1965 Selma to Montgomery march - Essay Example

1965 Selma to Montgomery march The civil rights movements have been influential in United s for a long time.However, their prime years were in the 20th century. In this period, the United States had a strong emphasis on white supremacy at the expense of black American (U.S. History 1). The civil war that had taken place previously had failed to eradicate the social barriers created by some institutions (U.S. History 1). In the south, after the war, there was the creation of laws that only highlighted issues of whites at the expense of African American (U.S. History 1). The situation remained until the beginning of the second part of 20th century. At this period various institutions begun to be sensitive to African American demands. The greatest progress was the school integration ruling of 1954 by the Supreme Court (U.S. History 1). Later, there was a development of peaceful protest by Dr. Martin Luther King Junior. Consequently, this led to increased marches, boycotts, sit-ins, and freedom rides in both the American south and parts of north (U.S. History 1). Moreover, public opinions changed and showed a significant deal of sympathy towards the African Americans. However, there remained obstacles to complete racial equality. Although legal equality had made progress for African Americans, there was reduced economic equality and social acceptance (U.S. History 1). Consequently, this led to increased activism in the 1960s. Malcolm X, the Black Power Movement leader, advocated for the policy of non-violence, and he inspired most of the movements in this period (U.S. History 1). A reflection on the civil rights movements helps in highlighting the role of Selma to Montgomery marches. Various factors led to increased civil rights movement in the 20th century. First, there was increased rate of violence against African Americans. At this period, race related violence spread to different parts of the country (U.S. History 1). Moreover, those fighting for African American rights were targeted by the violence. Some of these individuals included Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. Second, there was decreased change of racial attitudes after changes were made to laws for African American rights (U.S. History 1). Consequently, there was reduced hopes for achievements of equal rights among African Americans. Moreover, there was increased discrimination in various states, in the north and south. For example, there was approval of laws creating schools and public facilities for each race (U.S. History 2). One of such laws was the Jim Craw laws that reinforced the white supremacy that had diminished during the reconstruction era. The discrimination was seen as whites, and blacks carried activities in different areas such as in school and restaurants (U.S. History 2). In addition, there was also discrimination in public spending. For example, teachers in white schools were paid better wages, and white schools were well maintained while in black school teachers were paid poorly, and the situation was poor (U.S. History 2). Additionally, there was a failure of implementation of Brown decision on segregation in the south. In fact, one decade after the decision, fewer than ten percent in southern public schools had integrated (U.S. History 2). This is because the ruling failed to address the issue that led to segregation such as separate restrooms, bus seats, or hotel rooms (U.S. History 1). There are various reasons for the inspiration to revolution. One of the people that inspired revolution was Rosa Parks. She boarded a Montgomery bus and refused to pave the way for the white passengers (U.S. History 3). This was followed by her arrest, and she was fined $10 (U.S. History 3). Consequently, revolutions began in various parts of the country. One of the instrumental persons for the revolution was Martin Luther King Junior (U.S. History 3). After the Rosa Park development, he organized the boycott of Montgomery’s buses (U.S. History 3). They wanted for equal treatment of blacks in the bus. The boycott came into force on December 5, 1955 (U.S. History 3). The opposition continued even after King was arrested, and Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) managed to get reprieve from court as segregation in the buses was declared unconstitutional (U.S. History 3). After the incident, King became a leader of the civil right movements. Consequently, together with Ralph Abernathy they formed the Southern Leadership Conference (SCLC) (U.S. History 3). The non-violent measures applied by Martin Luther King Junior helped the African American activists gain fame. Consequently, civil rights movements became widespread in the beginning of the second half of 20th century (U.S. History 4). The 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery helped in transforming the history of United States. The march comprised of 54 miles between Selma and Montgomery (National Park Service 1). The death of Jimmie Lee Jackson a voting right activist in Alabama led to a series of procession (National Park Service 1). In trail, three marches were organized. The marches played a crucial role of bringing the conflicts of voting rights movements into homes across the country. Moreover, the marches attracted the nation attention on the ways segregated policies continued to tear society apart (National Park Service 1). In United States, the constitution guaranteed the right to vote, but this was not followed in some of the states (National Park Service 1). However, some of the states curtailed the African Americans from registering to take part in the voting process. The policy was implemented through selectively enforced arbitrary qualifications for registration or a poll tax (National Park Service 1). Consequently, it led to disqualification of many Africans Americans, as they could not meet the criteria. One of the Areas the policy was effective in implementation was Alabama. In the area, most of the blacks were excluded from voting. This was instrumental in the organization of the marches. In fact, “The percentage of black voters was zero in contract to the registration of 100% of eligible white voters” (National Park Service 1). Consequently, the national civil rights groups organized marches to highlight the rampant mistreatment of African Americans (National Park Service 1). The first march from Selma to Montgomery was instrumental in laying a foundation for subsequent marches. In this march, over 600 people participated on Sunday march 7, 1965 (Library of Congress 1). However, the march was viewed as a demonstration by the authority. Consequently, the procession was met with resistance by the state troopers at the edge of the city by Edmund Pettus Bridge (Library of Congress 1). Many of the participants were attacked ruthlessly leading to injury and even death (Library of Congress 1). The event was named as “Bloody Sunday”. The main reason for the march was due to the barriers faced by the African Americans in registering to participate in the voting process (Library of Congress 1). In Selma, the majority were African Americans. However, only a few percentage of the population registered as voters. The leadership of the march comprised John Lewis who was the leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) (Library of Congress 2). The organization meant to end segregation and increased registration of black voters. The movement doctrine was of nonviolence and called for the demonstrators not to fight back against anyone who caused violence against them during the march (Library of Congress 2). Therefore, as state troopers approached them, they paused and then proceeded with the march. This led to caution by the Sherriff of the area that they had less than two minutes to evacuate. As they failed to heed the call, they were treated ruthlessly (Library of Congress 2). Consequently, the event attracted the attention of various media, and they documented pictures of the event that came to be known as “Bloody Sunday”. The event received criticism from the country and the rest of the world. The next march began few days after “Bloody Sunday”. The march was because of brutality and violence directed to people that took place in first march. Consequently, King urged many people to turn out on Tuesday in a peaceful and nonviolent walk to freedom (The King Center 1). However, Judge Johnson notified the movement on pending restraining order. Moreover, President Johnson urged King to call off the march to wait for the federal court to provide protection to the marchers (The King Center 1). After consultation with the movement members, King proceeded to the Edmund Pettus Bridge on the afternoon of 9 March (The King Center 1). In the march, more that 2000 marchers participated (The King Center 1). Moreover, large number of clergy accompanied them. Once they reached the site of a previous attack, they stopped, and King asked them to kneel and pray (The King Center 1). After a short prayer, they retreated to Selma, to avoid further altercations with law enforcers and meditate on Judge Johnson’s court order (The King Center 1). The self-control gained support from the then president of the United States (The King Center 1). The last march successfully ended in Montgomery. The march was prompted by the death of James Reeb who was attacked due to taking part in second march (The King Center 1). He was a white Unitarian minister. The death attracted attention of various leaders on the situation in Alabama (The King Center 1). Consequently, a full demonstration plan was presented to a federal Judge Frank Johnson who approved the march (The King Center 1). Moreover, he curtailed the local governor and law enforcers from interfering with the demonstrators. On the other hand, two days later, the president submitted voting rights legislation to Congress (The King Center 1). The march began on 21 March in Selma (The King Center 1). In addition, the demonstrators were offered protection by the law enforcement agencies. In a day, the demonstrators could cover 7 to 17 miles (The King Center 1). In the night, they could camp in supporter’s yards where celebrities could entertain them. In the last day, the number of demonstrators had risen to 25,000 (The King Center 1). The final assembly was held on the steps of the capitol in Montgomery where king made a decree. After this incident, the demonstration leader tried to present a petition to Governor Wallace, but it was rejected. The march culminated with the signing of the Voting Right Act of 1965 by President Johnson on 6 August (The King Center 1). The signing was done in the presence revolutionary leaders such as King (The King Center 1). The marches had a profound impact. First, the march led to the voting rights of African American (Columbia University 1). Moreover, it led to the recognition of civil right movement in United States by the government. Additionally, the civil right movement highlighted the widespread prejudice the African Americans were going through, and this led to wider condemnations from different sections of the society. In addition, the march led to the implementation of various electoral reforms in the United States. In fact, some of the blacks were appointed to head the election board in the United States. Moreover, the discrimination of blacks from all public facilities and accommodation was now prohibited (Columbia University 1). Moreover, the federal funds were denied to those institutions that practiced segregation (Columbia University 1). Lastly, the percentage of black voters in the south rose significantly. In conclusion, United States can be described as an epitome of civil rights movements. The movements have a long history right from the days of slavery. However, the 20th century showed increased activities of civil right movements. This was possible through the emergency of revered leaders. On the other hand, the clergies have played a significant role in the civil rights movements in United States. On the other hand, the marches played a significant role in African American life. First, the marches helped in ending segregation and participation of blacks in the voting process. On the other hand, the march acted as an impetus for the rise of other movements fighting for the black rights. Therefore, the march was able to obtain some of the main goals of the blacks especially those from the south. Works Cited Columbia University. “Civil Rights, Voting Rights, and the Selma March.” Amistadresource.org. Web. 05 December 2013. . Library of Congress. “The First March from Selma March 7, 1965.” Americaslibrary.gov. . National Park Service. “Selma to Montgomery.” Nps.gov. Web. 05 December 2013. . The King Center. “Selma to Montgomery March (1965).” Stanford.edu. . U.S. History. “A New Civil Rights Movement.” Ushistory.org. Web. 05 December 2013. . Read More