One problem leading to Blacks fighting for their Civil Rights was the unjust Jim Crow rules in the Southern states. The white people who lived in the South wanted to maintain a two tier society

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History GCSE Coursework

American Civil rights

Black African Americans have been treated inadequately by the opposite race (white people) for centuries from when the slave trade was in full force to the contemporary day with gang violence and racism in all fifty states of the USA. I am going investigate the reasons why black Americans argued for their civil rights and what successes were brought about by this fighting in the 1950s and 1960s.

Some evidence of racism to Black people in the USA was written in a black journalist's book quoted from 'American Dreams lost and found'. It shows no respect, and gives a sense of inferiority, illustrating white attitudes to blacks in the early to mid 20th century. It draws a powerful image of blacks being fit for menial jobs and be deficient in the ability to do professional jobs.

One problem leading to Blacks fighting for their Civil Rights was the unjust Jim Crow rules in the Southern states. The white people who lived in the South wanted to maintain a two tier society. In 1880 they introduced legal segregation of races. This was a concept of Blacks being separate from Whites but the two societies being equal. There would be separate facilities for blacks and whites from hotels to schools. Inter race marriage was made illegal by these laws. This was all to keep a defined two tier society.

An additional reason why Blacks fought for their Civil Rights was the voting rights which they had. There were voting qualification laws. Blacks had to pass a literacy test which was incredibly hard because they were uneducated. They also had to pay a 'poll tax' which was also seriously hard because blacks worked for next to nothing or just offered shelter and food for pay. The voting was this way to exclusively rob blacks the right to vote. Blacks were kept from voting to keep power in the hands of the whites to keep the status quo the same. If you allow the blacks the right to vote you may bring in black politicians so blacks would be herd and they would get more opportunities.

In addition a factor causing problems for blacks was the KKK, its sole purpose was to terrorise Blacks into submission. Close to five million entered the membership in the first year, many of the Klan members being corrupt politicians, judges and law enforcers. The organisation used burnings, beatings and lynchings to greatly horrify the Blacks effectively, creating a catch 22 situation for blacks in the South.

A further factor in encouraging Blacks to fight for their rights was the development of the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People); it was formed by Web Dubois. By 1914 had 300 branches and 90000 members campaigned for equality. It publicised lynching, its legal team campaigned to end 'Jim Crow'. The UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement Agency) founded by Marcus Gavey, helped set up black businesses. At its height there were 1 million members. The black Renaissance, Black Pride culture flourished in cities, New York being the main city. Black poets, writers and musicians expressed the social and economic feelings of blacks because of the mayhem of these new organisations forming.

Another factor in persuading Blacks to fight for their rights was the impact of WWI and WWII. For black soldiers fighting for there country, America, it was horrific. They had been treated with more respect and less racism in the West than in there home country. In WWII USA faced Russia in the 'Cold War', America claimed to be the bastion of democracy when really it was not true because they enforced segregation at home and denied a true democracy because black people were not allowed to vote. This in turn led to black soldiers returning expecting better treatment at home, they wanted the government to change there attitudes towards blacks and treat them as equal people. This is backed up by the fact that the USA fought with 'Jim Crow Armies', which as you can imagine would really enhance the disappointment of the blacks wanting fair rights. The USA made this legal because they have a federal system of government, which means every state inside the USA is free to pass laws and deal with its own affairs as long as these laws do not conflict with laws passed from the president and congress in Washington D.C. Toward the end of WWII the central government was beginning to adopt a more favourable stance on black civil rights. In 1947 a committee published a report entitled 'To secure these Rights'. The report said the USA could not be the leader of the free world whilst having problems at home. Truman (the USA's president at the time) ordered the desegregation of the army immediately after the report was published.
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Blacks were also encouraged to fight for change because, of a harsh but true story of the murder of Emmett Till. He was 14 when he was brutally murdered, living in Chicago. His mother sent him to spend his summer with his relatives in Mississippi. Emmett alleged to have wolf-whistled a white woman in a corner shop. Emmett was kidnapped because of this by the white woman's husband because of the spreading rumours that Emmett was sleeping with the white woman. This hatred and added stress of the rumours led the man to beat, shoot Emmett in the ...

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