In the streets

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 495.

Meanwhile, discrimination and segregation continued in many other areas of daily life, for example, in public transportation. In 1955, a black woman named Rosa Parks was riding a crowded bus in Mont­gomery, Alabama. The driver ordered her to give her seat to a white man and move to the back of the bus. Parks refused. She was arrested. In response, African Americans in Montgomery decided to boycott[2]the bus company, that is, not use the company's buses. The boycott lasted for more than a year. In the end, the Supreme Court ruled that the segregation on buses was illegal.

Many college students, both black and white, joined the civil right movement. In one famous incident at an all-white restaurant in North Carolina, black and white students staged a protest called a sit-in[3].They simply sat in the restaurant until the African-American customers were served. There were many sit-ins. Sometimes they lasted for days. Some times white customers in the restaurants shouted at the students, threw food at them, or hit them, but the students continued their protests. Sit-ins and other forms of protests spread across the South.

Still, discrimination and segregation existed in many places, and the civil rights movement continued with protests and dem­onstrations. The largest demonstration took place in 1963 in Washington, D.C. The main speaker at this demonstration was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who became a national hero because of his leadership during the civil rights movement.

As protests increased, the government was forced to act, and Congress passed two important laws. In 1964, the Civil Rights Act prohibited segregation in schools and public places and prohibited discrimination by employers. In 1965, the Voting Rights Act gave the federal government the power to make sure that African Ameri­cans were allowed to vote in elections. Within a year, there were 230,000 new black voters. Thus began the long process of gaining equality for African Americans, an effort that continues today.

I have a dream On August 28, 1963, in Washington, D.C., Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., made his famous ‘I have a dream' speech. More than 200,000 demonstrators joined him in demanding voting rights for African Americans and an end to segregation. This is a short excerpt from his speech: … And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. … I have a dream my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today! Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., August 28, 1963