With the help of the Women’s rights Movement, not only supporting African American rights, but that of women helped pair these organizations to influence society for the better of all mankind. Margaret Sanger opening the door, for women to be in control of their own bodies, literally. In 1916 Brooklyn the first birth control clinic was opened giving women a choice in what they want for themselves. Suffragists rallied all over the states expressing their right to free speech, fighting for Women’s Suffrage until 1920 when the nineteenth amendment ratified their rights. Women having played a major part in the wars found strength in numbers and with writers such as Jane Addams the inspiration was
Martin Luther King Jr was a revolutionary figure for his time. As leader of the Civil Rights Movement along with many others, he campaigned to bring about racial equality and desegregation in the deep-south of America. The history of the struggle for human rights dates back thousands of years, all for different reasons; whether it was for women’s rights, gay rights or Black rights. The most notable call for equality in the twentieth century was led by Martin Luther King Jr. and focused on civil rights for African Americans in the south. His role in achieving civil rights was greatly significant due to his technique of bringing people together and his signature non-violent protests.
The New Negro Renaissance, more formally known as the Harlem Renaissance, earning it’s name from the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke, had many effects on many people, but it can be best described as a revolution, a cultural uprising where the high level of Black poetry, production and art demanded, and, in turn, received the mainstream appreciation and accolade which it rightly deserved. It is described as the most important and so discussed period in African American literacy, and indeed twentieth century literacy as a whole. Black poets felt segregating in their writing, and forced into the inforced, repressive form of the western white poets of the time. With their writing founded upon tribal, native songs full of pride and passion, the migration to a set form imposed upon them left a stale taste, a further example of how black people were repressed, not allowed to even express themselves in the form which they were used to, the form with which they grew up with. In his book, “The New Negro”, Alain Locke said that the writings of the Renaissance showed a “new spirit [..] awake in the black masses.” This spirit is that of “new Negro”, who has come to replace the “Old Negro” who “ had become more of a myth than a man.” (Locke) This spirit, spurred and cultivated by years of enslavement, both literal and, in a sense, figurative, is what led to the writings that are regarded part of a monumental era for black writing, and writing in general.
King’s speech called for equal treatment among all Americans, not just African Americans, and underlined the significance of unity as one nation. Dr. King alluded to Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation as one of the most important documents in U.S. history. As King stated, “This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.” This quote demonstrates how the Emancipation Proclamation freed all of America’s slaves from the brutality and injustice that was brought upon them. After this decree, African Americans were now granted with full U.S. citizenship, but were still severely discriminated. This allusion signified the obstacles that former slaves were still facing after the end of slavery.
Malala stood up against the taliban, and demanded the right of education for girls. She has rallied the world in the fight to educate young girls, and children in general. But her greatest gift has been to demonstrate to everyone around the world, that it is possible to stand up against what is wrong. Malala has shown courage because she knew the risk it would take to advocate for the education of girls. Malala states, “ All I want is an education, and I am afraid of no one”.
No! This is not California this was the time of the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a remarkable period in time when poetry changed a nation of being an African -American to an incredible level. Harlem Renaissance was more than just a major party, it was a literary movement. All of these people at the party were writers and intellectuals.
1960s was a decade when ordinary citizens took to the streets in many parts of the world to protest against policies of the government and to demand a change in society. African Americans faced segregation and were treated extremely violently in mostly the southern states of America by conservative factions in society. Martin Luther King Jr. led the Birmingham Campaign in 1963 to draw attention to the on-going segregation and actions of the police. One of the protests in this campaign was the Children’s Crusade, where thousands of children took part in a non-violent protest, but were met with brutal violence from the police. At the same time, South Africa faced Apartheid, a system of racial segregation enforced through legislation.
The Harlem Renaissance was originally called the New Negro Movement in the early years. It was considered a literary and intellectual movement that created new black cultural expression in the 1920s and 1930s. Since racism was high and economic opportunities were scarce, creative expression was one of the only ways to pass the time for African Americans ("Great Days"). The timing of this coming-of-age was almost perfect. The years between World War I and the Great Depression was an excellent time for the United States.
Hence, identity crisis was very much in the highlight. A discursive analysis of the manifesto of the above mentioned two literary movements alone suffices for the study of identity conflicts within and without the literary spheres. W. E. B. Du Bois in his article The Criteria of Negro published in the journal The Crisis declared that all art is propaganda and so laid down the foundation of Racial uplift Agenda that employed literature to spread a favourable image of the Black (290-297). Harlem Renaissance improved on the earlier movement by not merely sticking to the promulgation of a positive image of the Black community but also by exposing the racial oppression in American society.
They had segregated schooling, transport and toilets under the Jim Crow laws. This is justified by, ‘the popularity of protest music in the 1960s was also fuelled by the massive social change that evolved from the Civil Rights Movement, the rise of feminism,’ (4) showing that many artists were also fighting for an ideological change in the way American citizens were treated by their country, namely African Americans and women, rather than only fighting against what they believed was an unjust war. Artists like James Brown (5) fought for black empowerment in American society. Brown’s song, ‘Say it Loud: I’m Black and I’m Proud’ (5) is described as being ‘an important document in the development of the Civil Rights Movement’ (5) due to its infectious rhythm and strong message about black pride and self-empowerment. Another example of a black artist is Aretha Franklin, who wrote songs about women rising up and demanding ‘respect’ (5) in the country in which she lived, both as an African American and a woman, as shown by her song title.