Civil Rights Movement- The Book March: Book One - Essay Example

Book review: March: Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin The book by March: Book One by John Lewis covers issues associated with non-violent movements such as the Washington march and other non-violent movements that took place in America. Lewis approaches nonviolent movement using a personal approach that ensures that the readers are able to understand his personal contribution towards the movements and the civil right actions across America. The focus of the book covers prominent movements such as the Montgomery bus boycott the influence of Martin Luther junior.

The rise of Martin Luther to prominence was facilitated by the Montgomery Bus Boycott which was sparked by the action of Rosa Parks. The discrimination based on color or race was a major problem in the society during the time. While Luther led the civil rights movement, he also formed the southern Christian Leadership Conference. This organization was an African American civil rights organization focusing on non-violent actions against discrimination witnessed in the society (Lewis and Aydin).

The action of Rosa Parks was indicative of the tiresome load resulting from discrimination within the society. The action of Luther junior was based on personal drive to change the society. The American dream speech by Luther love and the integration of the different races in America and included the need to evaluated the people in the basis of their principles and not the color of their skin. The focus of Luther and Rosa Park was to be on the rights of the black population in America. In fact, the Montgomery boycott facilitated the development of the laws tacking segregation within the community and the state corporation.

The action of Rosa Park in the Montgomery bus acted as a catalyst and facilitated the development of the agitation for change and the need to be recognized in the world as the human beings with equal rights. The book addresses the action and role of Lewis in the non-violent confrontations and movements. Lewis presents the events in plain English without adding hype and nostalgia to the events that he undertook.Additionally, in 1960, students in Greensboro NC formed student resistance to discrimination against blacks.

This spread to other cities, including Nashville. In the film, “aint scared of your jails,” students in Nashville and Tennessee are shown to employ the non-violent resistance to discrimination, and engage in a wave of demonstration, following their arrest (Smith 45). In the same year, students formed the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which was a branch of the larger non-violent activist’s body. In 1961, the congress of Racial equality (CORE) launched “freedom rides” to act against segregation in buses and bus terminals.

Further struggle by Martin Luther King is evident in the 1963 Birmingham marches, which latter turned violent, leading to the arrest and jailing of Luther. He wrote “Letter from Birmingham” in the same year. Most whites in southern states were opposed to desegregation. In 1963, Alabama Governor showed his opposition to the mover to desegregate the University of Alabama. Nonetheless, in June the same year, President Kennedy called for the nation to embrace civil rights legislation. However, in the same night, a member of the Klu Klux Klan murdered Medgar Evers, an African-American activist.

Evers pushed for desegregation at the University of Mississippi. In spite of his death, actions of the civil rights groups increased (Smith). It included the production of films, music and works of art, which protested against increased violence for the blacks. The role of Martin Luther and action of John Lewis is presented accurately in the book.Works CitedLewis, John and Andrew Aydin. March: Book One. Washington: Top Shelf Productions, 2013. Print.Smith, Earl. Race, Sport and the American Dream.

Carolina: Carolina Academic Press, 2009.