Imagine living in a society where the tone of one’s skin subjected them to unfair treatment and rules. This was the reality to African-Americans in the South from the end of the nineteenth century until the middle of the twentieth century. Richard Wright describes the experiences of living with Jim Crow laws in his essay “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow.” African-Americans were oppressed, especially the women, and forced to follow absurd rules. Many times, the police only encouraged these unlawful rules and targeted Blacks. A Black person could not live a life relatively free of conflict even if they adhered to the ethics of Jim Crow.
In the late 19th century, state and local governments imposed restrictions on voting qualifications which left the African community economically and politically powerless and passed segregation laws, known as Jim Crow laws. Therefore the movement focused on three main areas of discrimination to address, racial segregation, education, and voting rights. Racial segregation is the separation of humans into ethnic groups. Segregation affected many African-Americans day-to-day life, forcing them to go to separate restaurants, water fountains, public toilets, schools, and even making them ride the back of the bus. In 1955 African-Americans in Montgomery, Alabama formed a boycott in protest of the segregated seating on the city buses, In response to Rosa Parks, an African-American woman, getting arrested for refusing
In his second autobiography, “My Bondage and My Freedom,” Douglass again discusses his life as a slave, but also his fight against slavery. One of the most influential characters in american history, Frederick Douglass, continues to influence society today. It is suspected that Frederick Douglass was born into slavery sometime in 1818, a time where slavery was prominent in the south. He was born in Talbot County in Maryland. Douglass had been a slave for roughly 20 years until he escaped, but only after he taught himself how to read and write.
So that they will have equal rights as the whites in front of the laws on court, and end the Jim Crow laws. Although this didn’t all happen at once, but it was starting to progress. The Great Migration happened through world war one, a lot of blacks moved to the northern part, since there are more jobs available. However they still worked with the same jobs they got in the south, since they are not well educated or skilled. More and more poor blacks gathered together in the north, and the communities they lived in has a high crime rate.
The Civil War did not bring freedom to the Blacks in the USA What is freedom? I believe that freedom is the right to express yourself freely and have freewill – receiving no bias or prejudice to your actions. The ability to have equal opportunity to play an active role in society. Slaves were brought to the USA in large ships which held a large number of black people – it was the Atlantic Slave Trade. In this trade, blacks were shipped to the USA in return for money and exotic goods.
“The term came to be a derogatory epithet for African Americans and designation for their segregated life,” (Urofsky Jim Crow Law ). Said by DR.David Pilgrim “ African Americans were relegated to the status of second class citizens”. The Jim Crow Laws were a physical separation between whites and colored people because whites were considered to be the ‘chosen people’. For example, in a photo from the Library of Congress in the shape of an arrow is a sign pointing to display that there is separate waiting room for those colored , so whites could wait in their own room. It was these type of signs that constantly reminded blacks of the racial order.
( Florida) This makes the civil rights of American citizens very different financially and emotionally. Many married couples have a very big advantage than those who aren’t married. Another Jim Crow law states “The schools for white children shall be conducted separately.” (Florida) This made it hard for white and colored children to connect with each other since they couldn’t even go to the same school. It made whites think differently of colored. Jim Crow law of Alabama states “it should be unlawful to conduct a restraint or other place for serving food in the city,” ( Alabama) This helps explain that different races couldn’t even eat in the same buildings.
These are three of many reasons why Americans in the 1800’s felt urged to move west. Some may claim that Westward expansion was not right for America to do because of the conflicts that were aroused afterward. America would not be the country
The inability to vote was exactly what led to the creation of the United States, and allowing another population to vote is undoubtedly a turning point in the country’s history. When looking at history in America, many would not be proud of the maltreatment this country has placed on the black man. But during the 50s and 60s, African Americans were on the path to being seen as truly equal to white citizens. The year 1954 brought the end to segregation, 1964 brought an end to discrimination, and 1965 brought a start to representation. All three of these national laws and rulings provided a great impact on the civil rights movement, and can be seen
Furthermore, in the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln stated that the “new nation” was very committed to the claim that all men are created equally (Lincoln,1). This shows that Abraham Lincoln wants the nation to be full of equality. With this being said, African-Americans should no longer be judged for the color of their skin, or be kept as slaves because of the color of their skin. All things considered, before the Civil War, nay people didn’t have freedom, rights, and many African-Americans were mistreated and kept as slaves. That is why the Civil War had such a big affect in