For example the Brown case of 1954 which overturned the Plessy vs fergueson case which stated that it was fine to be segregated if it is ‘Separate but equal’. This would be hugely influential in improving the lives of Black Americans as it meant that the clause could no longer be manipulated in different areas of life such as unequal public facilities such as transport and education due to the De Jure change. However the success of the NAACP was not a great success as it did not change De Jure victories into De Facto. An example is just after they won the Brown case, the NAACP had to fight another case in the courts which claimed that desegregation in education would occur ‘with all deliberate speed.’ This limited the improvement for Black Americans as it was too vague to enforce change, this was shown when in 1955 fewer than 750 out of 6300 schools in the South were desegregated. It also led to a greater opposition to civil rights on a local level with the creation of the White Citizens council, boasting 60000 members by 1955 which were later successful in intimidating Black Americans and ensuring that De Jure could not be enforced to form De Facto change.
Although in most places in the north they’re was no longer rigid racial etiquette they were aloud to mix with whites, but it remained still that they were poorer and so lived in more undesirable places with poor living conditions so they never really mixed with white Americans anyway. This shows that the Second World War never really had an effect on the lives of African Americans because they still had to deal with major segregation in the south. Although the laws may have changed the attitudes of most White people didn’t change because they were so used to their standard ways of living. However there were changes of attitudes by the government as on December 5, 1946, Truman established by executive order the President’s Committee on Civil Rights. The committee was instructed to investigate the status of civil rights in the United States and propose measures to strengthen and protect the civil rights of American citizens.
But if we think about it, without the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act, things might have never of changed. African Americans could still be treated like slaves and not treated like human beings. America would still be a very segregated place. Freedom Summer was a very dark time in American history but all in all, America has turned out pretty good. It’s no doubt that America was not the most favorable place during this time period for most, if not all African Americans.
How far do you agree with the view that African Americans were treated as second class citizens between 1940 and 1946? This view is very accurate; African Americans were not offered the same political, economic or social opportunities and rights as white people, despite the terms of the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments. However, overall, treatment of African Americans was worse in the south. Political/ legal rights and opportunities were limited for African Americans due to their treatment as second class citizens. For example, in the south, Jim Crow laws were in place, meaning that everybody had to pass a literacy test and pay poll tax before they could vote.
All of this was put in place to ensure that it was incredibly difficult for African-Americans to improve their status. However, in 1947 President Truman released 'To Secure These Rights' which outlined the basic rights of all American citizens. This included jobs, homes, education, anti-lynching and voting rights but no legislation followed so there was very little impact. Despite this, Truman issued an executive order which ended discrimination in the Armed Forces which to an extent improved the status of African-Americans. Education was also a big factor resulting in limited progress of improving the status of African-Americans because they consistently received a lower standard of education.
Many proposed the end of racial segregation and the Jim Crow laws that limited their social rights like the Black Codes did. State laws that violated the 15th amendment, which promises that the right to vote cannot be denied on the basis of race, color or previous condition of servitude, were removed and the federal government response to the Ku Klux Klan’s violence were effective in diminishing he clan’s actions against African Americans. Better job opportunities were present up north, causing many to join the Great Migration to the northern states. The African American community continues to fight against racial segregation and discrimination to live a life of equal rights and
Therefore they had no rights as citizens. In the years after the war they did gain some improvements and began to protest for more, but by 1955 this was not enough to make a difference. Black Americans were subjected to segregation. The ‘Jim Crow’ laws meant that they had to use separate diners, separate schools and separate transport. This was
However, you could argue that although they had won the right to vote, segregation still continued throughout the South and lynchings and discrimination continued in the North. I would say that there was substantial change for blacks in the North as they were getting more highly paid and were starting to receive better education, although the lack of equality still remained between black and white Americans as black Americans were still being paid much less than white workers. I also believe that as there were many black campaigns and activists after the war, this could suggest that there was still a want for equality on the black Americans half which puts forward the idea that despite having helped fought for their country, they were still being treated as second class
History 1302 D. Goodrich 2/8/13 African Americans in Post-Civil War After the freeing of slaves in 1862, African-Americans after the war, things did not change that much. Laws were passed to help African-American during this time. More laws were passed against segregation in place like restaurants and other public places. Even with these laws being passed, African-Americans still experienced discrimination and racist people everywhere, and it would be a long time before things would change for them, even after being declared people with new found freedom. This rebuilding was supposed to give African-Americans a chance at a new and better life than what they had experienced in the past.
Corruption Based on Color Alveda King once said “Racism springs from the lie that certain human beings are less then fully human. It’s a self-centered falsehood that corrupts our minds into believing we are right to treat others as we would not want to be treated.” Unfortunately in 1930’s Alabama people treated others based on their skin color causing racism to be a reoccurring problem. Therefore, racism and segregation was harsh, and seemed never ending for African American citizens, even after slavery, but it could have been avoided if people treated other the way they wanted to be treated. Segregation or “separation of the races,” was one of the many ways for people to promote racism in the 1930’s (Novak, Julie). Birmingham, Alabama was one of the most tightly segregated cities at the time (“Alabama”).