Civil Rights Movement Essay Example

In August 1963 thousands of Americans marched to Washington DC ( document 3). At the Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr delivered his ”I Have a Dream Speech” which was civil rights movement that successfully put things in motion. The civil rights movement was successful in getting public places, voting, and education attainable for African-Americans.

Just one year later in 1964, the civil rights act was passed, an excerpt from the act states «All persons shall be entitled to full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, and privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation, as defined in the section, without discrimination or segregation on the ground of race, color, religion, or national origin» (document 4). The civil rights movement forced the government to put forth a solution to the injustice of segregation.

However, the civil rights activists did not stop there. Another year passed and after more protesting the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed. An excerpt from the act declares «No voting qualification or prerequisites to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure shall be imposed or applied by any State or political subdivision to deny or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color» (document 4). The civil rights movement put forth an act of voting allowing thousands of African-Americans to vote on the person who would be representing them.

Furthermore, the civil rights movement also ensured African-Americans not separate but true education quality. Although some believed that the previous generation had the right idea in segregation. Georgia Wallace, Governor of Alabama, said in his inaugural speech of 1963 «…that today sound of the drum for freedom as have our generations of forebears before us done, time and time again through history» (document 2). Yet the generations before us also believed in equality for all. In the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas case the Supreme Court had concluded «…in the field of public education, the doctrine of “separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal…deprived of the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment»(document 1). In this case they fought for equality in education and succeeded.

Through various protests, marches and court cases the civil rights movements were triumphant. In just 3 short years the movements were successful in getting two acts passed. From one supreme court case true education equality had been achieved. After the civil rights movements, African-Americans had access to equal use of public places, voting rights, and education.

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