American Civil Rights Movement

American Civil Rights Movement

The History of the African American Civil Rights Movement can be traced back to the arrival of the first Africans onto our soil. Somewhere in our country, there has always been someone who fought for freedom and equality for these oppressed people. However, starting in 1940, and picking up steam after WWII, this movement gained power and became the concern of the American people and government. Many changes were occurring in the social and economic structure of our country, and the Blacks and Black sympathizers justifiably felt left behind. Additionally, many Blacks served our country faithfully in WWII fighting a war for the oppressed people of Europe, yet in their own homeland, the land of the free, they had no rights. Thus, beginning in 1940, the shifting American lifestyle and attitude, as well as economic and demographic upheaval led the government and people of America to believe that the time had come to recognize the cause of the Black people who in turn amplified their efforts to bring themselves freedom and equality among the American people.

Black people in America began to feel the stirrings of desegregation when they were called to enlist in the Army and serve our country in WWII. Though most served in their own units, the Blacks still contributed a large part to the war effort. Truman, horrified by stories of lynching and other atrocities inflicted upon worthy soldiers, had the Integration of Armed Forces Act passed in 1948 outlawing segregation in the armed forces and other federal civil services. Seven years prior, FDR had the Fair Employment Practices Commission set up, but no major desegregation efforts had been made since then until this time. Part of Truman's reasoning behind this legislation lay in the basic principle that the Blacks were fighting for the same cause as any other soldier and they should not be segregated in their efforts. Resistance of this type of desegregation legislation was not uncommon among government and citizen alike, yet basic reasoning led many sensible Americans to question the basis of African American oppression.

Besides their contribution to the war effort, another phenomena made public the African American cause. In a response to the mobilization of our country for war, scores of Blacks migrated to the big cities to find employment in factories and other jobs making interaction with white people inevitable. Though the Blacks were subjected to strict segregation codes, they increasingly agitated for recognition and rights. Their new urban addresses allowed them to more easily congregate and pull together to make their cause known. Organizations such as the NAACP allowed Blacks to realize their potential and gained prominence by having respectable and educated leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Organization was made easier in an urban setting, and demonstrations promoting Black rights received generous publicity, whether it be positive or negative. Moreover, as Blacks came into the cities, Whites, increasing being employed in white-collar jobs, moved out. "White flight" left the blacks to form ...