Preview

Why Did African Americans Gain Their Civil Rights Before 1941

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1749 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Why Did African Americans Gain Their Civil Rights Before 1941
History Assignment
Introduction
After slavery was abolished in 1865, African Americans were supposed to be seen as equals and have the same rights as white Americans. However African Americans were continued to be seen as inferior to white people and faced discrimination daily. They were denied their civil rights due to many factors. The purpose of this essay is to determine what the most important factor was in stopping black Americans from gaining their civil rights before 1941. This essay will examine the role of the Ku Klux Klan, the Jim Crow laws, the Lack of Federal support and the voting restrictions that were placed upon blacks.
The role of the Ku Klux Klan
The fist factor that was important in stopping black Americans from gaining their civil rights before 1941
…show more content…
By 1870 the KKK extended into almost every southern state. Black Americans in the southern states constantly lived in fear of being lynched. Lynching was when a black person was tortured, mutilated and murdered by a white mob. The KKK would lynch any black American trying to better themselves or improve their situation because they didn’t want any black to become more powerful than a white person in any way. This led to many black Americans continuing to work on farms or other low paid jobs in fear of being lynched. They didn’t want to draw attention to themselves and become a victim of the KKK. This is important because this resulted in many black Americans not fighting for their rights. They did not try to fight the Jim Crow Laws or voting restrictions as a result of fear of the KKK. This is reflected in the quote “Blacks who tried to vote or gain an education were subjected to name calling, bullying and beatings from white people who supported the aims of the Ku Klux Klan.” (www.historyonthenet.com). Many members of the KKK were policemen, judges, lawyers or other important figures. This meant it was very rare that a member

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    At the start of the 20th century, Jim Crow laws still crippled the rights of the African American community and segregation was at an all-time high. Even occupations such as Federal employment were degraded through segregation. Consequently, small protests began; insignificant in the short term, but it truly laid the foundation for the civil rights movement to have a major impact throughout America. Despite the limits and obstacles in their path, men and women rose to new heights, disregarding the concept of white supremacy. Whilst they had to endure a life of hardship, being denied higher education and the vote, many would not allow themselves to remain ‘separate but equal’. This essay will explore the accomplishments of African-American leaders but focus on how they couldn’t have succeeded without the influence of other factors, such as the federal government, a view shared with Miles Mulin who stated that ‘… in combination with their own persistent efforts, only the concerted efforts of a muscular federal government guaranteed the most fundamental rights…’…

    • 3331 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In order to protect their superior status, the KKK set forth many tactics against blacks by threatening and terrorizing, committing violent acts, and pushing for political power. In conclusion, the KKK played a big role in history by committing these terrorizing acts. The KKK did not want anything to do with blacks. Their main goal was to make black life miserable and intimidating. In the end, the KKK declined in political power and eventually, the black people got the right to vote.…

    • 82 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the decade succeeding World War 2 the black citizens faced an America in which segregation and discrimination were legally enforced in all walks of life from school to public facilities. Black Americans were still seen as second class citizens deprived of rights that impacted every aspect of their life. However, after black soldiers had fought side by side with white soldiers in Europe a rise in consciousness began this in turn led to a significant start in making a change to the position of black citizens.…

    • 903 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.”1 Nearing the end of the 1950’s, the fight for equal rights had gained momentum in relation to the bleak future that paraded itself following the Second World War in 1945, however the implementation of the ‘Jim Crow’ laws in the Southern states rebuked most of Black Americans basic human rights; the legalisation of such discriminatory practices meant that they had been in operation since 1876 and did not fully dwindle till around 1985; the legal confinements of these laws had a direct effect on the lives of Black Americans, leaving them vulnerable to racial hatred and abuse. This haltered the developments that could have allowed Black lives to improve. The 1945-6 post war attacks on Black servicemen during the presidency of Harry Truman effectively translates the dismal reality that many Black Americans suffered during this time. The implications of these discriminating practices…

    • 1212 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    On December 18, 1865, in Washington, D.C., then U.S. Secretary of State William Seward made the formal proclamation of the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to be law, thus formally abolishing slavery in the United States. However, for newly-freed African-Americans in the U.S., the excruciating uphill battle for equal rights throughout the country had just started. While Reconstruction had the initial promise of integrating formerly oppressed persons into the citizenry with speed and efficiency, the arduous task of racial and cultural integration with civil rights took 100 years to plateau to the level black people experience currently, especially in the South. In the late 19th century it took radical and persistence efforts by brave and ingenious leaders to bring about change for African-American people, and although the Federal government had kept the nation together through winning the Civil War and passing laws to end slavery, the Federal government also failed to fully enfranchise blacks and tended to ignore cultural and racial turmoil that lingered amongst the population throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Reconstruction time after the Civil War (1866~1877) had the potential to bring change to racial divides and stability via federal projects and fair elections, but the overall effort failed, and by the 1880s much of the South had relapsed into oppressive laws on blacks that took many decades to reverse. William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) Du Bois (1868-1963) and Ida Bell Wells-Barnett (1862-1931) were both influential leaders that each pioneered their own way to continue the pursuit of freedom for black people and better harmonize race relations in a then still-culturally-hostile America.…

    • 3699 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Better Essays

    Between 1916 and 1980 there was a significant increase in the rights of African Americans. These changes in de jure rights could be argued as revolutionary to a certain degree. To judge the success of change between 1918 and 1960 it is necessary to consider the social, political, and economic status of African Americans along with their black consciousness.…

    • 1414 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Since the Europeans settled in North America, African-Americans were oppressed and enslaved by whites. Although the Civil War abolished slavery, there was still racial segregation that excluded blacks from certain rights; there was still a harsh system of inequality by white supremacy. Blacks were banned from associating with whites in regular and public institutions such as schools, restrooms, restaurants, etc. Racial discrimination disadvantages blacks from rights of citizenship. During this time period, whites received a higher status than blacks. Due to their ethnicity, blacks have been held back from many opportunities. In the course of these inhumane events, African-Americans began protesting and fighting for their rights of citizenship. Because blacks were forced to follow laws but not be able to make laws, they tried to resist laws, fight for their freedom and strive to gain equality with the whites. The Civil Rights Movement was led by primarily African-Americans for outlawing racial discrimination against minorities. It is the civil rights movement’s efforts that successfully tried to give…

    • 1374 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Between the 1877 and 1920, white southerners were able to cut back many of the rights held by African Americans. Many southerners wanted to guarantee that the African Americans had limited power. Throughout time southerners became very successful that African Americans began to lose hope. African Americans began adjusting their life without rights. Southerners were able to accomplish this by creating barriers to voter registration, lynching, and segregation with evidence from the primary sources to back up my statements. I will characterize relations between blacks and whites during the Jim Crow era as a violent and cruel period in American race. Also characterized by legalized segregation, lynch group, and white power.…

    • 389 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The three-decade period beginning in the 1940s and carrying over into the 1960s was a highly important era for the African-American Freedom Struggle. During this period, black Americans were living in a highly militant environment, not just in the Deep South but in the entire United States as a whole. The era was also defined by highly organized efforts by black Americans to defend their personal dignity, to achieve legal recognition of civil rights and to gain greater socioeconomic status. The importance of the Second World War (WWII) regarding African-American rights and freedom is frequently overlooked in today’s society.…

    • 3847 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    (Hunter 35) Evidence: The African Americans faced oppression from the social and political fronts. The Ku Klux Klan were one of the groups that “mounted the most bitter opposition to black rights.” (Hunter 31) They “not only had to ward off physical threats from the KKK. In addition “they were also challenged by the existence of perfectly legal abuses that diminished the meaning of freedom” (Hunter 35).…

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Barring black Americans from a status equal to that of white Americans, Jim Crow was established as a system of segregation and discrimination in the United States of America. The United States Supreme Court had a crucial role in the establishment, maintenance, and, eventually, the end of Jim Crow. The Supreme Court's sanctioning of segregation (by upholding the "separate but equal" language in state laws) in the Plessey v. Ferguson case in 1896 and the refusal of the federal government to enact anti-lynching laws meant that black Americans were left to their own devices for surviving Jim Crow (Davis). In many instances African Americans tried to avoid the engaging of Caucasians in order to avoid possible conflict. However, in doing so African Americans were at the mercy of creating their own education systems and community support groups. This paper will address why Jim Crow laws were justified, how the segregation and discrimination of Jim Crow laws reinforced inequality and racial prejudice, and the impact of segregation on the African American community both past and present.…

    • 764 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    After the Civil War the United Stated faced even bigger problems. Many questions were raised by everyone all over the country on how the U.S would work. The Union came up victorious while the South was completely destroyed, crops were damaged and the social status for African Americans was being questioned. While war was over, many white Americans still didn’t accept African Americans new social role in the U.S. The pressure was heavy during this time, and there for the Reconstruction era is arguably the most important era in the U.S history. Looking at this topic I will discuss how this era had a big impact on African Americans rights with the decision on the Plessy vs Ferguson court case, how Frederik Douglass became a big advocate for civil…

    • 948 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    First Ku Klux Klan

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The first Ku Klux Klan, or the KKK, was started in May of 1886 at Pulaski, Tennessee. The organization was formed after the Civil War by former Confederate soldiers. The organization was formed in hopes that the organization would prevent the black from overthrowing the white's superiority. There were many groups that were formed in this time period like The Order of the White Rose,The White Brother Hood, Pale Faces, Constitutional Union Guards Pale Faces, and The Men of Justice. Many southern whites feared that blacks would overthrow the whites superiority, since Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery and the Confederate States of America no longer was in existence. The former Confederates decided that the best way to make sure that blacks did not takeover the white's superiority was to form organizations to prevent the blacks from…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ku Klux Klan Essay

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Since 1866 the Ku Klux Klan has been the epitome of wild, irrational, and extreme violence against nationality, race, and religion in the United States. Although the KKK has declined in popularity and power, the white supremacy clan is still prevalent along with underlying groups that follow the traditional beliefs of the KKK. The klan was once spread throughout nearly all southern states during the 19th century when the Civil Rights Movement was at its high. The klan died out, but reemerged during the 1970s. Although the KKK had a low profile, the klan sustained and continued to spread its supremacy ideas. The KKK arose after the Civil War as a symbol of southern pride, but soon arose as a racist social and political group. The secret society spread rapidly through…

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Political Awareness

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages

    For decades our ancestors bled, fought and died in order to ensure our rights as equal citizens. The Ku Klux Klan, than a legal militant terrorist organization, developed as a result of white southerners’ violent opposition to blacks being able to play a part in legislature and voting elections. Hundreds of black people were mobbed, beaten, raped and murdered in order to be kept from voting. As a prelude to our freedoms, they risked their lives and the lives of their loved ones to make it possible for us to voice our opinion by vote.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays