African-Americans Struggle to End Segregation - Research Paper Example

? History and Political Science: African-American’s Struggle to End Segregation and number submitted Abstract As indicated, the purpose of the Final Paper is to provide an opportunity to analyze a major social, economic, military, and technological issue since the Civil War, trace its significance over time, and examine the ways in which it contributed to an “ending of isolation” in the United States. Accordingly, a central theme of this course is the “end of isolation” which the textbook describes in relationship to technology, politics, military, culture, and society. At times, the ending of isolation has resulted of periods of tension and struggle. In this regard, the essay will describe the historical context of each question within the topic and trace the significance of this issue over time from 1865 to the present. Further, the discourse would present an assessment of the challenges involved in the ending of this isolation, as well as the key people involved in the struggles. African-American’s Struggle to End Segregation Introduction The issue of racial inequality that typecast African Americans through time continues to be controversial in nature and perspectives. Diverse scholars, historians and philosophers have delved into the historical travails of African Americans since these people have felt not only isolation, but the more drastic prejudice and discrimination due to color and roots of existence. The rich legacy of the story of struggles and triumphs of this race in American history is, in itself, a remarkable feat. In this regard, the aim of the current research is to provide an opportunity to analyze a major social, economic, military, and technological issue since the Civil War, trace its significance over time, and examine the ways in which it contributed to an “ending of isolation” in the United States. Accordingly, a central theme of this course is the “end of isolation” which the textbook describes in relationship to technology, politics, military, culture, and society. At times, the ending of isolation has resulted of periods of tension and struggle. In this regard, the essay will describe the historical context of each question within the topic and trace the significance of this issue over time from 1865 to the present. Further, the discourse would present an assessment of the challenges involved in the ending of this isolation, as well as the key people involved in the struggles. The essay would hereby proffer pertinent highlights of African American’s pursuit and determination in ending of isolation through time. Historical Background August (2009) has clearly indicated that to understand racial inequality, there is a need to trace the roots of oppression in America. As averred, “race and racial inequality have powerfully shaped American history from its beginnings. Americans like to think of the founding of the American colonies and, later, the United States, as driven by the quest for freedom – initially, religious liberty and later political and economic liberty. Yet, from the start, American society was equally founded on brutal forms of domination, inequality and oppression which involved the absolute denial of freedom for slaves” (August, 2009, p. 1). The mindset of the white race typecast African Americans then, as slaves, and therefore inferior and subordinate. Lawson (2010) emphasized that “racial segregation was a system derived from the efforts of white Americans to keep African Americans in a subordinate status by denying them equal access to public facilities and ensuring that blacks lived apart from whites” (Lawson, 2010, par. 1). As expounded, before the Civil Rights movement, African Americans were geographically located only in the Northern and Upper Southern parts of the United States. Further, there was a Supreme Court ruling under “Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) that African Americans were not U.S. citizens, northern whites had excluded blacks from seats on public transportation and barred their entry, except as servants, from most hotels and restaurants. When allowed into auditoriums and theaters, blacks occupied separate sections; they also attended segregated schools. Most churches, too, were segregated” (Lawson, 2010, par. 1). The timeline of chronological events produced by Grant and Dvorak (2000) supported Lawson’s contention and indicated that during the 1880s and stretching to the 1890s a set of laws, known as the Jim Crow Laws were passed throughout the Southern part. As revealed, “these statutes effectively segregated Black Americans into separate railroad cars, schools, churches, hospitals, hotels, and eating facilities, and took away their right to vote through the implementation of Grandfather Clauses, poll taxes, literacy tests, property requirements, and other discriminatory regulations” (Varney, 1996, par. 1; cited in Grant & Dvorak, 2000). In the article that discussed African Americans after Reconstruction, the following highlights were noted: DATE/EVENTS HIGHLIGHTS Civil Rights Act of 1875 Prohibition of racial discrimination were enacted specifically in the following locations: hotels, railroads, and theaters. 1883 The Supreme Court invalidated the Civil Rights Act of 1875 for addressing social issues rather than civil rights. 1896 Upholding of Jim Crows Laws by the Supreme Court through the Plessy v. Ferguson case where the decision focused on the “separate but equal doctrine, which stated that segregation in itself did not violate the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, provided the facilities for blacks and whites were equal” (Cliff Notes, 2011, par. 2). After 1890s AllSouthern Blacks were reported to have lost their rights to Vote “through measures such as poll taxes, literacy tests, and the white primary” (Lawson, 2010, par. 7). Next 50 years The prevailed practice of racial segregation remains “reinforced by disfranchisement, official coercion, and vigilante terror” (Lawson, 2010, par. 7). 1913 Imposition of racial segregation in government offices under the presidency of Woodrow Wilson (which was only reversed during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1930s) World War II Exposed the prejudices and discrimination among races from the experience of the Nazi regime. 1948 “President Harry S. Truman issued an executive order desegregating the armed forces, thus reversing a longstanding practice” (Lawson, 2010, par. 8). 1954 “Supreme Court justices in Brown v. the Board of Education reversed Plessy and decided that legally sanctioned racial segregation was inherently unequal and a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment” (Lawson, 2010, par. 8). 1964 Civil Rights Movement tore down segregation and “forbade discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race in hiring, promoting, and firing” (The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, N.D., par. 2). Effects of Segregation The discourse written by August (2009) has emphasized the effects of racial segregation, to wit: accordingly, racism paved the way for disadvantaging groups within the white society by dividing “popular social and political movements, undermining their capacity to challenge prevailing forms of power and inequality” (p.2). In addition, segregation has undermined the universal access to welfare. Lawson (2010) averred that “segregation was intended to debase African Americans, strip them of their dignity, reinforce their inequality, and maintain a submissive agricultural labor force” (par. 12). In short, segregation was the means to reinforce the superiority of the white race through isolating other races deemed and classified as inferior to them. Through segregating African Americans, the white race has manifested determination to preserve its racial purity and prevent African Americans from “having sexual relations with white women. Viewing miscegenation as the ultimate threat to the perpetuation of their superior racial stock, they often resorted to lynching black men for allegedly raping white women. In doing so, white men not only reinforced their control over blacks but also white women. They sought to maintain the virtue and chastity of their wives and daughters, reinforcing their patriarchal roles as husband, father, and ultimately guardian of their communities” (Lawson, 2010, par. 13). Methods to End Segregation The lessons that Lawson (2010) aimed to emphasize is that ending segregation required the crucial role of the government in both segregating and dismantling isolation in the United States. Through the enactment of different legislations through the Civil Rights Acts of diverse historical periods, it was eminent that state and federal governments have recognized the need to provide equal rights to African Americans. The process to desegregate was long and tedious and required “more than 20 years to institute” (Law.Jrank.org, 2011). The Civil Rights Acts initially aimed to end segregation through legislating the following: CIVIL RIGHTS ACTS/DATES LEGISLATIONS TO END SEGREGATION Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 Outlawed slavery Ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, 1865 Outlawed slavery Fourteenth (1868) and Fifteenth (1870) Amendments “extended fundamental civil rights such as due process and the right to vote to African Americans” (Law.Jrank.org, 2011, par. 1). Civil Rights Acts of 1866 and 1870 Equal rights were guaranteed for all residents under US jurisdication 1875 Civil Rights Act Prohibition of racial discrimination were enacted specifically in the following locations: hotels, railroads, and theaters 1896 separate but equal doctrine 1957 Civil Rights “segregation was no longer legal in any domain: educational institutions, transportation facilities, public places, housing complexes, or the voting booth” (Law.Jrank.org, 2011, par. 11). Civil Rights Act of 1964 “prohibited segregation in allprivately owned public facilities which were subject in any way to interstate commerce provisions. The Civil Rights Act prohibited discriminatory practices for public accommodations, facilities, education, and federally assisted programs and employment” (Law.Jrank.org, 2011, par. 13). Voting Rights Act, 1965 guaranteed African American suffrage Civil Rights, 1968 focused on dismantling housing discriminatory policies Key People Involved There have been instrumental personalities, whose active participation and involvement assisted in ending racial segregation. Among these people are Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., H. Rap Brown, and Huey Newton. Martin Luther King, Jr. was famous for working towards racial equality and in supporting the Civil Rights movement during the 1950s ( (Enchanged Learning.com, 2010). He was assassinated in 1968 in the midst of his commitment for racial desegregation and equality. Malcolm X, on the other hand, became a powerful member of the Black Muslims and a minister of the Nation of Islam where he contended that only blacks could work on solving the problems of blacks (Infoplease, 2007). From Martin Luther King’s pursuit for racial equality using more conservative methods, “newer groups such as the Black Muslims and Black Panthers elected leaders such as H. Rap Brown and Huey Newton who advocated Black Nationalism and revolution” (Law.Jrank.org, 2011, par. 14). Another person who was involved in the move to desegregate African Americans is Stokely Carmichael, “a leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), coins the phrase "black power" in a speech in Seattle (April 19, 1967)” (Infoplease, 2007). These people have increased awareness for the public to accept the need for racial equality and an end to racial segregation. Conclusion The final paper was successful in describing the historical context of the challenges and struggles faced by African Americans in responding to racial segregation over time from 1865 to the present. Further, the discourse presented an assessment of the challenges involved in the ending of this isolation, as well as the key people involved in the struggles. African American’s pursuit and determination in ending of isolation through time have been appropriately recorded and there have been famous people who were instrumental in assisting to gain freedom from isolation and bondage. However, different civil rights legislations through time would support the argument that state and federal governments have likewise contributed to ultimately putting an end to the racial segregation that pervaded the American society for centuries. References August, N. (2009). Chapter 14: Racial Inequality. Retrieved September 5, 2011, from http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~wright/ContemporaryAmericanSociety/Chapter%2014%20--%20Racial%20inequality--Norton%20August.pdf Cliff Notes. (2011). African?Americans after Reconstruction. Retrieved September 2, 2011, from http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/AfricanAmericans-after-Reconstruction.topicArticleId-25238,articleId-25185.html Enchanged Learning.com. (2010). Martin Luther King Jr. Retrieved September 4, 2011, from http://www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/MLK/ Grant, W., & Dvorak, K. (2000). The American 1890s: A Chronology. Retrieved September 2, 2011, from Bowling Green State University: http://www.bgsu.edu/departments/acs/1890s/chronology.html Infoplease. (2007). African-American History Timeline. Retrieved September 4, 2011, from http://www.infoplease.com/spot/bhmtimeline.html#AAH-1960 Law.Jrank.org. (2011). Segregation and Desegregation - Further Readings. Retrieved September 4, 2011, from Net Industries and its Licensors: http://law.jrank.org/pages/12496/Segregation-Desegregation.html Lawson, S. (2010). Segragation. Retrieved September 1, 2011, from http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/tserve/freedom/1865-1917/essays/segregation.htm The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. (N.D.). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Retrieved September 3, 2011, from http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/civil-rights-act/ Varney, B. (1996). The Inhumanity of Lynching. Retrieved September 1, 2011, from Bowling Green State University: http://www.bgsu.edu/departments/acs/1890s/lynching/lynching.html Read More