1960:A Turning Point In American History

11 Pages 2850 Words

ents in the era. In 1955 a woman by the name of Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus. Normally this would be fine, except for the fact that Rosa Parks was black, and the man wanting her seat was white. For her refusal to move, she was placed under arrest. Because of her arrest, Rosa would become the starting fuel for the fire of anti-segregation protests. Action was taken without delay once the black population caught wind of her being taken into custody. In their outrage, a bus boycott was put into action. During this boycott, not once single person of color could be found on a bus in Montgomery. In 1956, a law was passed that deemed any form of segregation illegal and immoral. As could be expected, many were not open to this idea. All over the country public facilities were closed, as opposed to letting colored people inside. Although congress had at last instilled a Civil Rights Act, which abolished segregation, the black populace of America had an arduous journey ahead of them before their civil rights were to be at the same level as every other American.
As a result of the seeming non-compliance to the Civil Rights Act, many minority groups were created to assemble rallies and marches to give voice to their cause. Three main groups were formed, SNCC (Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee), the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference), and CORE (Congress Of Racial Equality). As there often will be, there are a few notable individuals in this movement. Martin Luther King Jr. and James Farmer were seen as leaders of the anti-segregation movement. Born in 1929, Martin Luther King Jr., was well-known for his means of anti-violent protest. He was a follower and supporter of the methods of Gandhi. He said Gandhi taught him that, “…there is more power in socially organized masses on the march than… in guns in the hands of a few desperate men.” King was the recipient of the Nobel Peace ...