Specifically for African Americans, the equality and desegregation under this act of education, the workplace, and voter’s registration has been tremendously empowering. One of the great things about America that many other countries do not have is free education. Under Plessy v. Ferguson, segregation of schools was legalized under the conditions that it was separate but equal. During that time, the schools were definitely separated, but unquestionably unequal. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 overturned Plessy V. Ferguson which not only led to African Americans having better schools, but also allowed them to learn with their Caucasian peers.
The strength of the African American culture lies within its ability to rely on itself, which, one can argue, can be a successful model (Dressler et al. 2008). However, with this reliance comes an attachment to old school mentalities of thinking. For example, if heart disease was not a problem for a previous generation, then there is no incentive to educate future generations about the dangers and risks. This mentality is very evident in the mentality of modern African American communities (Dressler et al., 2008).
In order for racial equality to exist, African Americans must feel as though their needs had been met. They were fighting for economic equality, being able to vote without intimidation, termination of segregated public transport and places, to change attitudes, and the extinction of day to day discrimination on the whole. Although all these factors were covered by the Civil Rights campaign it is questionable as to what extent they were covered; and whether racial equality had been achieved by 1965. Before the Civil Rights campaign came about, the economic and social rights for black American's was almost non-existent. Black unemployment rates seemed to remain constantly higher than the corresponding sums for white people and even if they were successful in finding a job they wouldn't usually receive equal pay.
“Sociology cannot and should not be a science”. To what extent do sociological arguments and evidence support this view? JANUARY 29, 2012 2 COMMENTS Sociologists such as Auguste Comte (1798) are impressed by science in explaining the natural world. These sociologists are called positivists. Positivists believe it’s possible to apply methods of natural sciences in study of society and by doing so we gain true and objective knowledge of the same type found in natural sciences.
But it was all worth it. There have been many benefits of the civil rights act. Opportunities that normally would not have been available, like getting an education, receiving non discriminated employment, and being able to participate in society without fear of reprisal and fear of hate groups. Although there is little discrimination today we are in danger of regressing. We have made great strides in the fact that currently we have a black president.
The Second World War was a turning point for African Americans in the struggle for civil rights because they gained respect from most whites, but only to a certain extent. It helped them to get the vote, but outside the southern states suffered from de facto segregation, Southern states suffered from De Jero segregation and Jim Crow Laws, but they started to gain respect from some whites. The Second World War was a turning point for African Americans as it showed equality, however, voting rights did not necessarily result in the number of black votes within a constituency boundary. In 1945, there were only two black members of Congress, Representative William Dawson from Chicago, and Adam Clayton Powell, who had been elected to Congress in 1944 because newly drawn constituency boundaries ensured that Harlem’s quarter of a million blacks would be able to elect a black man to the House of Representatives. So, even though they took a step forward in equality outside of the south, it didn’t really help that much as they couldn’t do much with the vote because of the attitudes shown towards blacks from whites.
There were several committee chairmen who were southern Democrats and as Biles wrote, “the strength of southern Democrats in Congress dictated the president’s reluctance to challenge the South’s racial customs” (175). The New Deal programs that were created during the first part of Roosevelt’s term did very little for blacks and racial discrimination was widespread. Blacks were being paid less than whites in all of FERA’s programs, even though they said that racial discrimination was forbidden. The WPA did seem to help a little more that FERA, but as Biles notes, “Although the WPA proved a godsend for thousands of poverty-stricken blacks, they never received the benefits their percentage of the unemployed warranted” (179). I believe that it was because of Eleanor Roosevelt that changes really started to take place.
Democracy, Equality and Emancipation in the Historical Evolution of America In my opinion democracy can not exist without equality among people, and equality too can only be obtained if all citizens have the opportunity of education, because education is the key for a stable society. It is safe to say that some of the most controversial problems in the history of the United States are related to slavery, racial segregation and racial discrimination. African Americans did not gain full recognition of their rights until the early 1970's. Since then, however, some improvement has been made as much politically as economically, although the pace of these changes has been certainly slow. In 1776 the Declaration of Independence announced that the thirteen states of America declared themselves independent, thus no longer being part of the British Empire.
Many believe that because of our nations progress regarding racial issues, that racism is no longer a problem or even roadblock in people’s lives. This seems to be pure ignorance and even racism on most people’s part, whether it be intentional or not. Now while the advancements in our society have been great, racism is still very much alive today, and I think WEB DuBois would share a similar opinion. Concerning pay inequity, not only gender but race is a huge factor in the wage gap. A black man and a white man can have the same job and the white man can still be paid more.
Racism among the social majority in society today is largely subconscious, because the majority neither suffers from racism as frequently, nor do they usually attribute their problems to racism. The Civil Rights Movement, beginning in the 1950’s, arose from a black community that was fed up with hatred and intolerance. Stores, restaurants, and other businesses refused service to people of color, and the difference in job opportunities between races was staggering. Near the end of the Civil Rights Movement in 1961, President Kennedy signed into law Executive Order 10925, which stated that job applicants could not be discriminated against based on “race, creed, color, or national origin.” A similar change in constitutionalism arose