African Americans In The Civil Rights Movement

4734 Words19 Pages
The roles of the African Americans have been a central and recurrent theme in the pursuit of civil rights and the struggle for black equality within American society. The most significant years for Black activism came in the 1950’s and 1960’s when following the Second World War and the continued white resistance in the Old South came the civil rights movement and the variety of organizations set up by African Americans to help themselves gain social, economical and political equality. The Civil Rights Movement made a large impact during the 1950’s and 1960’s when blacks made a national effort to eliminate segregation and gain equal rights. The Civil Rights Movement was a span of time when the African Americans endeavor was to acquire their…show more content…
A worthy attitude of the civil rights movement was the unachievable triumph that the blacks sought after and built. Through courage, persistence, and determination, the African Americans won their independence. The civil rights evolution was a period when society was oppressed for many years, rose up against the disadvantage and accomplished their freedom. The most significant victory for African American civil rights during the 1950’s was the Supreme Courts ruling in the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling, which declared separate but equal unconstitutional. It was a great victory for the NAACP and for Black America. The victory in the courtroom, however, was not manifested until many years later as the majority of school districts continued their segregationist policies across America. The Brown vs. The Board of Education helped start the modern civil rights movement. It took place in Topeka, Kansas. The case started with a young black girl who lived a few blocks away from an elementary school for white children. Even though she lived so close to this school, she had to walk even farther to get to the black school. Her father…show more content…
Probably the most noteworthy of these was its influence on black culture. For the first time, blacks in the United States were encouraged to acknowledge their African heritage. The same spirit of racial unity and pride that made the Black Power movement so dynamic also made it problematic and dangerous. Many whites, and a number of blacks, saw the movement as a black separatist organization bent on segregating blacks and whites and undoing the important work of the civil rights movement . There is no question that Black Power advocates had valid and pressing concerns. Blacks were still victims of racism, and the solutions that some Black Power leaders advocated seemed only to create new problems. Some, for example, suggested that blacks receive paramilitary training and carry guns to protect themselves . Though these individuals insisted this device was solely a means of self-defense and not a call to violence, it was still unnerving to think of armed civilians walking the
Open Document