Tracing Development Civil Rights Movement Brown v.

tracing development Civil Rights Movement Brown v. Board decision Black Power Movement:

Although the Civil Rights Movement goes back several years, it was not until the Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, decision that society actually acknowledged the fact that change was going to happen. In spite of the controversy related to the condition of African-Americans in the U.S., things were critical in the country during the 1950s as the authorities seemed to express little to no interest in these individuals. While some focused on devising non-violent strategies with the purpose of strengthening their position in the country, others got actively involved in promoting active action as one of the most effective methods to achieve their goals.

Racial discrimination was one of the most divisive topics at the half of the twentieth century and the fact that African-Americans experienced significant success in putting across their issues made it possible for the whole world to understand that something needed to change in order for the situation to stabilize. As previously mentioned, the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling generated a lot of controversy and influenced more and more African-Americans to stand up for their rights, even with the fact that many of them were harshly reprimanded for doing so.

The case of Rosa Parks is essential when considering events that inspired individuals to get actively involved in criticizing the American society as a consequence of the attitudes that it employed concerning African-Americans. The fact that the woman was arrested for not wanting to move in the back of the bus (where African-Americans were expected to stay) influenced a black reverend, Martin Luther King, to join the Civil Rights Movement and to make it possible for the majority of individuals in the country to accept that it was no longer acceptable for racial discrimination to exist in the American society (Dierenfield 44).

In spite of the fact that the government slowly but surely started to cooperate with the Civil Rights Movement, it was very difficult for it to change people's opinions in the South. As conditions became critical President Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne with the purpose of calming things and in order for it to protect African-Americans from angry mobs that were unwilling to accept those people as equals. The authorities in the South sometimes used extreme measures meant to discourage activists (The Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1963).

African-Americans across the country started to be treated harshly as a result of the fact that racist individuals perceived their actions as a threat. President Kennedy had an essential role in assisting the Civil Rights Movement, considering that he federalized the National Guards in several states with the purpose of having the authorities protect African-Americans who wanted to protest or to put across their issues. Extremists started a mass campaign meant to undermine African-Americans and their actions involved car bombings and public killings. They most probably believed that this would frighten activists and that they would no longer lobby for desegregation (The Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1963).