February 04
How successful were the methods used by the civil rights movement in the period from 1957-1965?
In order for the assessment of whether the methods used by the civil rights movement were successful between 1957-65 the methods used prior to this period need to be addressed. The main method used prior to 1957 was litigation through the Supreme Court and was motivated primarily by the NAACP. Cases such as SWEATT V PAINTER, PLESSY V FERGUSON, and in the case that virtually overturned the separate but equal ruling- BROWN in 1954. On the surface the ruling against segregation in education seemed extremely successful however there were obvious problems. The Supreme Court was unable to set a time ratio, by which desegregation should be achieved, highlighting their lack of power in enforcing the rulings. This was further enforced by the BROWN II case, which aimed to obtain a fixed time ratio. However as a result of black codes and Jim Crow laws many of the moral principles in this movement were ineffective. By 1957 it became clear that now De jure segregation had been addressed, which dealt with the legal aspects of the movement, a new direction had to be taken and so there for leading towards black activists and mass action. Rosa Parks in the Montgomery Bus Boycott tackled the issue of segregation in a different way. De Facto segregation was beginning to become present in the movement. The initiation of the event by Rosa Parks and the motivation and collective mass action proved to be successful as in 1957 Supreme Court ruled against segregation on buses unconstitutional. Although tensions began to grow between the conflicting aims of the NAACP and leaders in the movement such as Martin Luther King; black activist organisations support remained constant throughout the movement as in 1960 the SNCC and sit-ins gained a little support from whites which began to emerge as a result of this. However the NAACP favored litigation but as before this method had been to some extent successful. It began to fail as in cases such as Birmingham and Alabama. There was a need for an alternative to be created and so a Christian based organisation- the SCLC seemed to offer a new way forward but also was the most likely not to be so heavily critisised due to its nature.
