The Melting Pot In 20th Century America

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The term melting pot is a metaphor that is used to describe a place where different types of people live together and progressively become one community. America is considered to be a melting pot and throughout the past of America more cultures were being introduced to the country. In the 20th century America used the term melting pot to describe the life amongst the people. The title can be enticing to people seeking a new home where people are looked as equal amongst each other. Once people started to migrate from their home to come live in America they began to recognize how living in America can be a lot different than their old home. The idea of living a whole new lifestyle can be very intriguing to people seeking to try a culture different …show more content…

People saw slaves differently based on their skin color and only saw them as useful for being used as free labor and nothing more. This early incident in the past foreshadowed a future of segregation. In the year 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. held a march for African American citizens to take part in to protest that African American citizens deserve the right to vote. The march took place on the Edmund Pettus Bridge that connects Selma, Alabama to Montgomery, Alabama. The government responded by using police brutality to set a statement for the peaceful protestors. Police officers were lined up on the opposite side of the bridge armed with batons and guns waiting for the protestors to march on the bridge. Shortly after the protestors were spotted on the bridge police officers attacked and beat the protestors who did not fight back. After the news reported the police brutality that was occurring in Selma, Alabama people started to realize the hate towards African Americans has gone too far. However, to this day there are still hate crimes that many people believe are based on a person’s skin color. In August of …show more content…

In Wilson v. Ferguson people were torching the city down to the ground and shooting at police officials who were armed with rubber bullets. Even though people who belonged to the African American descent believed that they deserve equal rights. The people who were rioting in Ferguson, Missouri seem greedy that they want to look at only one side of the case and not both. Ex-Officer Darren Wilson retired from the force after the verdict was made in the case. The government cannot handle every situation that happens they have to focus on larger issues for America as a whole. During August of 2014 America was in a war with terrorism over sees in Afghanistan. People started to recognize that cases like the Michael Brown incident, for example a 19 year old white boy, and Zachary Hammond was gunned down in Seneca, South Carolina. The officer who shot Hammond was am African American police officer gunned down Hammond while the officer was conducting a drug search. The officer said that he shot Hammond in self-defense. However, the officer had his weapon drawn when approaching Hammond’s vehicle on foot and was in suspicion of a narcotics-type violation. A small amount of marijuana was found in the front passenger’s compartment in Hammond’s car. Crimes similar to the Michael Brown case happen to people in every culture this case happened a year after the Michael

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