What was Race Uplift for African Americans - Essay Example

The African American population represents the multiracial characteristics of the American society. Earlier, the African Americans were forced to undergo a number of problems like racial segregation, discrimination, marginalization, slavery and forced labor. Earlier, the African Americans were forced to undergo a number of problems like racial segregation, discrimination, marginalization, slavery and forced labor. Within this scenario, the efforts undertaken by the African American leaders helped the African Americans to consider that gaining legal rights can solve the problems faced by them.

To be specific, African Americans considered that equality in the mainstream society can help them to attain race uplift. Thesis statement: Within the context of African American activism, race uplift is interconnected with the unending effort to gain legal, political, economic and social rights, and the contributions of the African American leaders are most important because the same helped them to move towards development, in general. African Americans and race uplift First of all, the history of African American activism is linked with the problems faced by the African Americans in the mainstream society.

Earlier, the African Americans were not aware of the fact that legal rights can be gained by the means of activism. Gradually, the African Americans came to realize the fact that idleness cannot solve their problems. So, some of the African Americans decided to protest against slavery. This revolutionary spirit originating from helplessness was most important for the African American race uplift in future. Michael Ezra stated that, “In terms of African American self-help initiatives, in the decades that followed Reconstruction, a generation of “race uplift” black American leaders emerged, whether integrationist, Pan-African nationalist, back-to-Africa proponents, or Nation of Islam separatist” (2).

Within this context, Emancipation Proclamation was an important initiative from the side of the government. Henceforth, the African American population came to realize that gaining legal rights can lead the community towards political liberation, a key factor behind race uplift. The Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement helped the African Americans to gain a number of rights. To be specific, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped the African Americans to be away from discrimination in the society.

So, one can easily identify the fact that African Americans considered race uplift as a means to attain their ultimate aim, i.e., equality in the society. To be specific, race uplift of African Americans is not limited to the context of their community, but extends to the context of activism aiming to gain legal, political, economic and social rights in the society. Major contributors of African American race uplift: The political leaders, social reformers, human rights activists, and civil rights leaders were the major contributors of African American race uplift.

For instance, the leaders, reformers, and activists like Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Booker Taliaferro Washington, Mary Jane McLeod Bethune, etc are generally considered as the major contributors of African American race uplift. One can see that the African Americans leadership is an amalgamation of different classes in the community. For instance, the African American political leaders considered that political liberation can help the African Americans to be in the forefront of development.

On the other side, the African American social reformers considered that gaining social rights can accelerate the progress of African American community. The African American human rights activists and civil rights leaders worked for the community to educate the members on the importance of rights and duties in the society. So, one can see that the contributors of the African American race uplift worked hard to accelerate the upward mobility of the African Am