Researching the Civil Rights Movement
1. Mississippi Freedom
Summer, 1964
"In the summer of 1964, COFO brought nearly 1,000 activists
to Mississippi—most of them white college students—to join with local black
activists to register voters, teach in "Freedom Schools," and
organize the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP).
Many of Mississippi's white residents deeply resented the
outsiders and attempts to change their society. State and local governments,
police, the White Citizens' Council and the Ku Klux Klan used arrests,
beatings, arson, murder, spying, firing, evictions, and other forms of
intimidation and harassment to oppose the project and prevent blacks from
registering to vote or achieving social equality.
On June 21, 1964, three civil rights workers disappeared. James
Chaney, a young black Mississippian and plasterer's apprentice; and two Jewish activists,
Andrew Goodman, a Queens College anthropology student; and Michael Schwerner, a
CORE organizer from Manhattan's Lower East Side, were found weeks later,
murdered by conspirators who turned out to be local members of the Klan, some
of them members of the Neshoba County sheriff's department. This outraged the
public, leading the U.S. Justice Department along with the FBI (the latter
which had previously avoided dealing with the issue of segregation and
persecution of blacks) to take action. The outrage over these murders helped lead
to the passage of the Civil Rights Act."
Source:
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
Thoughts:
As it says in the text, this event was one of many events that lead
to the Civil Right Act and it was with this act that changed how people in the
U.S. thought and gave a way for a new era. This action pushed the subject
closer to a final act and it upset/touched people all over America.
2. Civil Rights Act of
1964
"Although President Kennedy had proposed civil rights
legislation and it had support from Northern Congressmen, Southern Senators
blocked consideration of the bill by threatening filibusters. After
considerable parliamentary maneuvering and 54 days of filibuster on the floor
of the United States Senate, President Johnson got a bill through the Congress.
On July 2, 1964, President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that
banned discrimination based on "race, color, religion, sex or national
origin" in employment practices and public accommodations. The bill
authorized the Attorney General to file lawsuits to enforce the new law. The
law also nullified state and local laws that required such discrimination."
Source:
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
Thoughts:
This action led to a new era in the world. It was now against the law
to discriminate other people of various ethnicities and beliefs. The Civil
Right Act prevented discrimination regarding ethnicity, gender, religion, race,
physical or mental disability, origin and sexual orientation.
The Civil Right Act ensured people of their integrity, life and
their safety and it also protected them from discriminations as those listed
above. It was with this act that allowed everybody the freedom of speech and
beliefs and it was against this act to have them discriminated.
People would still discriminate after the Civil rights Act had gone
through but they would now be punished for their actions.
3. The Voting Rights Act
of 1965
The Act was sent to Congress by President Johnson on March
17, 1965. The bill passed the Senate on May 26, 1965 (after a successful cloture
vote on March 23), by a vote of seventy-seven to nineteen. The House was slower
to give its approval. After five weeks of debate, it was finally passed on July
9. After differences between the two bills were resolved in conference, the
House passed the Conference Report on August 3, the Senate on August 4. On
August 6, President Johnson signed the Act into law with Martin Luther King,
Jr., Rosa Parks, and other civil rights leaders in attendance.
Source:
The United States Department of Justice
Thoughts:
The Voting Rights Act made it against the law to deny the right of
citizen of the United States to vote because of race or color. The act protects
the voting right of every American citizen against racial discrimination and other similar factors.
This act stands for that everybody’s vote is equal and should be respected in the same matter.
This act is now considered a breakthrough in civil-rights
legislation and is a permanent federal law that never will expire.
It seems that your have checked many resources for this assignment. The information shows many details in the Civil Rights Movement. Good job!
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