11th Class- Essay of Martin Luther King

Essay: Evaluate the contribution of either Dr. Marthin Luther King or Malcom X to the Civil Rights Movement.

Martin Luther King was a well- known civil rights leader and activist who had a great influence on American society in the 1950s and 1960s. He did many things to bring US society: equality, and to ensure civil rights for all people who received bad treatements because of race. King believed that African Americans could make protests peacefully, and in this way, he began to adopt some methods, such as speeches, boycotts, protests, and marches. The major contributions of Martin Luther King were, his style of leadership to the African American civil rights movement, the emphasize in the importance of non- violent protests, and to bring publicity to major civil rights activities and efforts.

Martin Luther King was present in almost all civil rights movements. After the incident of Montgomery, King led a boycott against city buses that refused to let blacks sit in the front seats of the bus. This boycott resulted successfull as rules of the bus system changed. In addition to this, he participated in the Washington Peace March on August 1963, were aproximately 250 000 people including whites marched to demand civil rights; is in this march that Martin Luther King made his famous speech called ‘I Have a Dream’ in which he persuades many Americans that they were unjusts with blacks and as a result ciitizens began to put pressure to the president Kennedy. However there was also some opposition to King, people who stated that he wasn’t contributing to this problem at all. Many in the north of USA saw Martin as irrelevant, they said he had focussed in segregation, but problems in the north are others, as poverty in the slums.

African- American Civil Rights Movement lasted from around 1955 to 1968. In order to continue with protests, many Americans including Martin, joined to the Black Power Movement. The intentions of this movement were various. For example, blacks demanded that they should take more responsability, power and control in their own communities; or that the government should pay more attention to social and economic issues, rather than political problems. Despite Martin Luther King was participating of this movement trying to convince US government of some reforms, still many blacks felt that the pace of change was too slow.

On the other hand, many Americans also get frustrated because of the non- violent campaigns proposed by Martin. They felt it was humiliating black people and wasn’t bringing change fast enough. However, to my mind, it was necessary to continue with this kind of protests, because instead it could be generated a major problem, which could involve inocent people. King’s non- violent protests on civil rights were able to make genuine headway in American society.

Although there were some disagreements of American citizens with Martin Luther King thoughts, his leadership led to a successfull civil rights movement that finally achived it’s main goal: equal of rights for all US population. As a demonstration of King’s effort and what he represented during this period of time, he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, among several other honors. 

10th Class- First Civil Rights Movements

Effects of Little Rock Nine

It demonstrated that the President would not tolerate open defiance of the law. However, most southern states found ways to resist desegregation and it would take years before black begin with the protests.

White Citizens Councils were quickly formed throughout the South to defend segregation. By 1956, they boasted around a quarter of a million members.The councils challenged desegregation plans in the law courts and Southern politicians, all of whom were White, were supportive. The Ku Klux Klam was revitalized once more.

Rosa Parks, Bus Boycott

December 1955- Montgomery Bus Boycott.

A boycott is an act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying or dealing with a person, organization or a country as an expression of protest, usually for social or political reasons.

Rosa Parks sat in the ‘black section’, then the white section was full, and she had to stand up to give her sit to a White guy, however, she refused to stand and she went to jail.

• For over 381 days, Blacks boycotted the buses.
• They carpooled and walked through all weather conditions.
• NAACP began preparing a legal challenge.
• Rise of Mathin Luther King, urged non- violence.
• The boycott lasted a year. In 1956 the Supreme Court ruled the Montgomery bus segregation law was unconstitutional.

Importance of Bus boycott

• Protest shows what people can achieve when united.
• Boycott shows how effective peaceful and non- violent protest can be.
• Police found it difficult to cope with an organised civil rights protest.
• Showed economic power of black community, 60%- 70% of all passengers.
• 1st time the black community had shown it’s economic power (they refused to go to their work).
• It introduced Marthin Luther King to the civil rights movement.

Segregation becomes Integration

1954- Supreme court bans segregation in schools.

1955- Little Rock Schools unaimously agree to integrate by 1957.

Impacts

Civil Rights Act 1957

ü  1st national act for almost 100 years.

ü  Showed the government was not allowing the states to do as they pleased.

ü  There were limitations to the act. (each state should regulate in which way racial groups were going to be treated).

Supreme Court Victory

The Southern Christian Leadership Conference would have a key role in the movements. Its going to be the organization of MLK for the political platform.

Brotherhood in a context of race segregation.

Marthin Luther King

King became the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) when it was founded in 1957.