of many colonies or states shall emerge a single unified nation, but over the years it has become the melting pot of the many people, races, religions, cultures and ancestries that have come together to form a unified whole, and even though America prides itself on being this melting pot racism is still alive and well today. America is supposed to be the land of opportunity, the country that calls to so many; calling to them with the promise of freedom and prosperity, to live their lives as they see fit. As stated in the National Anthem, America is "the land of the free and the home of the brave." America is the country where dreams can come true. So if America has

The conclusion of the Civil War in favor of the north was supposed to mean an end to slavery and equal rights for the former slaves. Although laws and amendments were passed to uphold this assumption, the United States Government fell short. The thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments were proposed and passed within five years of the Civil War’s conclusion. These amendments were to create equality throughout the United States, especially in the south where slavery had been most abundant. Making equality a realization would not be an easy task. This is because many problems were not perceived before and during the war. The reunification of the country would prove to be harder than expected, and entry into a new lifestyle would be

This book makes clear that the struggle for racial equality was nationwide and not just isolated to certain geographical locations. A common misconception about the civil rights movement is that blatant racism was a problem only encountered in the Deep South. However, Waiting ‘Til the Midnight Hour does a great job of clarifying this misconception and showing the many elements of the struggle for justice that blacks from coast to coast experienced.

It was a time of conflict, excitement, and confusion in the United States. And this was also “Black Power” of the Civil Rights Movement. Moody at that time was a member of NAACP. She was involved in her first sit-in, and her social science professor, John Salter, who was in charge of NAACP asked her to be the spokesman for a team that would sit-in at Woolworth’s lunch counter (Moody 1968, 286). Although she could go to jail for this, but she still agreed. After that, she joined CORE and continued to fight for the voting rights (Moody 1968, 311). Following passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, the struggle for racial justice moved to the next battleground: voting rights in the Deep South. The campaign was already under way in places like Selma, Alabama, where local activists, facing intense white resistance, asked Martin Luther King, Jr., and his Southern Christian Leadership Conference for support (Ayers 2010, 780). Black voter registration in the South was one of the great accomplishments of the civil rights movement. Within months of its passage, more than 2 million black southern were registered to vote. Most supported the Democratic Party of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, which had endorsed the cause of civil rights (Ayers 2010, 782).