Compare And Contrast The Civil Rights Movement In The 1950's And 1960s

Africans Americans weren’t getting much respect or equality with the whites since 1619, the year when the first African slaves were shipped to Virginia. In 1954, the civil rights movement of African Americans to achieve equal rights such as, housing, jobs and education. Many other events during the civil rights movement timeline, 1954-1968, made the movement stronger. Such as the Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat and got arrested in 1955, which started the Montgomery bus boycott by Martin Luther King Jr.

Throughout the American 1960’s there was a Civil Rights Movement. This movement gained a lot of traction within a short amount of time through many people. There were two leaders with opposing tactics but had the same goal reined in the movement. One leader was Martin Luther King with the tactic of Nonviolent Civil Disobedience and integration. The second leader was Malcolm X with the tactic to fight back and to have the communities better themselves by being separate.

The Civil Rights Movement began around 1942-1968. The main goal and focus of The Civil Rights movement was the elimination of segregation and for all African Americans to have equal rights and the same opportunities (Gates Jr.). Important leaders that were involved in this movement included individuals such as Dr.King, Malcolm X, and Rosa Parks who all made a huge impact in the movement (Janken). During The Civil Rights Movement many African Americans were mistreated in various ways. For example many civic leaders and general citizens were beaten by police officers for simply trying to vote.

The Civil Rights Movement inspired racial harmony between blacks and whites in America. The Movement was led by many leaders and activists. Some of the biggest leaders/activists were Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. They both had different philosophies on how to earn freedom and civil rights. The big question is whose philosophy was better in the 1960s. Martin Luther King believed that blacks and whites should join together as one country, but the only way to achieve that was through nonviolence.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a US federal law was establishes to protect the employees from discrimination in the workplace, especially when they are applying for a job. It is unlawful for an individual to be fired in his or her job or even refuse to be hired due to his or her race, gender, sexuality, race, color, religion as well as nationality. More than that, the Supreme Court of the United States upheld this Act as a valid exercise of the Congressional power. This Act is an example of rule of law as it prohibits the private discrimination in the public areas. In fact, as a rule of law it measures the protection of individual’s base from the fundamentals of the human rights.

The 1950s and 1960s were a time of great social change. There was a rising call for equality among many factions of Americans. Immigrants, women, and African-Americans all began to stand up and demand more rights. Arguably the biggest movement for equality during the ‘50s and ‘60s was the African-American civil rights movement. The non-aggressive civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King was more effective than the aggressive civil rights movement led by Malcolm X because the members of the non-aggressive civil rights movement broke common stereotypes of African-Americans and provided a stark contrast between themselves and the violent white ruling class, while the aggressive civil rights movement created and reinforced negative stereotypes

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was not the only law that benefited African Americans and showcased their success with the uplifting movement. After the violence in Selma the government felt like they had to do something to protect their citizens, so they decided to write the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to help African Americans officially earn the right to vote (Landau). This was a major decision for the government but overall it gave the movement the recognition it deserved for creating such a powerful impact on treatment of African Americans. Thanks to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 many African Americans were able to vote and many African Americans were also put into office because of this one law (Landau 39). The United States would now have African Americans in powerful and important positions in the government instead of just whites.

Originally, African Americans had to be segregated and weren’t even allowed to vote. In 1965 after the Montgomery March, Lyndon B Johnson passed the Voting Rights Act, and later in 1968 both the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the Fourteenth Amendment were passed. The Fourteenth Amendmendment said that “all persons born of naturalized in the United States” could legally vote. These acts got rid of literacy tests, and in 1968, when Nixon became president (Document H), there was over two times the amount of African American voters than there was in 1960 (Document G). African Americans also gained large support from a president, John F. Kennedy, which wasn’t something anyone had expected looking back at how past presidents acted.

These laws were hard to get around and go through because many African Americans did not have the money to afford the poll tax and many could not pass the literacy tests because they were not provided with adequate education. In addition, many African American’s grandparents were in enslavement, therefore unable to vote. These inabilities, segregation, and discrimination caused African Americans to be upset and start the Civil Rights Movement and made them want to fight for the rights and goals that they believed in. They would fight until they were satisfied with justice coming about and prevailing (Document 3). They would fight back with peaceful protests and marches.

The unity and determination that made the civil rights movement one of the most successful movements in American history, was achieved after a long period of division and internal conflicts. The reason behind these conflicts the new ideologies that were gaining popularity, with leaders like Malcolm X and Martin Luther king promoting opposite ways of approaching violence and gaining equality. Malcolm X promoted a movement in favor of self-defense and violence, with the target of achieving equality by any means necessary, in contrast to Martin Luther King’s nonviolent ideology inspired by the teachings of Gandhi. Due to the difference of ideology and beliefs of these two leaders, the black community had a period of division in a time when unity

The Black power movement was more than just a raised fist. It was an influential movement established in the 1960s, and began to slow down in the 70s, it promoted self-sufficiency among the black and African community, and they fought for equality and power among those who faced discrimination in society. The Civil Rights Movement and the Black Power Movement were two different movements with very similar motives, but different ways of going about their fight for equality. Symbolism played a significant role in representing the Black Power Movement, and helped unify the group by using one symbol that all recognized. The movement began as a reaction to the Civil Rights Movement and continued into the 1970s as a force for good.

Many of the well known activists are Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Booker

Introduction The story of the Civil Rights Movements of African Americans in America is an important story that many people knew, especially because of the leadership Martin Luther King Jr. Black people in America, between 1945 and 1970 had to fight for rights because they had been segregated by white people, they didn’t have equal laws compared to white people. So they initiated the Civil Rights Movements to fight for getting equal civil rights.

The African American Civil Rights movement existed at large between the early fifties and the late sixties in a society that was constantly on the verge of social destruction. The black rights movement existed politically, socially, and economically everywhere in the United States. As time progressed the movement developed and saw many changes along with schisms separating activists and how they approached getting their rights. In the early fifties there was a large non-violent integration based movement spearheaded by figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. However, as the time progressed, the movement started seeing a more aggressive leadership with figures such as Malcolm X, but eventually it turned into an extremist movement

After a fifty mile fight, Selma to Montgomery, African Americans finally reached the finish line, and voting was achievable for all. It was not easy though. After 250 years of slavery the civil war made everyone free. The reconstruction followed, in efforts to make things equal for everyone, but Plessy v. Ferguson was a setback. It started the “separate but equal” concept, and life was segregated for 60 years.