Civil Rights Movement

The purpose of this research paper is to focus on the Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement began in the 1950’s and ended in 1980. There were numerous activists who played a major role in the movement, for the purpose of my paper I will only focus on activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Ella Baker. The Civil Rights Movement focused on fighting against discrimination, segregation, racism and for civil political empowerment in America.. The movement took place across the United States but dominated southern states such as Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Alabama.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., was a figure in the civil rights movement. He was one of few who attracted support from the white community as well as the black community (Gordon, 2000: 47, JSTOR). King began his first involvement with the civil rights movement when he participated in the desegregation in the Montgomery Boycott. Following the success of the boycott, the civil rights movement declared that they have found their leader (Gordon, 2000: 48, JSTOR). In 1957, Dr. King formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) as a base for his fight which called for “total integration” and “full citizenship rights” throughout the south (Gordon, 2000: 48, JSTOR). Additional organizations formed through the movement were the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNVCC), Nation of Islam, Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, and Kwame Toure.
The SCLC organized many marches and events. In particular, the Birmingham demonstrations of 1963 and Selma march of 1965, the SCLC secured a passage of the ‘Civil Rights Act of 1964’ and 1965 (Gordon, 2000: 48, JSTOR). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination against race, color, religion and sex (Morris, 1999: 528, JSTOR). The SCLC along with the SNVCC was said to advocate civil disobedience, which meant breaking the law but on the basis of...