Although slavery was declared over after the passing of the thirteenth amendment, African Americans were not being treated with the respect or equality they deserved. Socially, politically and economically, African American people were not being given equal opportunities as white people. They had certain laws directed at them, which held them back from being equal to their white peers. They also had certain requirements, making it difficult for many African Americans to participate in the opportunity to vote for government leaders. Although they were freed from slavery, there was still a long way to go for equality through America’s reconstruction plan.
The thirteenth amendment freed African American people from slavery, and the nineteenth amendment gave women the right to vote; but that doesn’t mean these people still have the same amount of freedom as others. However free some may seem, every race and gender is still restrained by the same discriminatory shackles that held back their ancestors many years ago. Contrary to popular belief, the civil liberties of the United States have not been solved; and although some citizens would disagree, the act of forgetting previous experiences on how the nation was built, misusing the rights people are given, and treating other ethnicities or genders as inferiors, would prove otherwise. Although America has highly improved on civil liberties by imposing amendments such as the 13th and the 19th;
Every person is supposed to have equal rights and opportunities, since every citizen is born equal. Sadly, however, before the Civil Rights Movement, that wasn’t true. Any African American living in the United States was treated far worse than how they were supposed to be treated. They were disrespected, denied rights, and their freedom to go places were commonly restricted by signs that said; “Whites only,” or “No colored people allowed”. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a major activist in The Civil Rights Movement, and he was thrown in jail many times for his nonviolent protests.
African Americans face a struggle with racism which has been present in our country before the Civil War began in 1861. America still faces racism today however, around the 1920’s the daily life of an African American slowly began to improve. Thus, this time period was known by many, as the “Negro Fad” (O’Neill). The quality of life and freedom of African Americans that lived in the United States was constantly evolving and never completely considered ‘equal’. From being enslaved, to fighting for their freedom, African Americans were greatly changing the status quo and beginning to make their mark in the United States.
Women’s ongoing fight for equality from the 1920s to the 1970s was reflected through their attire. The 1920s were marked by the shockingly short hemlines and their right to vote. While women struggled to get fair pay in the 1930s, they got hired more often than men, which gave them greater independence. However, due to the gloom of the Great Depression, women lost their confidence and their clothing became more conservative. By contrast, the 1940s provided greater opportunities as the United States went to war.
Before, during, and long after the Civil War blacks were discriminated against in almost every form of life. They had to fight and be patient to be accepted as equals among their white counterparts; this process took form over a long period of time, and after many failures, blacks were truly equal in the eyes of the government. The thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments which were passed in the late 1860’s were supposed to bring political, social, and economic equality for the blacks; however, this was not the case, while in some facets of life blacks obtained more freedoms they had to wait many years after these amendments were passed to be fully equal to whites. The thirteenth amendment abolished slavery in the United States.
African Americans never had freedom in the past, as they were treated poorly. White people discriminated black people back then just because they weren’t the same skin color or came from the same origin. “Set free by the 13th amendment, with citizenship guaranteed by the 14th amendment, black males were given the vote by the 15th amendment. From that point on, the freedmen were generally expected to fend for themselves. In retrospect, it can be seen that the 15th amendment was in reality only the beginning of a struggle for equality that would continue for more than a century before African Americans could begin to participate fully in American public and civic life.
The Women’s Movement was a symbolic movement in achieving political and civil equality. It assisted women lifestyles in the United States, granting them equal opportunities as men. Therefore, the Equal Rights Amendment guaranteed equal rights with men and the Equal Pay Act guaranteed equal pay. But these opportunities rarely helped women since they were prohibited and discriminated from universities and communal school, young girls have to be taught at home by mothers due to the segregation from males and females. In the 1960s, organizations were predominantly constructed for women since they were driven away from society of men and can’t attend schools and colleges.
There were many changes that occurred in the 1960’s in specifically in the goals, strategies, and support of the movement for African American civil rights. While the movement started as peaceful, as the years went along,
It further supports the idea that although Black Americans were “free,” they were still not equal. It also helps to understand the lengths they had to go to just to exercise their basic rights, such as vote or visit a public establishment. Articles and documents such as these are a great reminder that African Americans had to fight through abuse, threats, jail sentences, and much more a long way into the twentieth century. These documents provide the perspective of an African American woman in the 1960s and the perspective of the President, Lyndon B. Johnson, on fighting for equal rights for all African American citizens. Each of the speeches made a monumental impact on the Civil Rights Movement.
The reason why everyone has equal rights to this day is because of Martin Luther King Jr never stopped bringing peace to the world. In Martin Luther King Jr speech it outlines the ways in which he hopes the world will change for the better(Boshier 66). In Martins "I Have a Dream" he explains how he wants black people and white people can use the same bathrooms and same water fountains instead of everything being segregated. And when he said "I hope the world will change for the better" he wanted the world to change on its own and everyone equal to each other and less violence in the world . here are the many ways that Martin Luther King Jr has positively benefited the world by using nonviolent
during the civil rights movement there was a lot of chaos going on. People back then were treated differently due to segregation. The african american people tried fighting for their rights to have the same equality as the white people had. any african american tried making history by either going to an all white school or getting their rights to vote.
A big part of our history is the challenges different races had to face when fighting for their rights. There are groups in today’s society that are still battling oppression, even though they were granted rights by our government. It seems like when one door opens, another closes right in their face. One race that had to deal with oppression, and is still dealing with it today, is African Americans. Africans Americans were brought over to the United States to be slaves for Caucasian people.
Many government officials were involved in attempting to suppress the African American race. The African American race showed persistence and tenacity in fighting for their rights. Most African Americans in this timeframe were born in the United States therefore they should have been given the same rights. We cannot deny that rights and freedoms were given to African Americans that allowed them to stand up for their rights. Many changes did occur and laws passed as a result of this.
Equality in America America and its people have worked hard to create a home in which everyone is treated, and feels equal. We’ve fought wars, held protests, and lost many lives in situations where we were fighting for fair treatment. After all of these sacrifices, it's safe to say that Americans have the right to love, and cherish the equality that their home presents them with, but to an extent. Equality in society, government, and basic human interactions should always be kept, and held with great importance. However, we also need to keep in mind that we are not the same people.
