Civil Rights Movement - Essay Example

Civil Rights Movement We begin our look into the history of the civil rights movement by looking back on the story of 14 year old Emmet Till who wasmurdered at the age of 14. He was born on July 25, 1941 in Chicago, Illinois. As the only child of Louis and Mamie Till, Emmet would grow up never meeting his father who served in World War II and divorced his mother in 1942. Having grown up in a decent middle class black suburb in Chicagos Sout Side. He was raised as a latch-key kid since Mamie had to work 12 hour work days. He grew up fast and responsibly as he had to do his fair share of domestic work while his mother was at work. He was an exemplary son and a responsible young member of society. Sadly, his life was to be cut at its prime all because of racial discrmination. Having flirted with the owner of Bryants Grocery Store, Carolyn Bryant was a mistake that he made during his vacation in Mississippi. He was kidnapped on August 28, 1955 by Roy Bryant, Carylyns husband and his half brother J.W. Milam. Emmet was tortured and killed before his mutilated body was fished out of the river 3 days later. What makes this story a significant part of the Civil Rights Movement was that his murder sparked outrage at the fact that Blacks were not allowed to serve on jury duty. So they never had ample representation in the courts. In January 1956, his killers sold the story of how they kidnapped and murdered Emmet for $4000. Due to double jeopardy laws, they could not be retried. His death was one of the reasons that the Civil Rights Law eventually passed. Not long after the events in Emmet Tills life, another event spurred further support for the equal rights movement. Rosa Parks, a young Black woman, refused to give up her seat in the front of the bus to a white passenger. Having lived in the time of racial segregation, she was to have sat in the back together with the other black passengers. Born Rosa Louise McCauley on February 4, 1913 in Tuskagee, Alabama, her actions on the bus in Montgomery, Alabama resulted in a citywide boycott that launched efforts to end segregation in public facilities. Montgomery, Alabama was the first to lift their segregation policies because of the bus seat incident. Her actions on the bus that day led to Rosa Parks (her married name) becoming the epitome of the struggle for equality in society and earned her numerous awards, including the NAACPs highest award. (“Rosa Parks Biography”). The events that transpired with Emmet Till and Rosa Parks were but the tip of the iceberg of the civil rights movement. Everything came to a head when Martin Luther King Jr. became the foremost and worl reknowned name when it came to the Black Civil Rights movement. Born on January 15, 1929, King Jr. was a Baptist minister by profession and a civil rights activitist leader on the side. However, he became better known for using the pulpit to advance his civil rights causes. His rise to fame began in the 1950s as he played an all too important role in ending segregation in American society. He had a direct influence inthe development of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. His staunch support for social equality in the Untied States earned him the Noble Peace Prize in 1964. Although he was successfully assasinated in April 1968, his words and wisdom continue to live throughout American history with his 1963 speech “I Have a Dream”. (“Martin Luther King Jr.”) The last most notable name of the civil rights movement is a man who was formerly known as Malcolm Little. Malcolm X was born May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. Known as a civil rights activist, he was born into a family of civil rights warriors. His mother Louise was a homemaker while his father, Earl, was an acive member of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and known as a staunch supporter of nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. But perhaps he is most notable for being a Muslim Minister with the Muslim name El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz. He grew up as a target of racial discrimination and found his family constantly moving from one state to another in an effort to protect themselves from threats. As a 15 year old in high school, he had his baptism of fire in racial discrimination when he told his teacher that he wanted to be a lawyer and his teacher told him to be realistic and plan on something he can actually accomplish, like being a carpenter. Needless to say, he dropped out of high school after that. He led a troubled life after dropping out, making friends with the criminal underground when he went to Boston to live with his half sister Ella. It was during his time in prison after being convicted that he found the Muslim faith and became a member of the Nation of Islam. He then dropped his last name and went by Malcolm X as a tribute to his unknown African ancestors. The Nation of Islam was (“Malcolm X”): ... a small sect of black Muslims who embraced the ideology of black nationalism – the idea that in order to secure freedom, justice and equality, black Americans needed to establish their own state entirely separate from white Americans. As a radical, he opposed the views of Malcolm X and thought that violence was the only way Blacks could earn their rights. He was assasinated on February 21, 1964 by his fellow Nation of Islam brothers and was immediately portrayed by the media as a rabble rouser. An image that was replaced when his autobiography penned by Alex Haley, the author of the award winning novel Roots, was released. In the book, he was portrayed as a great and exemplary spiritual leader during his era. Read More