The Civil Rights Movement
Although in most accounts of history the Civil Rights Movement is defined as being from 1955-1968, actions to make blacks equal in America started previous to 1955 and some argue are still going on today. This turbulent time period caused some of the most rapid social and political change that the country had ever seen. From December 1, 1955 when a black seamstress, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a white person on a Montgomery, Alabama bus to April 4, 1968 when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a minister and arguably the most influential civil rights leader, was shot and killed, rapid changes took place that benefitted not only the African Americans, but almost all ...
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greatly a result of the end of the Second World War. Many blacks had fought in WWII and on July 26, 1968, Truman signed Executive Order 9981, which states, "It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin." (Brunner) Desegregating the military was a major step to the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. Another major step was the GI Bill that gave soldiers an opportunity for an education. This gave black soldiers who had never had the opportunity to go to college a quality education. This led to good jobs, stable lives, and restlessness for change. Although during the early fifties, blacks did gain small bits of equality, they were nowhere near equal in the United States. Racism and violence against blacks and minorities in general was still rampant. In August of 1955 a fourteen year old boy named Emmitt Till was ...
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outlawed segregation in public facilities and authorizing the federal government to withhold funds from programs that discriminated. In August of 1963,a march was organized on Washington that encompassed 250,000 people including around 50,000 whites. This is where Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech was delivered. This day did not stop racial violence and discrimination or make civil-rights legislature pass anymore rapidly, but it did however bring America to remember their ideals of justice and equality. This hope for change however did not quell the anger of blacks in America. Beginning on August 11, 1965, riots broke out that created casualties, injuries, and ...
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The Civil Rights Movement. (2011, April 5). Retrieved December 23, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Civil-Rights-Movement/97663
"The Civil Rights Movement." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 5 Apr. 2011. Web. 23 Dec. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Civil-Rights-Movement/97663>
"The Civil Rights Movement." Essayworld.com. April 5, 2011. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Civil-Rights-Movement/97663.
"The Civil Rights Movement." Essayworld.com. April 5, 2011. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Civil-Rights-Movement/97663.
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