Essay On African American Civil Rights Movement

The African American Civil Rights movement existed at large between the early fifties and the late sixties in a society that was constantly on the verge of social destruction. The black rights movement existed politically, socially, and economically everywhere in the United States. As time progressed the movement developed and saw many changes along with schisms separating activists and how they approached getting their rights. In the early fifties there was a large non-violent integration based movement spearheaded by figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. However, as the time progressed, the movement started seeing a more aggressive leadership with figures such as Malcolm X, but eventually it turned into an extremist movement

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s was a struggle for African Americans to obtain equal rights and be free of racial discrimination. The use of Jim Crow Laws allowed people, particularly in the South, to continue oppressing African Americans after the Civil War. Confrontational tactics such as protests and sit-ins were important in the Civil Rights Movement, however non-confrontational tactics such as litigation, civil disobedience and economic boycotts were most important as they brought about significant change in opposing segregation.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15, 1929. At the age of 25, King earned a sociology degree and completed his Ph.D (A&E Networks Television). King’s charismatic and strong attitude helped him become a successful minister and the most famous civil-rights activists. On the day of August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his inspirational speech, I Have a Dream. Approximately 200,000 people gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. to watch King personally. An additional million listened on the radio and watched on television (Phibbs). In his speech, King spoke about the injustices of segregation and discrimination taking place in the nation toward African Americans. Speaking out for freedom,

The civil rights movement started in 1946 and ended in the late 1960s, it was started by African Americans to end discrimination against them and gain equality. The variety of movements were mostly nonviolent and they did it to protect their individual, economic, political, and social rights in America, regardless of their sex, skin color, or birth origin. The movements were about a lawsuit in court to mass protest in cities.

The decade of the 1960s is remembered as one of the most turbulent times of Americanhistory. The decade, from riots to assassinations, was filled with violent disorder and confusion.Even with opposition and disagreement all over the United States, some movements took apeaceful, nonviolent approach with one of the most well-known and successful being the CivilRights Movement.The African American Civil Rights movement was a nonviolent fight for equal rights forAfrican Americans after years of mistreatment and segregation. The ultimate goal of themovement was to gain the rights of an American citizen. After years of not being offeredservices and refusal of education, the movement surged and African Americans felt they werecapable of making a change

The civil rights movement of 1954-1968 has made a huge impact on the history of African-American equality. All the great leaders of the movement have gone down in history for their courageous work and outstanding commitment to the civil rights movement. One of the most famous of the activists was Martin Luther King Junior (1929-1968) . King is still remembered today for his legendary speech entitled “I had a dream”. Many countries concurred with Luther King and agreed with his ideas because he made a difference for African-Americans and took a stand against racism. Yet the question today, over forty years later is: Was the African-American civil rights movement an overall success? Or is it the same now as it was back in 50’s and 60’s?

During the tumultuous period of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s, the goal for bettering the lives of African-Americans was desired by many. However, the means of attaining that goal, varied greatly among the representatives of the movement. The African-American civil rights efforts were spearheaded by men of peaceful protest for integration, such as Martin Luther King Jr., and in contrast leaders such as Malcolm X who expressed separatist ideals. Other groups of civil rights advocated took an outright violent approach, such as the Black Panthers.

On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. Titled as the “I Have a Dream Speech,” he read this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”. As a civil right mover he gave this great speech to all Americans (black and white) so that he could give off the idea of equality on the same level. Because of his crowd of mix races King made sure to make his speech imploring to all no matter what the race that they may be. He uses metaphorical imagery, powerful diction,and symbolism to create an impact on the audience. King’s dialect showed the audience civil right issues, involving many rhetorical strategies using ethos, logos, and pathos, to a racially tempered crowd whom he viewed as different, but not equal.

Could you ever possibly imagine a time where you couldn’t use the same bathroom as some of your classmates because the had a different skin color? This time in history was known as the Civil Rights Movement, a movement from 1954-1954, in which people fought against racism. Although the Civil Rights Movement mainly affected African Americans, but involved all of American society. Because most racism against ancient African Americans took place in southern United States, civil rights was extremely important to African Americans who lived in the south. Racism was so widely spread it even found its way into professional sports. “Many college student activists sacrificed or postponed their formal education”. (Youth Civil Rights Movement) Samuel Younge Jr., Jackie Robinson, and Ramsey Clark are famous civil rights activists because of their courage and bold actions during the Civil Rights Movement.

During 1954 to 1968, African Americans and whites alike were fighting for the rights of African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement. Throughout America, protesters used different tactics to earn their freedom. Some used violence, while others chose a non-violent path. Non-violence overall was more effective than violence during the Civil Rights Movement. Furthermore, bus boycotts are an efficient strategy that was used in the 1950s to 60s.

The 1960-70’s was the height of the Civil Rights Movement. African Americans were dedicated to gaining liberties which only whites could exercise freely, and did this was done through peaceful as well as violent means of protest. Individuals such as Martin Luther King protested by means of preaching peace and utilizing nonviolent actions against whites while others such as Malcolm x and elijah muhammad resorted to not only violence, yet separatism to protest and show their urge to gain civil Liberties. Though, both methods of protest were aimed towards the same goal, only one was to be influential and bring about the change that African Americans desire.

Africans Americans weren’t getting much respect or equality with the whites since 1619, the year when the first African slaves were shipped to Virginia. In 1954, the civil rights movement of African Americans to achieve equal rights such as, housing, jobs and education. Many other events during the civil rights movement timeline, 1954-1968, made the movement stronger. Such as the Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat and got arrested in 1955, which started the Montgomery bus boycott by Martin Luther King Jr. The civil rights movement activists used many legal actions such as how segregation ended in public school in Little Rock, Arkansas and how whites were against it, non-violent approaches, like how customers from a sit-in in Wichita, Kansas, started to protest and another one in Montgomery, Alabama, and how some black activists programs used direct actions, to stand out during the movement.

The 1950s were a period often associated with conformity, when men and women discerned firm gender roles and followed society’s expectations. Racial segregation was still a present factor in society and the Civil Rights Movement began wholeheartedly. In 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education ruling by the Supreme Court opened the opportunity of the rights for all Americans to have an equal education regardless of race or religion. Prominent figures such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. questioned those who were against equal rights for black Americans. During this time, African Americans fought for equality in employment, education and housing which acted as a catalyst for future change. In Patrice Gaines’s memoir, Laughing in the Dark,

The late 1950’s through the early 1960’s saw much change in government policies in regard to segregation. We grew as a nation it was necessary to bring an end to legal segregation. 1952 brought us a new President in Eisenhower who succeeded President Truman. His leadership style of governing was generally moderate and he believed in less government involvement in people’s lives domestically. He resisted the expansion of the Federal Government’s power, and he was very standoffish when the Supreme Court ordered school segregation. His administration also eliminated the Federal trusteeship of dozens of Indian tribes. As a moderate Republican, Eisenhower supported the continuation, and in some areas, the expansion of the “New Deal” programs.

The Civil Rights Movement, which took place from 1945-1966, was African Americans’ attempts to secure equality and rights similar to whites in the United States. World War II had set a foundation for the ensuing struggle of African Americans, springing a mass migration to the North, while the South kept segregation and unequal rights as their normal policy. Laws and customs kept blacks as second-class citizens with no real political rights. Previously, African Americans sat back and survived, but soon they would begin to stand up for themselves and their situation. One of the most efficient ways to aid their Civil Rights Movement would be to gain help and support from the President. Presidents or presidential candidates during this time - Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, and Johnson - all had opinions on Civil Rights and racism. Each expressed their views in different ways, some putting forth more effort to change the social status of blacks than others.