How Important Was The Civil Rights Movement In The 1960's

(8) Many factors sparked the great controversy and conflict of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s and 1950s. Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 was a pivotal point leading up to the 1960s because it reversed the Plessy v. Ferguson case, deciding that facilities could be “separate but equal.” Thus, integration began in the schooling system with the Little Rock Nine, while many other activists seized the chance to attack the Jim Crow laws. Also, World War II black veterans rallied under the slogan “Double V” day, which praised both the victory in Europe and progress with equality. President Roosevelt allowed the desegregation of defense industries with an executive order, which helped thousands of blacks find jobs and a steady source of income. Truman desegregated the military and established the President’s Committee on Civil Rights as well. Furthermore, the Great Migration caused 2 million blacked to move north for jobs during WWII, resulting in blacks …show more content…
For example, Booker T. Washington encouraged African Americans to take a step back from their efforts to achieve equality by focusing on their economic gains, rather than violently fighting. This resulted in an increased amount of passive aggressive movements, such as those from Medgar Evers and Jackie Robinson, rather than taking part in loots, mobs, and arson. W.E.B. Bu Bois advocated for a consequential technique in which the end results justifies the means, as evident with Malcolm X and the Black Panthers. Marcus Garvey inspired an entire movement, coined the term “Garveyism,” and gave many blacks a nationalistic sense of dignity in the ‘60s. Furthermore, Gandhi played an important role in the Civil Rights movement by instituting successful passive modes of protest, as he affected King Jr. and Rosa Parks. This also resulted in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the March on