Early on, Malcolm X was aware of racism. As a young child, he recalled his house being burned down and his father being murdered by a white supremacy group called the Black Legion. As a teenager and young adult he witnessed and lived the impoverished hustler life on the streets of Harlem. While in jail, he was introduced to Elijah Muhammad’s church, the Nation of Islam, which preached for the advancement of black men and the evil of white supremacy. Upon release, Malcolm X rapidly gained prominence in the Nation of Islam and traveled the United States, founding new mosques in many cities.
Sadly the weight of those very words became evident far too late. The major repercussion that led from this speech was the assassination of very the prolific Martin Luther King, Jr. himself. However, his death was not in vain as it led to a realization of the gravity of the battle for equality that southern African-Americans faced on a daily basis. The fact that a public figure such as Luther King himself could be shot at and killed in broad daylight in that manner had served as a wakeup call to Congress and many other individuals following the proceedings of the Civil Rights movement. Martin Luther’s perseverance may have been a determining factor as he proclaims that “this sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.” He was accurate in this proposition.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott “Rosa Parks believed that blacks were direct descendants of the greatest and proudest people who ever peopled the earth.” (Sanders) This quote could be consider true in today’s world, but back in the 1950’s most of America’s society would beg to differ. Whites were acknowledged superior to those of darker skin during those times, too. Blacks were fed up with Jim Crow Laws, so some took action. The African Americans of Montgomery, Alabama fought for the same rights as white citizens by staging a bus boycott, which led to the end of segregation. Segregation dominated Montgomery in the 1950’s, as well as Jim Crow Laws.
In ’56 King was arrested on charges of controlling operational buses illegally without a cause. After all he went through, I would have to respect him greatly for what he did because this didn’t stop him from reaching his goal. In the year 1958, he published a book called “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story” which told many of such goals he was striving or reaching for. Later in 1960, King moved to Atlanta and became a co-pastor and soon led a march
His speech became the rallying cry for civil rights and lives on to this day as a perpetual masterpiece. Martin Luther King Jr. was born January 15, 1929. Growing up as an African American in Georgia, Martin experienced and suffered discrimination throughout his boyhood. He realized at an early age that this discrimination against black people was cruel and demoralizing. He once told of an experience he had riding a bus with his schoolteacher from Macon to Atlanta.
In an attempt to desegregate buses throughout the south, a challenge against segregation was needed. King, along with the NAACP challenged this in Montgomery, until segregation was abolished. The boycott lasted just over a year with the black population, walking and car pooling, where they would usually use buses. The bus company lost 65% of their revenue and after King was arrested, on December 21, 1956, the Montgomery Bus Company desegregated all their buses. The boycott led to wide media attention which signified King’s leadership qualities.
A young pastor – Martin Luther King Jr, organized the campaign. A string of African American arrests led to national publicity and Bus Boycotting beginning in other cities. In December 1956 the Supreme Court ruled that segregated buses were illegal. This achievement helped Martin Luther King become a national focus for African American action. In September 1957 9 African American students won the right to enrol at Little Rock Central High school.
This event was important because it gained international attention which put pressure on the different structures of the American government to make changes, and finally in 1965 the Supreme Court ruled that segregation on buses was illegal. It also brought the black community closer together to stand up for their rights this is shown when Jo Ann Robinson a head of a group of professional black women in Montgomery says, ‘we are asking every negro to stay off
This gave blacks a perfect opportunity to take a stand against racial discrimination. National Association of Advancement for Colored People (NAACP) leaders began a campaign calling on 50,000 blacks in the city to protest by boycotting Montgomery buses for a day. Leaflets were distributed; blacks would walk to work or catch a taxi. The one day boycott was such a powerful success that it carried on for almost a year after. Poor standards of living for blacks were another cause of Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Okonkwo's one and only weakness was his fear of becoming a failure like his father. This fear drove Okonkwo to embrace the values of manliness and fueled his desire to be strong; which then drove him to rashness and in the end contributed to his death. Accepting the ways of manhood isn’t a sign of weaknesses, the problem is how narrowly he defines it. Okonkwo was part of a patriarchal society and the male gender was already established with great authority. For Okonkwo, however, any kind of softness and tenderness was a sign of weakness.