Do you agree that Martin Luther King was the most important factor in helping blacks gain more civil rights in the 1960's?

Supreme Court forced all buses in Montgomery to desegregate. The encouragement of MLK to the black people of Montgomery shows that he was a major reason for blacks gaining more civil rights in America. A bus boycott had been carried out before but had failed due to lack of support but as MLK managed to gain a lot of support from the public it had succeeded this time.MLK’s encouragement of non violent protests, taken from Mahatma Gandhi who had encouraged non-violence and succeeded in changing the British rule in India, was key to the civil movement’s success as this was admired by the public. Whenever MLK was attacked or put under pressure he would react in a civilised way to show a good example. It showed how they were good people, and made those who attacked them, such as the Klu Klux Klan (a racist organisation who felt America should only have white Anglo Saxon protestants in it), look like evil and (unlike the non violent blacks) unjustified.In 1964 in a big campaign in Mississippi the Klu Klux Klan came along and started violence. Many police who should have stopped the violence were racist themselves or even Klu Klux Klan members and so the attackers were rarely charged.When vicious dogs attacked young black children in the streets of Birmingham and it was broadcast on national television, American citizens and even homes across the world were racism against blacks was not a major problem, could really see how cruel this was against the black people and that it had to stop.MLK also had a talent for inspiring people within his speeches were he would preach about his non violent philosophy, the most famous of which is ‘I have a dream’ in 1963 when MLK told the black and white people who had come to support the civil rights movement how, even though emancipation had come about, segregation and discrimination still continued for blacks and how he dreamed one day that blacks and whites would live in peace together. The clever use of media by MLK made sure his speeches and any marches or protests by blacks were broadcast internationally. By the 1960’s the majority of households owned a TV or radio and they were the main form of entertainment at night times for families. This allowed all people to see his thoughts on segregation and discrimination and they could see how blacks should be treated equally and therefore gained more support for the movement. MLK could show how he was a well educated, smart and respectable man to stop people believing the stereotypical view of blacks which was that they were not educated, rough and not to be trusted.However there were many other factors which helped for blacks to gain more civil rights in America in the 1960’s. One of these is because of the presidents at the time of the civil rights movement, President John F. Kennedy, who was keen for a new civil rights act. The Civil Rights bill was brought before Congress in 1963 and in a speech on television, Kennedy pointed out that blacks had half as much chance of completing high school and college than whites, twice as much chance of becoming unemployed, more chance of earning less and living 7 years shorter. He knew this had to be changed. In an attempt to persuade Congress to pass Kennedy's proposed legislation, a March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was organised, which had support from over 250,000 protesters.Even though Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963, the new president, Lyndon Baines Johnson, took up the cause and was able to get the legislation passed. This made racial discrimination in public places illegal and meant employers had to provide equal employment opportunities to blacks.Lyndon Baines Johnson also attempted to persuade Congress to pass his Voting Rights Act, so that blacks had the same voting rights as whites in America, and this act was passed by a large majority in the House of Representatives. Without his efforts along with John F. Kennedy these two important legislations would not have been passed, both of which meant great advancements within the civil rights movement.Other figures were also important to the civil rights movement, who did not however receive as much attention as MLK, John F. Kennedy or Lyndon Baines Johnson. Examples of these are Fanny Lou Hamer (FLH) and Thurgood Marshall, both black American citizens. FLH fought strongly for voting rights for blacks and when the voting rights act was passed she encouraged all blacks in the Mississippi area to sign up to vote. This encouragement was important in helping blacks gain more civil rights as it meant more people joined in the movement, which was the only way any protests would work. Thurgood Marshall felt strongly about segregation as he himself was turned away from a University due to its segregation policy, and therefore took this case to the Supreme courts in the case of Murray v. Pearson and succeeded in suing the school. During his life he took many cases to court to argue for equal rights for blacks and succeeded in 29 out of the 32 cases he took to the Supreme Court. Winning these 29 cases meant segregation was abolished in all aspects of American life for blacks, which were very important in gaining civil rights and equality.Thurgood Marshall was also appointed head of NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People). The NAACP was involved in legal battles against segregation and racial discrimination in housing, education, employment, voting and public transport. The NAACP appealed to the Supreme Court to ban many laws carried out in Southern states which they felt were unequal, and won 3 cases between 1915-23.A major legal battle they fought was about segregation within schools, which the supreme courts said was acceptable as long as they were separate but equal. However after the NAACP researched money put into black schools compared to white schools and showed the major difference between these figures to the Supreme Court, they then desegregated all schools as they could not say that they were equal at all. Groups like the NAACP were very important as they brought together many people who fought as a team for what they believed in, which had far more effect than a single person’s effort.I think that overall the civil rights movement was a huge success for blacks gaining more civil rights, as segregation was banned in all aspects of American life and blacks were given the right to vote which meant they could have an impact on who ran the country they lived in. Even though there were many other leaders and groups which with no doubt added to the success of gaining more civil rights, MLK was backing up these people, for example he worked closely with John F. Kennedy in trying to get the civil rights act passed, and was the main organiser of the March on Washington to promote this.MLK was an inspirational man to all black Americans, and brought together and encouraged more people to join the movements, which meant a stronger protest. If he had not encouraged non-violence and blacks had physically fought back to whites the movement may not have been successful as they would not have gained respect from onlookers.