Civil Rights Era Struggle - Essay Example

However, with the landing of westerners in Africa, slave trade increased with the Africans having no apparent knowledge of the consequences it had on the slaves sold. This is because they had no way of knowing the conditions under which the slaves were kept, but knew only that it was good riddance. In the course of slavery, especially during the journey across the Atlantic ocean, slaves were mistreated, some died, and others fell ill while others were sexually violated. During the trip across the vast ocean, conditions in which the slaves were subjected to be far worse than they were in captivity, slaves were packed in the ships’ hulls and left to persevere hunger and dehydration.

Through this treatment, some went overboard to deny the white man dominion over their lives; this was the first step in the struggle for survival and for their rights. Among the slaves taken captive, some made it alive and took charge of their lives by participating in resistance movements. They went on work slowdowns and even ran away in rebellion, while others like, “Quakers and other prominent persons- among them Anthony Benezet, Thomas Paine and Benjamin Franklin- publicly opposed slavery”2 (Thurgood and Autherine 4). . These people included Phillis Wheatley the first African-America writer who published poetry and Benjamin Banneker who studied Astronomy and Mathematics.

However, the other black American slaves could not get access to education in public schools despite being freed by their masters. This incited them even the more to rise against the oppressive rules and fight for their rights as equal men in the society. The fight against slavery went on, however, by the time of American Civil war, the population of African-American slaves was significant as it was about 4million and could no longer be ignored. Therefore, as a result of the proclamation of 1863, all slaves residing in the confederacy were declared free by Abraham Lincoln, which was a milestone.

Consequently, the black slaves viewed this as another opportunity to take charge of their lives and freedom. During this period, slaves joined the union army to fight for the confederacy that had freed them. This in turn, brought the priorities, needs and issues of the 4 million slaves that were marginalized to the attention of lawmakers. However, a break came following the abolition of slavery in 1865 and an amendment granted blacks citizenship rights concerning protection by the rule of law.

However, the struggle was not over following violence and lack of acceptance by radical citizens. These groups included the Ku Klux Klan that imposed threats, white supremacy violence and harsh economic conditions. In the case of African-Americans, this did not deter them from fighting for their due rights; they still were elected into local, state and federal offices despite the danger facing them. One renowned person in