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Part One
The Impacts of the Civil Rights Movement
The civil rights movement in the 20th century was significant in reducing racial segregation in America. The works of the civil rights movements aimed at eliminating social injustices and racial discrimination within the general American society. Many factors, therefore, played a very critical role in supporting the works of civil rights activists. An example of these factors includes the court ruling of Brown verse Board of Education. A critical analysis of the impacts of this court ruling on the rights of the black Americans, it can be noted that the lives and the general integration of the black American lives have considerably changed in many parameters. Considering the current world, reduced discrimination, almost equitable employability, and integration of people with color and whites are some of the results of the efforts of the civil rights movement.
According to (“The Supreme Court . Expanding Civil Rights . Primary Sources | PBS”), Brown Verses Board of Education is one of the most important cases which played a critical role in launching the civil rights movements. At the center of the case was Linda Brown, eight years old who had traveled for more than one hour to attend black children’s school. It was very legal at the time for public schools to separate white and black students provided the facilities were equal. Linda’s father was dissatisfied with this law and advocated for the possibility of black children to attend white schools in case they were closer. White schools objected to his thoughts, and this prompted Linda’s father together with other activists to take action. The result was the court case between Brown and the Board of education.
Brown’s case was significant and is the main turning point that spearheaded the nature of racial desegregation currently witnessed in many American schools. Even though the case did not directly result in racial desegregation in schools, the case had much broader impacts in terms of achieving racial integration in various schools in America. The court case propelled actions by renowned activists such as Rosa Parks and her participation in the Montgomery, the bus boycott (“Message to Grassroots – Teaching American History”). These actions even motivated new court cases such as Gayle Verses Browder demanded that demanded the abolition of segregation in the transport system. The Brown versus Board of Education also served as a critical legal underpinning that would play an essential role in other court cases and other laws for civil rights which were passed in the decades that followed (“Letter From a Birmingham Jail | The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute”). The court case generally generated reactions among the general black American community who felt that there was a certain level of unfairness in the way people with color were being treated within the American society. Many black people took a harsh stand against racial discrimination despite brutal treatment by the police force, and these efforts are some of the actions that catapulted the course for change within the general American society (“Letter to Martin Luther King – Teaching American History”). In a nutshell, Brown versus Board of Education is an impactful case in the fight for change in the American system by the Civil Rights Movement.
Since the Brown versus Board of Education case, an evaluation is done on whether the goals of the civil rights movements have been achieved. An analysis of the efforts reveals that the Civil Rights movement has brought considerable change to American society. Considerable progress has been made in terms of racial relations within the United States and certain parts of the world. There exist great disparities in terms of the achievements of the goals of the civil rights movements (Blanc and Yates). A few black Americans think that the goals of the Civil rights movements have been achieved. According to a recent survey on the impacts of the Civil Rights Movement 50 years since Martin Luther King was killed, only 10% of black Americans believe that the goal of the movement has been achieved. The survey also affirms that many Americans ha still divided on race (Blanc and Yates). Less than forty percent of black Americans believe that the goals of the civil rights movements have not been entirely achieved. From these findings, it is still clear that many people in America still believe that there exist some levels of racial disconnect in America.
There exists a division concerning the effects of the civil rights movements within America. It can generally be noted that most black Americans believe that there is some level of racial segregation within American. More than 60% of black Americans have reiterated that there is deterioration in racial relations in America. In comparison to the belief by the white Americans, a huge percentage of whites believe that the goals of the Civil rights movements have been achieved. Despite the variations in the views shared by both the white and black Americans, It can generally be deduced that there is lower levels of discrimination in terms of racial relations in America. The impacts of the civil rights movements can also be reviewed in terms of the equalities seen in Media. Despite most blacks still disagreeing on the issue of equality in media and politics representations, great steps have been made with the creation of fairness regarding the participation of back people in politics and participation in media. A great revelation of these steps is when Barack Obama become the Forty-Fourth President of the United States. Comparing the current status of American society to events to fifty years ago, it is crystal clear that a lot has been achieved in terms of the goals of the Civil rights movement.
The impacts of the civil rights movement are also reviewed on the issue of income and equality. Even though disparities still exist in pay levels between whites and blacks, many experts do agree that the civil rights movement has achieved some of its goals. Pay disparity is still a new course that must still be addressed though it has reduced considerably in comparison to the past decades. With continued efforts by civil rights activists, there is still great positivity in pushing forward, and more changes are expected to take place in the future in advocating for equality within American. It must be admitted that many challenges still exist but and should be addressed in moving forward.
Part Two
Process Paper
I chose this topic mainly because of my thoughts on how the efforts of the Civil Rights activists have helped shaped this topic. I felt that this is a more practical topic, and it would help me evaluate the opinions and views shared by members of my family and other people in America. I thought that this topic was critical in sharing my opinions on how the American society has changed. I had initially watched a documentary about Martin Luther King, and it greatly changed my life and how I generally view American racism. I felt that choosing this topic would help me to learn more about the issue of racial disparity in America. I think that this topic will inspire people by devising solutions and ways that can be supportive and helpful in tackling the main challenges currently faced in the issues related to racism in America.
While conducting research work about the topic, I reviewed many existing primary sources, including the existing documentation of the court ruling of Brown verse Board of Education. These sources were helpful in evaluating the impacts of the case and drawing comparisons to what is experienced in America today on the subject of racisms. I also drew a lot of information from existing surveys on the black and white Americans and how they generally felt on the issue of racism. To support these existing information, I engaged many classmates and other individuals, both blacks and whites, to give their own opinion on the issue of racism in America. All these sources were very critical in terms of drawing factual information and data concerning the topic of discussion.
I chose this project type because I felt that it would help me research on real issues affecting America. I felt that this project type would also be critical in terms of advancing my knowledge on the issues related to racism and how to avoid it within the America n society. The projects thus a motivating one, and I felt that my research would contribute positively to bringing solutions going forward as one of the efforts of minimizing disparities in racial relations between the two colors.
Works Cited
Blanc, Paul Le, and Michael D. Yates. A Freedom Budget for All Americans: Recapturing the Promise of the Civil Rights Movement in the Struggle for Economic Justice Today. Google Books, NYU Press, 1 Aug. 2013, books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=KDkUCgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA7&dq=the+impacts+of+the+civil+rights+movement+today&ots=jzhS4JRevB&sig=sQixR_zbxLGpvAQiVGxfBrfxZSg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=the%20impacts%20of%20the%20civil%20rights%20movement%20today&f=false. Accessed 21 Apr. 2020.
“Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka I and II.” Teaching American History, teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/brown-v-board-of-education-of-topeka-i-and-ii-excerpts/. Accessed 21 Apr. 2020.
“Letter From a Birmingham Jail | The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute.” Stanford.Edu, 2014, kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/letter-birmingham-jail.
“Letter to Martin Luther King – Teaching American History.” Teaching American History, 2019, teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/letter-to-martin-luther-king/.
“Message to Grassroots – Teaching American History.” Teaching American History, 2013, teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/message-to-grassroots/.
“The Supreme Court . Expanding Civil Rights . Primary Sources | PBS.” Www.Thirteen.Org, www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/sources_document8.html. Accessed 21 Apr. 2020.