Challenges of African Americans in 1896-1954 - Essay Example

Therefore, it was normal indeed, for African Americans who were taken to court not to receive justice from a jury of their peers but to receive harsh sentences from all-white juries instead (Ritterhouse, 1201).

The second challenge, which African Americans faced was the political opposition to their gaining representation at a political level in society. A very good example of this is what happened in the Republican Party when African Americans had made substantial progress in gaining representation within it. These gains by African Americans made many white voters uncomfortable with their political progress and many of these left the party to join the Democrats who were known for their extreme position in matters concerning African Americans. The criminal justice system was always set against African Americans, especially in the southern states where it was big business to send them to jail, where the state could lease them to large corporations to work without being paid while the state received payment from these companies. These, among other challenges, are what African Americans of that period faced.