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Has the Civil Rights Movement improved the position of African Americans?
A Brief Summary of the Early Civil Rights Movement
Since the time of the Founding Fathers writing the Constitution, citizens of the United States have been protected by what are known as Civil Rights. ...
However, when slaves were emancipated in 1865 after the civil war, black people were not granted the same civil liberties as white people. ... Congress responded to this in 1866 by making a 14th amendment to the constitution that said that all citizens had the right to equality and it became a federal crime to abridge citizens rights on account of race or colour. This was the first Civil Rights law to be enacted.
The white people of the South resented any changes that were seen to aid the progression of black people and deemed the 1866 Civil Rights act unconstitutional, as Congress should not have the power to bring in civil rights laws. ... It appeared that after the First Reconstruction that the government, who had made half-hearted steps to advance black rights, but whose moves had been destroyed, had abandoned the ‘freedmen’
After this, the constitutional rights of African Americans were worth nothing. ... ’The rural South offered few economic opportunities to blacks who could only work the land owned by whites…the end of slavery had left Southern blacks with freedom of movement but without material resources. ...
However, a major setback to the Civil Rights movement was the ‘separate-but-equal’ doctrine. ... But, the still racist Southern states used this to their advantage by alienating African Americans at every turn. ... ’
How has Civil Rights improved the position of African Americans?
The 1930’s and 1940’s saw America attempting to improve the position of African Americans than in previous decades, however, the 1950’s and 1960’s saw the real successes. The Montgomery Bus Boycott (when black lady Rosa Parks sat in a whites only designated area of a bus and refused to move, and was arrested ensuing a boycott) was seen by many as the real beginning of the American Civil Rights Movement.
Approximate Word count = 1668
Approximate Pages = 6.7
(250 words per page double spaced)
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