“We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal” is a very remarkable and powerful quote written by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Yet, over time there was a lot of controversy and disagreement on what this quote really meant. The Civil Rights movement evolved over time through Black Nationalism, Christianity and Gandhi’s Philosophy of non violence. These ideologies were a hug part in which leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks, Mahatma Gandhi fought for civil rights. There was no doubt that African Americans were getting mistreated and robbed of their rights but were they the only ones being segregated? The Civil Rights movement opened many people’s eyes when it …show more content…
Malcom X played a huge role in being the leader of this movement in giving various speeches and traveling around the world. Traveling to Cuba, Malcom X even showed Fidel Castro what African Americans were going through in the United States compared to the African Americans of Cuba in which racial segregation over there was non existent. Of course Malcom X was criticized by many as an extremist as he made the U.S look bad, causing the government to start taking action. The thought of racial superiority was a big part of Malcom’s philosophy and it would later influence gender superiority. Like the Civil Rights Movement, the Women’s Rights Movement had both middle ground people that fought for equality and extremist who believed that women were superior to men. Many people know about Rosa Parks and her refusal to give her seat up to a white man. Not only was it an outrage at that time because of racial differences but also gender inequality. She was not only a key participant of the Civil Rights Movement but she was also part of the Women’s Rights Movement. Although she wasn’t an extremist she fought for both gender and racial equality. The positive outcome of her bravery representing the progression of equality led her to be iconic in both …show more content…
For those African Americans that weren’t Christian, Ghandi’s philosophy of non violence was essentially one of their biggest principles to carry out in society. After the Brown v. Board Education decision that described segregated schools as unconstitutional, “In September 1957, when nine black students attempted to enroll at the all-white Central High School, Governor Orval Faubus called out the National Guard to bar them. Angry white mobs appeared daily to taunt the students, chanting “Go back to the jungle.” (Henretta et al, America’s History, 779). Even though some of these African Americans were being pushed and shoved they knew they couldn’t fight back and used their silent strategy for self defense. But this philosophy was widespread for African Americans across the nation and even the world. This successful strategy of non violence for the Civil Rights Movement pushed Rosa Parks and Maya Angelou to do the same for the Women’s Rights movement against domestic
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” These were the mighty words that Thomas Jefferson wrote down he developed his portion of the Declaration of Independence. Some people do not recognize Thomas Jefferson as one of the founding fathers, with other names like Ben Franklin and John Hancock being thrown around the room, but yet we should see him as the most important one. Thomas Jefferson was assigned to make a draft for the document. He chose to talk about how all men are equal and everybody deserves life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The declaration of independence is one of the most important documents in history and made all men equal, meaning one race is not superior to another. This influenced the public by making the black race have hope because now, they could see that one day they would be just as equal as...
Malcolm X should be everyone’s hero, someone people like myself should look up to as a human being. Anyone who thinks otherwise is either a racist or is extremely ignorant. Malcolm X wore his heart on his sleeve and whether right or wrong he was never afraid to say what was on his mind to anyone who cared to listen. I personally believe Malcolm X’s beliefs give me strength to do what's right and carry myself with dignity. I remember, as a kid, my parents had tons of books about Black History books. The first book I read was a Malcolm X biography. I realized Malcolm X was truly a powerful, significant, and essential work for all time.
Women had been “denied basic rights, trapped in the home [their] entire life and discriminated against in the workplace”(http://www.uic.edu/orgs/cwluherstory/). Women wanted a political say and wanted people to look at them the way people would look at men. in 1968, many women even protested the Miss America Beauty Pageant because it made it look that women were only worth their physical beauty. A stereotyped image was not the only thing they fought, “Women also fought for the right to abortion or reproductive rights, as most people called it” (http://www.uic.edu/orgs/cwluherstory/). These were the reason why the Women started the Women’s Liberation. African Americans, however, had different causes. After almost a century after the Emancipation Proclamation, black men are still being treated unfairly. They were being oppresed by the so-called “Jim Crow” laws which “barred them from classrooms and bathrooms, from theaters and train cars, from juries and legislatures” (http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/). They wanted equal rights, equal facilities and equal treatment as the whites. This unfairness sparked the African American Civil Right’s Movement. This unfairness was seen in the Women’s Liberation as well. Both were treated unfairly by the “superior”. Both wanted equal rights, from the men or whites oppressing them. They both wanted equal treatment and equal rights. During the actual movement
“All men are born free and with equal rights, and must always remain free and have equal rights,” (Thomas Jefferson) This is the famous statement made by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. He is being extremely hypocritical here considering he himself owned a near two hundred slaves. The slaves are still owned and treated as ‘property’. Thomas Jefferson did not have care for the slaves. The equalities discussed in the Declaration were not aimed to all men, they were aimed at specific white men. Frederick Douglass a former slave excellently asks in reaction to Jefferson; “Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?” What he means by “Us” is African American, it could also mean slave considering he was one. It is just so perfectly put because it is obvious the beliefs of Jefferson were not extended to African American’s or slaves. He continues on rather sarcastically “confess the benefits”, this is important because there was very little benefits. (Frederick Douglass, 1852,
The civil rights movement influenced the women’s liberation movement in four key ways. First, it provided women with a model for success on how a successful movement should organize itself. Second, the civil rights movement broadened the concept of leadership to include women. Third, by fighting for equality, the civil rights movement changed the culture of advocacy and made social justice a legitimate cause. Finally, by eventually excluding women, the civil rights movement spurred women to organize their own movement. Without the civil rights movement, the women’s movement likely would never taken off on its own.
“I don’t even call it violence when it’s in self defense; I call it intelligence.” were once words spoken from a man greatly known in the African American community. This man was Malcolm X. An expressive public speaker, with a charismatic personality, and an untiring organizer, Malcolm X expressed the pent up anger, frustration, and bitterness of African Americans during the major phase of the civil rights movement from 1955 to 1965. Malcolm X spoke of a violent revolution, which would bring about radical change for the black race, while a man with the name of Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out to all people. Martin Luther King Jr. promoted non-violence, civil rights, and the end to racial segregation, while Malcolm X dreamed of a separate nation for African Americans. Malcolm’s keen intellect, sharp wit, and passionate radicalism are clear in The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley. However Things such as his personality, his career and the impact that he’s had on history may have changed if certain key events in his life had been different.
The Civil Rights Movement is one of the most important events of the history of the United States. Although many people contributed to this movement, Martin Luther King, Jr., is widely regarded as the leader of the movement for racial equality. Growing up in the Deep South, King saw the injustices of segregation first hand. King’s studies of Mahatma Ghandi teachings influenced his views on effective ways of protesting and achieving equality. Martin Luther King’s view on nonviolence and equality and his enormous effect on the citizens of America makes him the most influential person of the twentieth century.
One very important figure at this time was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King had a dream and his dream still lives on now even decades later. Dr. King was a non violent Civil Rights leader. King wanted everyone to be treated equal all over the United States. He lead marches and gave many speeches. True freedom and equal rights was all black people wanted. Being equal meant having the choice to go where ever they wanted and do what ever they wanted no matter what color of skin they had, so this is a little of what the Civil Rights Movement was all about.
The 1950's and 1960's were a time of racial turmoil throughout most of the United States. Segregation between blacks and whites was still in full effect, African Americans had to drink from different water fountains, eat at different restaurants, and even shop at different stores than their Anglo "neighbors". Many people and organizations fought valiantly for equality in the U.S. such as Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King jr. and the NAACP. The roles they played were critical in the civil rights movement were critical, the actions they took included peaceful demonstrations and marches, public speeches, and boycotts such as the one that took place in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. One man stands out among all of these leaders though, Malcolm X. Although fighting for the same thing as his colleagues in the civil rights movements, he was considered by many to represent the more extreme side of the battle for equality in the United States. It is his standout views and beliefs that make Malcolm X one of the most prominent and fascinating African-American leaders in the 1950's and 60's.
The main argument of the Declaration of Independence was "All men were created equal" and there were certain unalienable rights that government should not violate which included that people have rights and freedom of life, liberty, and happiness. But if the government violates these rights then the people have the right to form their own society protecting their rights. Similarly, some of the people agreed with this point and some did not. When we read or hear the phrase by Jefferson, " All men are created equal", we tend to think that all the men and women, whites and blacks, all the races and colors are equal and are the creation of the god. But actually, this phrase disagreed because "All men are created equal" was written by Thomas Jefferson who owned 200 slaves and never set them free. Thus, we can predict that Jefferson phrase did not include any of the black people when he wrote this phrase. As a matter of fact, for Jefferson, the phrase meant all free men who owned property are created equal. As a result, the definition of equality was hard to find. In addition, the narrow definition created distinctions between free men vs slaves, women vs men, property owner vs debtors and much more. The phrase by Thomas Jefferson, "We hold this truth to be self-evident, that all men are created equal", but its conclusion is morally wrong. It is not true that black people are inferior to whites. This
When people think about organizations, leaders, activist, and world changers often times they do not correlate these titles and positions with women, let alone black women. When we think of social resistance movements and the leaders who operate the movements we often think of men. Many people in society think that a man is needed to construct, lead and run a social movement so that it can be affected enough to make a significant change. Stereotypical gender roles are the reason that many of us do not often think of women when we think about social resistance movements. However, African American women played a vital role in their organizations, they were powerful activist and they were adamant about addressing the many issues that black women face in society.
Of the people whose names are mentioned in history, some men like Thomas Edison are praised for their genius minds, while others such as Adolf Hitler are criticized for leaving a depressing legacy behind. While it is relative easy to notice the type of legacies these two men left, legacies of other men are often vague and they seem to be imbedded in gray shadows. This is how many people view the life of Malcolm X. Malcolm X during his lifetime had influenced many African Americans to step up for their rights against the injustices by the American government. One on hand, he has been criticized for his hard stances that resemble extremism, while on the other hand he has been praised him for his effort in raising the status for African Americans. The extremes in viewing his life from the modern day perspective have often come from reading his climatic speech The Ballot or the Bullet that he gave in many cities across America in 1964. When he was with the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X favored Blacks to be separated from the Whites, and during this time he strongly opposed White Supremacy. This also seems quite prevalent in his speech The Ballot or the Bullet. However, one events during the last year of his life reveal that he wanted the Blacks and the Whites to coexist as peaceful Americans.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” (Jefferson). Thomas Jefferson, a white, Christian, political southern slave owner, wrote these words in 1776, a period in United States history when slavery thrived. The writer of the Declaration of Independence contradicts himself when he states that all men are created equal, when in actuality, his slaves were denied all that humans were meant to cherish.
Throughout his education, Martin Luther King Jr. tried to find a way to demonstrate his belief of racial equality with the most effective means possible. He quickly realized that the best strategy to end segregation was to use nonviolent forms of protest. At Crozer, Morehouse and Boston University, he studied the teaching of Mohandas Gandhi, who used nonviolent methods to help India claim its independence from Britain. King read several books on the ideas of Gandhi, and eventually became convinced that his methods could be employed by African Americans to obtain equality in America. King knew that any violence on the part of African Americans would lead to violent responses from segregationists, which would lead to injury or maybe even death for his followers. He had to teach his followers not to respond violently to cruel attacks from segregationists. King decided to sponsor workshops to train African Americans in nonviolent beh...
When discussing the American Civil Rights Movement, the names that seem to come up are those of prominent black men. While these men did enormous amounts of good during this movement, there are many women who seem to be poorly represented or credited. Black women had a huge amount of influence during the Civil Rights Movement. While many of the protests and movements were led by men, the women were behind the scenes organizing and promoting and popularizing the ideas themselves. Many women were heavily involved in political organizations such as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and many others. Even if they were not directly involved in organizations, however, many black women became informal leaders of movements and/or enthusiastic participants. A few famous example of black women’s involvement are: Citizenship Schools in South Carolina, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, And various women’s involvement in political groups and organizations.