Arguments Against Jim Crow Laws

Jim Crow laws are a complex yet derogatory system of laws and customs designed to segregate those who pertain to differing races, thus depriving American citizens of the most fundamental of civil rights. Even the name itself provides a view of the sheer amount of discrimination these laws evoke - they were “named after a popular 19th century minstrel song that stereotyped African Americans” (rise and fall of Jim Crow PBS). The fact that the name itself comes from a cruelly comedic song designed to stereotype African Americans shows that these laws are prejudiced and unfair to those who are rightful citizens of America - no matter if they’re labeled as a race other than Caucasian. In short, Jim Crow laws clearly limit the rights of American citizens, and even the name itself publicly states the disrespectfulness towards African-Americans that lived in the
This certain law states, “The marriage of a white person with a negro or mulatto or person who shall have one-eighth or more of negro blood, shall be unlawful and void.” (Mississippi Martin Luther King Jr. National History Society SpringBoard book 197). This law is saying, when stripped down to its most basic form, that if a person who pertains to any colored race were to marry a Caucasian, their marriage would be null and void. Essentially, even if two American citizens fell in love with each other and wanted their marriage to be blessed, they would never legally belong to one another in the face of the government, which can be devastating depending on how religiously or romantically involved the interracial couple is. By confiscating the rights of colored races, the Jim Crow laws have also forced those who are white to either give up the things they love in order to conform to civilization, or to sacrifice their privileges in order to join a band of socially unequal