The Civil Rights Movement Essay - 1711 Words

Even though civil rights were granted to blacks during the Reconstruction, prejudice kept blacks from participating in many liberties that whites did. The Southern United states were especially heinous in their treatment of blacks. Eventually, African-Americans grew tired of being kept down because of the color of their skin. After all, they were humans that were endowed with the ability to think and reason, able bodies to perform tasks and feelings. It only took a few black men and women to take a stand to start an avalanche of action to change the nation’s view of African-Americans. The Montgomery bus boycott in 1955 was the first large-scale protest that lasted almost a year in which forty thousand blacks stopped riding Montgomery†¦show more content†¦More often than not, the facilities that were to be used by African-Americans were not equal. These laws continued and in 1892, a man by the name Homer Plessy, who was of extremely fair complexion sat on a train , in the first class white section. He then informed the conductor that he was only one-eighth African American. He was asked to sit in the car that was reserved for colored men. When he refused, he was arrested and he pled his case all the way to the Supreme Court in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson. In a landmark of misguided judgment, it was upheld that the Jim Crow laws were constitutional. The ruling was overturned in 1954 in conjunction with another civil rights case, Brown v. Board of Education, which ended school segregation. Another event that was under the surface before the bus boycott was the brutal bludgeoning of a 14 year-old African American boy, Emmitt Till in August of 1955. He was from Chicago visiting relatives in Mississippi when he whistled at a young white woman. Young Emmitt was not aware of the oppressive Jim Crow laws and was dragged from his bed in the middle of the night, beaten then shot to death. His body was then dumped in a river, where he was found three da ys later. His mother refused to hold a closed casket funeral that would have hidden his grotesquely bloodied, beaten, gouged and swollen face. She wanted everyone to be a witness toShow MoreRelatedThe Rise Of The Civil Rights Movement1179 Words   |  5 Pagessegregations. Out of the numerous elements that arose in the 1960s, there are three movements that truly affected the American society. Firstly, the rise of the civil rights movement was greatly influenced by racial discrimination of colored people in the South. Secondly, the women’s movement aimed to convince the society that women are capable of achieving and maintaining higher waged job like males. Lastly, the gay rights movement aimed to gain acceptance and stop discrimination of homosexuality. The mostRead MoreThe Folk Music Of The Civil Rights Movement1208 Words   |  5 PagesResponse Paper #4 The folk music of the Civil Rights Movement â€Å"came out of tradition, common experience, and generations of resistance† (Dunaway 2010: 140). The songs used throughout the movement derived from the shared experiences and struggles of African Americans while connecting â€Å"the gentle, idealistic world of folk music and the integrationist world of civil rights† (Dunaway 2010: 145). Songs, such as â€Å"We Shall Overcome†, were put through the folk process, where a song is passed on and alterationsRead MoreThe Great Leaders Of The Civil Rights Movement1563 Words   |  7 Pages They seem to be forgotten until they are highlighted once again. Another example of a person that was not really highlighted for their actions is Nina Simone. She made an impact on the Civil Right Movement that not many other artist or celebrity would have done. 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Even though at the time they were considered free, they were often criticized and discriminated against. Finally, shootings, brutality, and unfair treatment were enough. In an effort to end racial segregation and discrimination against African-Americans all over the country, they took a stand. This was known as the Civil Rights Movement. There were many interesting events that cause d this movement. The three main causes thatRead MoreThe Civil Rights Movement Essay1601 Words   |  7 PagesThe Civil Rights Movement â€Å"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.† This was a speech by Martin Luther King Jr. Even one hundred years after slavery was banned, African Americans were still being treated unfairly. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most famous leaders of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s. The Civil Rights movement was a movement of AfricanRead MoreThe Civil Rights Movement Essay1259 Words   |  6 Pages The civil right movement refers to the reform movement in the United States beginning in the 1954 to 1968 led primarily by Blacks for outlawing racial discrimination against African-Americans to prove the civil rights of personal Black citizen. For ten decades after the Emancipation Proclamation, African-Americans in Southern states still live a rigid unequal world of deprive right of citizenship, segregation and various forms of oppression, including race-inspired violence. â€Å"JimRead MoreThe Civil Rights Movement Essay1190 Words   |  5 Pages The Civil Rights Movement The 13th amendment, passed on the first of January, 1865 abolished slavery throughout America. Although African Americans were considered free after this amendment was approved, they still had a long and arduous struggle to absolute freedom. 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