How far was Martin Luther King's leadership responsible for the gains made by the civil rights movement in the years 1955 - 1968?

How far was the leadership of Martin Luther King responsible for the gains made by the civil rights movement in the years 1955-1968? By 1968, there had been significant gains made by the civil rights movement due to a number of different reasons. These do include Martin Luther King’s leadership style and his philosophy towards peaceful protesting however other reasons such as the Federal government and the shift of public opinion can be argued to be equally important. Most importantly, however, is the role of other civil rights organizations aside from King’s SCLC such as C.O.R.E, S.N.C.C, and the N.A.A.C.P. I will be arguing that without the crucial gains made by these organizations, King would not have had anything to apply his leadership to, alongside the fact that there would not have been enough support for the movement as a whole, as we notice through the joint collaborations between these organisations. Martin Luther King undoubtedly played a major role in the campaign. His great strength was his ability to inspire. Despite these strengths, he was a diverse figure and received heavy criticism from the other organisations which hindered his support towards the gains made for the movement. During his leadership of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Martin Luther king organized a variety of peaceful protests in the war for civil rights. Martin Luther King

  • Word count: 2330
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Shang Dynasty - 1570 - 1045 bc

Shang Dynasty I INTRODUCTION Shang Dynasty (1570?-1045? BC), Chinese dynasty with the earliest-known written records. It is the most ancient of the Chinese dynasties for which documents are known to exist, marking the beginning of China's written history. The cultural, religious, and political practices of the Shang elites strongly influenced the Zhou, who conquered the Shang in about 1045 BC and established the Zhou dynasty. The Shang texts exist primarily in the form of carvings in the Shang script on animal bones and shells. These inscriptions recorded the king's divinations (ritual acts designed to forecast the future). They provide an account of the daily concerns of the last nine Shang kings, from the 21st king, Wu Ding, to the 29th king, Di Xin. Their period of rule, from about the late 1200s to about 1045 BC, is known as the Late Shang. The Shang state was centered in what is now called the Huabei Pingyuan (North China Plain), an expansive lowland area extending across north central China. Significant population growth and cultural interaction had been taking place there in the 3rd millennium BC, during China's Neolithic Period, or New Stone Age. The Shang culture that emerged in the 2nd millennium BC, during China's Bronze Age, was a product of that interaction. II HISTORICAL RECORD Archaeological excavations of sites tentatively identified as early Shang

  • Word count: 2324
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Evaluate The Presidency Of Theodore Roosevelt.

Evaluate The Presidency Of Theodore Roosevelt: To evaluate the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt it is necessary to examine the problems faced by America when he came to power in 1901, and to analyse how and whether he dealt with these problems successfully and efficiently. America faced many economic and social problems when Roosevelt came to power at the turn of the twentieth century. The first problem was the urgent need for conservation of the country's national resources. Half the country's timber had been cut down, non-renewable energy resources were being wasted, top quality soil was lost through poor management, and many species of animals were threatened with extinction due to the destruction of their natural habitats. Secondly, America had emerged from its victory in the Spanish-American War of 1898 as a major global power, and for the first time it was in possession of an empire; it had acquired an informal empire in Latin America. This new international role meant there was huge potential for the United States to expand its influence over the international scene, this needed to be explored and developed. The industrialisation of the United States had also created many

  • Word count: 2317
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How united was the civil rights movement

How united was the Civil Rights movement from 1865 to 1992? During the years from 1865 to 1992, many groups and individuals worked as part of the Civil Rights Movement. At times, these groups worked successfully together to bring about positive change for African Americans. However, due to the diversity of the different groups involved in the movement, there were also divisions. These divisions were caused by differences in the ideas of leaders of the movement, different techniques used by the Civil Rights groups and opposing aims within the movement. The aims of the Civil Rights Movement were important, as it would have been most successful at times when all the groups involved were working towards a clear common aim. The main period of division was the 1960s, and this was largely due to the differing aims of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, two key individuals in the movement. Martin Luther King's main aim was to bring about desegregation in the South, and for black people to have the same rights as white people. This was a complete contrast the views of Malcolm X, who believed economic change was more important than desegregation, and called for a separate black state, showing that he didn't feel it was possible for African Americans to gain equality in the same way that Martin Luther King did. While King believed strongly in the importance of non-violent action,

  • Word count: 2313
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Exploration of the Divergent Cultural Relationships with Land in Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony

Raquel Rabago Professor Combiths English 1106 20 September 2004 Exploration of the Divergent Cultural Relationships with Land in Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony In her novel, Ceremony, Leslie Marmon Silko uncovers the innumerable contrasts of the white ranchers and the Native Americans. The natives feel helpless as the whites spill themselves upon the contiguous hillsides and valleys. The commanding whites steal the land which had never before belonged to any single entity. Unable to retain their land, the Native Americans can only continue their existence on the allotted land, and attempt to cleave unto their heritage that is contained in the very soil beneath the mountains. The analysis of the white and Native American communities' respect for, effects on, and interactions with the land allows for the exploration of their cultural relationships with the land. The varying degrees of respect the white inhabitants and Native Americans have for their surroundings can be examined as one of many factors of their relationships with the land. The whites have minimal respect for the land; they manipulate it, tame it, in pursuit of nothing more than monetary gain. The main character of the novel, Tayo, explores his feelings about the whites, "The destroyers had sent them to ruin this world, and day by day they were doing it" (204). The whites are eating away at the valuable

  • Word count: 2303
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Describe Wilsons Fourteen points, Why did Congress fail to ratify the Peace Settlement?

US FOREIGN POLICY 1917-1941 Henry Eshel 1ES2 a) What is meant by the term ‘Wilson’s Fourteen points’? b) Why did Congress fail to ratify the Peace Settlement? c) How and why did the USA follow an isolationist policy in 1920s and 30s? a) The term ‘Wilson’s Fourteen points’ refers to the ideas enunciated by the USA’s president of 1917 Woodrow Wilson (often described as an idealist). These points were to serve as the framework for the Treaty of Versailles. Wilson started working on his Fourteen Points soon after America joined the First World War in April 1917, and he published them in January 1918. In his speeches that followed the publication, he developed his ideas, which were based off of four main principles, mentioned mostly in his first five points. He wanted no more secret treaties leading to deals, rash promises and entangling alliances. He called for no retribution, unjust claims or huge fines that could cause future wars. He called for more stringent arms control and even went so far as to suggest disarmament to lower the risk of war. Finally, he wanted to create a League of Nations to provide collective security. It was to act somewhat as an international government with laws, courts and police, and could intervene in disputes and even outlaw offending nations. One of the main notions found in Wilson’s Fourteen Points is the idea of

  • Word count: 2298
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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'Johnson alone bears the responsibility for the escalation of war in Vietnam in the years 1965-68.' Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Amrit Singh Thabal 16MB History Johnson alone bears the responsibility for the escalation of war in Vietnam in the years 1965-68. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Only a few years of becoming president, Lyndon B Johnson had to do something about Vietnam, to get a victory; and fairly quickly. This escalation was set in the cold war, where the USSR and the USA were up against each other, and mutual destruction was only one bad move away. This escalation is where LBJ upped the ante in Vietnam and increase troop numbers vastly. From the start of 1965 23,000 US advisors were in Vietnam and by the end of the year 184,000 US soldiers were in Vietnam. This still increases over the years and by 1968, there are nearly 525,000 US troops in Vietnam. Not only troops, but spending and logistical support increased, therefore escalating the war. For this escalation, stalemate theorists blame a weak president (LBJ) for not backing out of Vietnam and for not being strong enough to stand up against the people and the military. But post-revisionists say that it’s a lot more complicated than one person and his weaknesses, it goes back 30 years. The war could have been escalated solely by Johnson. This may have been down to his personality; that he was the wrong man, in the wrong point of time in Vietnam. LBJ was very patriot and thought that the USA was the best

  • Word count: 2287
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How far do you agree with this description of the prosperity of the USA in the 1920s? (30 marks)

'More apparent than real' How far do you agree with this description of the prosperity of the USA in the 1920s? (30 marks) America in the 1920s experienced unparalleled economic prosperity and was undergoing radical economic and social change. This is a very simplistic way of viewing this time period. Most see the 1920s as a boom followed by bust, the bust being the Wall Street Crash in 1929 and the depression that followed. But as I mentioned this a very simplified way to look at it, there was much more going on with America's economy throughout the 1920s than a simple boom, but how real was this prosperity, was it real wealth or was it more of a perception of wealth? Many factors helped America appear to boom in the 1920s, one such factor was the industrial strength of the country; America had a large amount of natural resources including oil, coal and iron. It also had good cattle ranching and agriculture. This meant that America was able to harvest a large amount of natural resources which helped the domestic production of goods and created a quantity of goods to trade with foreign nations, all this helped to boost America's economy. Agricultural business as a whole was large and well financed. Technical advances in agriculture and mass production led to a great increase in production, cereal production was once such area where there was a dramatic increase. The land

  • Word count: 2271
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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"This indeed is an ebullient night. I shall sacrifice a thousand bulls for the sake of it." Said the King cheering up his son who looked rather uninterested in the whole feast.

M. Mehdi Musawi "This indeed is an ebullient night. I shall sacrifice a thousand bulls for the sake of it." Said the King cheering up his son who looked rather uninterested in the whole feast. Instead, his eyes were longing to see his beloved mistress. It was obvious of his worried looks that he was waiting for the ceremony to come to an end so that he could quench his passion by accompanying the lady that sneaked into his soul, purloined his heart and left him with nothing to long for except her glittering eyes and fair angelic face. Everything was loud and clear. The king has finally accomplished what he was working on since the prince's birth, seventeen years ago. "At last, I now can be die peacefully knowing that my progeny will rule the kingdom that has whitened my black hair to keep it safe and secure." Murmured the old man. The Prince gazed at his father. "Have you been seeking wealth and security for Gonzaria since you became its ruler after King José the conqueror? Have you wasted all your life trying to make Gonzaria the 'perfect realm'?" he asked with astonishment. "Do you see anything wrong with that? You must acknowledge the fact that all this was done for no one except you my dear son," replied the king in a pitiful tone. The prince looked back at his father. "I do thank the heavens for I am no longer under your control. I neither live in your palace, nor

  • Word count: 2267
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How far can Malcolm X be seen as the key individual in contributing to the civil rights movement?

How far can Malcolm X be seen as the key individual in contribution the civil rights movement? Malcolm X's contribution to the civil rights movement arguably make him the key individual, one particular input being "His most far-reaching impact was among the masses of African-Americans in the ghettos of American cities."1. His main priority was to increase black consciousness a concept highly influenced by the idea introduced by Marcus Garvey in the early twentieth century. As Marcus Garvey stated "The Black skin is not a badge of shame, but rather a glorious symbol of national greatness."2 With this approach as the foundation to Malcolm X's ideology he went on to pursue what could be seen as a great contribution to changing social attitudes towards black people and economic power. However other individuals could be seen as having the most contribution towards the civil rights movement such as Martin Luther king who insisted on legal desegregation and organisation of the civil rights movement. These factors could be seen as having a bigger impact than just black consciousness, social impacts and economic power which was what Malcolm x found most important. Malcolm X introduced a unique and revolutionary approach to the civil rights movement which broke away from mainstream organisations such as the NAACP. He was the representative of the Nation of Islam which had

  • Word count: 2253
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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