With the various Supreme Court cases, protests, legislations, policies/programs, and martyrs, it is reasonable for an individual to assume that African Americans and other minority groups have advanced economically, socially, and politically. Throughout the fight for liberty, there have been gains and also setbacks that negate those gains. Many factors like The March on Washington and Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” speech gave hope to many of a possible society where life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are guaranteed to everyone. Many people agree that African Americans have advanced since Dr. King delivered his speech in 1963 at Washington D.C, due to the new positions they have acquired. Although it is true that African Americans are
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Finally, on July 2, 1964, that goal was realized, as President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The law was intended to end discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin and has often called the most important U.S. law on civil rights since Reconstruction (1865–77). Though near-universally supported today, the Civil Rights Act was a highly controversial issue in the United States as soon as it was proposed by President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Although Kennedy was unable to secure passage of the bill in Congress, a stronger version was eventually passed with the urging of his successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, who signed the bill into law on July 2, 1964, following one of the longest debates in Senate history. White groups opposed to integration with blacks responded to the act with a significant backlash that took the form of protests, increased support for pro-segregation candidates for public office, and some racial violence. The constitutionality of the act was immediately challenged and was upheld by the Supreme Court in the test case Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S. (1964). The act gave federal law enforcement agencies the power to prevent racial discrimination in employment, voting, and the use of public facilities. The act was followed the next year by the Voting Rights …show more content…
to promote African American unity and values and to bring about a spiritual renewal that would instill a sense of personal responsibility in African American men for improving the condition of African Americans. Estimates of the number of marchers, most of whom were African American men, ranged from 400,000 to nearly 1.1 million, ranking it among the largest gatherings of its kind in American history. The event was directed by Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., the former head of the NAACP, and attracted many prominent African Americans, including Jesse Jackson, Rosa Parks, Cornel West, and Maya Angelou, though a number of African American leaders did not, including Mary Frances Berry, chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and Rep. John Lewis, the latter of whom saw Farrakhan’s message as an effort to “resegregate America.” It was reported that in response to the march some 1.7 million African American men registered to
Finally, on July 2, 1964, that goal was realized, as President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The law was intended to end discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin and has often called the most important U.S. law on civil rights since Reconstruction (1865–77). Though near-universally supported today, the Civil Rights Act was a highly controversial issue in the United States as soon as it was proposed by President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Although Kennedy was unable to secure passage of the bill in Congress, a stronger version was eventually passed with the urging of his successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, who signed the bill into law on July 2, 1964, following one of the longest debates in Senate history. White groups opposed to integration with blacks responded to the act with a significant backlash that took the form of protests, increased support for pro-segregation candidates for public office, and some racial violence. The constitutionality of the act was immediately challenged and was upheld by the Supreme Court in the test case Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S. (1964). The act gave federal law enforcement agencies the power to prevent racial discrimination in employment, voting, and the use of public facilities. The act was followed the next year by the Voting Rights …show more content…
to promote African American unity and values and to bring about a spiritual renewal that would instill a sense of personal responsibility in African American men for improving the condition of African Americans. Estimates of the number of marchers, most of whom were African American men, ranged from 400,000 to nearly 1.1 million, ranking it among the largest gatherings of its kind in American history. The event was directed by Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., the former head of the NAACP, and attracted many prominent African Americans, including Jesse Jackson, Rosa Parks, Cornel West, and Maya Angelou, though a number of African American leaders did not, including Mary Frances Berry, chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and Rep. John Lewis, the latter of whom saw Farrakhan’s message as an effort to “resegregate America.” It was reported that in response to the march some 1.7 million African American men registered to