DHL and the men could not reach an agreement, therefore, on behalf of the federal government, the EEOC helped to process the charges and pursue litigation. The EEOC has filed racial discrimination charges against DHL. African Americans have been the subject of discrimination since the 1600s when they were brought to America as slaves. From 1890 to 1940 the Jim Crow laws enacted throughout The United States openly segregated Black and White Americans in public places. Black Americans were publically beaten, frightened, and even killed (Magar, 2010).
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
The arrest of Rosa Parks has acted as the trigger as the African-Americans’ community felt it couldn’t handle racism anymore. It is true that maybe she was seen by the NAACP as a safer test case, but it wasn’t just that. A few weeks before another woman’s babies fell off the seats that supposedly were for white people as the driver hit the accelerator. After Parks’ arrest, the NAACP, the Black Alabama State College, the Women’s Political Council, and eventually the church, all clubbed together. This proves that this incident has hugely mobilised the people, which is arguably the most important success.
Freedom Summer During the summer of 1964, there became a highly publicized campaign in the south to register African Americans to vote. There were thousands of civil rights activists who descended on Mississippi and other southern states to try and end the long-time political disownment of African Americans. When African Americans gained to right to vote there was not much change. Many African Americans were denied the access to register to just even become a voter. This is what one part of Freedom Summer was about.
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.
Martin Luther King spoke over 2,500 times and led marches and nonviolent demonstrations for black people to vote, desegregation, labor and other basic civil rights for all. In his famous speech “ I have a dream” he shared his vision of equal rights all around the world. In his later days He kept fighting for what he believed in even after being threatened constantly, arrested, and having his house bombed. He kept fighting for human rights up to April 4th 1968, when he was assassinated on his hotel balcony. Martin Luther King has become an inspiration to many around the world; he is the global citizen of the
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.
“Daybreak of Freedom”, p.25) The segregation law of the bus system was one of the major areas of resentment among Montgomery blacks in that times. They constituted 60% of the bus clientele but very often faced oppressive conditions on buses. Derogatory names such as “nigger”, “black cow” and “black ape” were used by the bus drivers on regular basis, all of who were white. Sometimes blacks were asked to pay their fares in the front of the bus and then walk to the back door to board
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.