Cassidy Buckley
Hobbs
US History Period 5
10 February 2018
Civil Rights Movement
“Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever!” (Diaries). Alabama Governor George Wallace’s, resistance to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s reflected the sentiment of many Americans particularly in the South (Civil Rights Movement). Despite Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 to abolish slavery, civil rights laws passed by Congress, and three Amendments to the Constitution to protect former slaves, blacks struggled to overcome racial prejudice. In the South, the Jim Crow Laws remained a major barrier to racial equality. Blacks were subordinate to whites, and were prevented from sharing public facilities such as schools, restaurants, and bathrooms (How The Civil Rights Act Of 1964 Changed American History).By the 1950’s, black Americans, tired of the ‘separate, but equal’ doctrine imposed on them, organized their movement to stand up to racial discrimination and social injustice in a peaceful way (Civil Rights Movement). This sparked The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s. During this time period historical figures like Martin Luther King worked endlessly through many mediums in attempt of gaining support for the equality of race. The Civil Rights Movement exemplified the power of nonviolence as a catalyst for change and was successful because of the nonviolent ways and teachings.
Sit- in campaigns signaled the start of the nonviolent ways presented by the Civil Rights Movement and were a major excelerant for the cause. In 1960 a new wave of equality was started when four black college students in Greensboro, North Carolina sparked a new phase of the Southern Civil Rights Movement. On February 1, 1960, “they staged a sit-in at a drugstore lunch counter reserved for whites” (Carson). This sit-in was the first of many throughout the country- “thousands of students in at least 60 communities, mostly in the upper, urbanized South, joined the sit-in campaign during the winter and spring of 1960” (Carson). These simple sit-ins evoked a whole new idea to the black community: passive retaliation. These protests were one of the first ways the African Americans demonstrated the idea of nonviolent resistance. The principles of nonviolent resistance were discussed in the article written by the King Encyclopedia, Martin Luther King believed that “one can resist evil without resorting to violence.” Peaceful protests were the start to a new way of thinking between African Americans and their long struggle for racial equality. These orderly sit-ins enlightened the country about the devastating truths about racism in America and set the tone for future change.
The Civil Rights Movement intensified with the introduction of another form of peaceful protest, the Freedom Rides. The year 1961 marked the beginning of Freedom Rides, which challenged the ruling of segregated interstate buses. “The Freedom Rides demonstrated that militant but non-violent young activists could confront Southern segregation at its strongest points and pressure the federal government to intervene to protect the constitutional Rights of African Americans” (Carson). The group of 13 Freedom Riders initiated these rides and called themselves CORE (Congress of Racial Equality). This group was integrated and had white and black men and women. The participants of this group were one quarter women, which was drastically different than previous protests (“CORE”). The Washington Post shared that including women in these positions increased the followers of the movement. The Freedom Riders rode the buses into segregated states to provoke a reaction from segregationists which resulted in widespread media coverage. The attacks against freedom riders were televised which helped to “illuminate the courage of black and white youth”(Williams). The impact of these televised events and inspiration it caused helped The Civil Rights Movement gain momentum.
After these individual protests, the black community decided to come together for a peaceful march on Washington which led to another increase in momentum. “In August 1963, thousands of African Americans and whites gathered for the March on Washington. It was peaceful with no arrests” (Simkins). As opposed to similar marches in the past, the iconic March on Washington had zero arrests, which enabled it to be seen in a more positive light by the masses across the United States and increased support for the movement politically. The sheer volume of participants at the march confirmed the need for change from previous American culture. The integrated white and black marchers walked hand in hand for over a mile while carrying pre-approved signs (“March on Washington”). The March on Washington came to be most effective when MLK Jr gave the iconic “I Have a Dream” speech which persuaded more black and white citizens throughout the country to fight for their virtue to equal rights. His nineteen minute speech described the real definition of Civil Rights which “correctly defined and upheld, secures for all the opportunity to common, equal participation in Civil society that is necessary for living in accord with the law of nature.” (Allen).The March on Washington embodied one of the pivotal moments in the Civil Rights Movement.
Besides protests, another passive way of spreading ideals of racial equality was through music. All races had an opportunity to participate in the Movement because of the passiveness of music. Many famous singers included in this are Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger, and Jamila Jones. “They sang these songs for multiple purposes: to motivate them through long marches, for psychological strength against harassment and brutality, and sometimes to simply pass the time when waiting for something to happen.” (Library of Congress). Music gave people a chance to connect to the feelings of African Americans without having to protest. Songs like “We Shall Overcome” by Pete Seeger repeat lines like “we shall live in peace” and “we’ll walk hand in hand” which ensue the feeling of power and positivity just through words. Music soon became a background to the scene of the Civil Rights Movement and helped scale its message to a wider group(Music in Civil Rights Movement).
All of these protests were successful due to their nonviolence. Violent protests could have led to arrests, jail time, or even deaths to equality supporters. “If we had started guerrilla warfare in America’s cities, if we had given into terrorism in America, we could not have won but America could not have survived,’ said Young.”(Simkins). Andrew Young, one of Martin Luther King’s closest confidants, explains that the only reason the Movement was efficient was because the African American community did not give into the pressures they felt to be violent. (Simkins). Martin Luther King and his closest friends believed the only way African Americans could get the outcome that they wanted was to not be violent. If African Americans had started to use violence, the outcome of this Movement and the outcome of America could have been completely different.
With the introduction of Malcolm X, some groups decided to start using violent tactics to get the results wanted. To the admirers of Malcolm X, he was loved and courageous for the rights of people, but to his critics he was preaching violence and abused his powers.( Collins 17) “After King’s assassination in April 1968, the Poor People’s Campaign floundered, and the Black Panther Party and other black militant groups encountered intense government repression”. The more violent figures and parties never truly gained the support from the majority of the African American population. This proves the claim that the success of the Civil Rights Movement was due to the non violence of the protests.
The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s was successful because of non violent ways and teaching of MLK and because of the citizens’ interest in equality. The non violence, often referred to as non violent retaliation was shown through sit-ins, freedom rides, the march on Washington, and music. This movement did accomplish its political goals, and got the Civil Rights Act passed (Civil Rights Act of 1964). This law gave African Americans protection by law but was not enforced to the governments full abilities. The discrimination still exists today and America could use non violent figures to aid that.