Civil Rights Movement America example essay topic

The Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a period of time when African Americans attempted to gain their constitutional rights of which they were being deprived. The movement has occurred from the 1950's to the present, with programs like Affirmative Action. Many were upset with the way the civil rights movement was being carried out in the 1960's. As a result, someone assassinated the leader of the movement, Martin Luther King Jr. Many African Americans were infuriated at this death so there were serious riots in almost 100 cities. President Johnson then appointed a committee called The Kerner Commission to study the civil rights movement.

They concluded the following: 'We are moving toward two societies-one white and one black, separate and unequal. ' Despite their conclusion the whole the civil rights movement has been a success because African Americans are better off now than they were before it began. Overall the movement was a success because African Americans have achieved more politically than before they began. Before the movement, blacks had almost no political power due to laws designed to prevent blacks from voting, like poll taxes, literacy tests and the Grandfather Clause.

Also when some blacks went to vote, people simply wouldn't let them register. Due to lack of voting ability, no blacks were elected into office and therefore, African Americans had no say in the government. Also, blacks were not allowed to serve on juries, yet they were almost always found guilty in court, even if the evidence was clearly against them. For example, years ago a boy in Georgia broke into a school to steal an ice cream. While he should have gotten a few hours of community service, he got three years in jail just because he was black. A truth to the Kerner Commission report that occurs today is that African Americans are not being represented proportionally in Congress.

While 12% of U.S. citizens are black, there is nowhere near this number in the senate. This is a failure because blacks should be represented better, because it is their right to have a sufficient say in government. However, the civil rights movement was more of a success because African Americans got the vote. The 24th amendment outlawed the Poll tax, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects the rights of all citizens to vote, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 ended literacy tests and let the Federal government register voters to make sure that they aren't discriminated against. Because of this new political power they have obtained, blacks have the ability to elect other blacks to represent them. There are over four times as many African Americans in office today, than before the movement.

This helped them because they could have a representative to speak for them. A few years ago, an African American named David Dinkies was elected mayor of one of the largest cities in America, New York. In 1968, Chris am became the first black woman in the House of Representatives and in 1984, Jesse Jackson ran for president. All this is a success because one of their goals was to have political power and equal opportunity.

A second reason why the civil rights movement was politically more of a success than a failure is due to the fact that blacks are better off in the courts than they were. Now, African Americans are allowed to serve on juries, and they are hardly ever discriminated in court as opposed to when you would go a trial as a mere technicality before being sent to prison. Today there are law such as that as hate crime laws that prevent singling out of someone because they area different race or ethnicity than you. African Americans are a vibrant vital part of this country and without there equal rights won through the civil rights movement America would not be what it is today..