Ida Political Participation Analysis

“What can more certainly arouse race hate, what more certainly create and perpetuate a feeling of distrust between these races, than state enactments which, in fact, proceed on the ground that colored citizens are so inferior and degraded that they cannot be allowed to sit in public coaches occupied by white citizens?”- John Marshall Harlan. On May 18, 1896, the Supreme court passed the separate but equal act on a vote of 7-1. This allowed separate facilities to be made for whites and blacks. This was the result of the Plessy vs Ferguson case, where a man was forced out of a whites-only car because he had African descent. The Supreme court couldn’t find any differences in the train cars, yet separate facilities for blacks had a decrease in quality.

During a crowded afternoon bus ride, "I decided I wasn't gonna take it anymore… After the other students got up, there were three empty seats in my row, but that white woman still wouldn't sit down-not even across the aisle from me…blacks had to be behind whites… 'Why are you still sittin' there?'"(Hoose 32). Initiating the Civil Rights Movement, Claudette Colvin refused to stand for a white lady when there was an empty row next to her. Claudette's bravery sparked a fire within the black community, & they attempted to keep her name in the papers. Through the short bout of fame, “The news that a schoolgirl had been arrested for refusing to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger flashed through Montgomery’s black community and traveled far beyond,”(Hoose 39).

Ida B. Wells continued writing newspaper articles at New York Age, where she exchanged the subscription list of Memphis Free Speech for a part ownership in the paper. She also wrote pamphlets and spoke widely against lynching. In 1893, Wells went to Great Britain, returning again the next year. There, she spoke about lynching in America, found significant support for anti-lynching efforts, and saw the organization of the British Anti-Lynching Society. She believed in the power of the truth to change, over time, the way people lived and who their laws served.

Third, the third way that Black Louisianan’s resisted Jim Crow segregation during the Great Migration was by not using the service. “…no, I am tired. I need to sit down…driver said) ‘I said get up’ and he wouldn’t let us sit down.” Document D. “…no Black people are going to ride the bus the next morning.” This resistance is effective because your voice is heard along with everyone else.

This case, which concerned racial segregation laws for public facilities such as restrooms, restaurants, and water fountains, made its way all the way to the Supreme Court. As way of background, in 1890 Louisiana passed a law which required blacks and whites to ride in separate train cars. However, in 1892, Homer A. Plessy, who was a black man, boarded a car designated for whites only. He was asked to leave, but refused and was arrested immediately. In the case, Plessy vs Ferguson, Plessy’s position was that his rights were violated under the 13th and 14th amendments of the Constitution, which dictated equal treatment under the law.

Many critics say her work did not have any effects, but they are wrong. Ida B Wells alone started the anti-lynching campaign. She encouraged the community to ban together against the hysteria of the time, and she dedicated so much of her life to her beliefs. She spent several years of her life writing, fighting, and speaking about lynchings. She faced death threats everywhere she went.

Civil rights has been a very harsh and long fight for those condemned to the title of Black, colored, or negro. Slavery in our country dates back all the way to 1619, where Africans were sold from Africa, to help colonize the new Americas’. Slavery then continued throughout the centuries, until those who were slaves, rose up against the unethical view on slavery. With this, certain people began to push against the ‘lost’ civil rights of the colored people. Two of these people include the well-known civil rights activist and as well as the well-known Stokely Carmichael.

It is a tremendous honor to accept the Outstanding Investigative Journalism Award on behalf of Ida B. Wells. And to think her journey all started on one train trip. When Ida was in her early twenties, she was taking a train and seated in the ladies car. Despite the 1875 Civil Rights Act, she was then asked by the conductor of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Company to give her seat to a white man, and to sit in the ‘Jim Crow’, or black, car. She declined saying that the car ahead was a smoking one and she was in the ladies, and proposed to stay where she was.

The day represents one of the greatest injustices in Human history. Dedicating a day to Columbus means that we support his acts. We support him and his orders that led to the killing of an entire nation. That is absurd! This day should be dedicated to the native Americans to honor their History and Culture.

Given that he spoke for the American people, he implies that as a nation, we have had to make some difficult choices, but, yet we make those decisions with courage and determination that keeps us united. This is one of the many points that highlights his speech. Giving positive and strong statements adds strength to his speech which keeps his audience occupied with his words. Hence, it is very important that audience is listening and comprehending what is being

This case was not just an event in history, but a strong point that supported and still supports equality to this day. People can use this case to help support their reasoning for what they believe in and why certain actions should

In 1891, a group of concerned young black men of New Orleans immediately formed the “Citizens’ Committee to Test the Constitutionality of the Separate Car Law.” They raised money and engaged Albion W. Tourgée, a prominent Radical Republican author and politician, as their lawyer. The poeple involved in this case are the young concerned black men the us government and the states. On May 15, 1892, the Louisiana State Supreme Court decided in favor of the Pullman Company’s claim that the Separate Car Law was unconstitutional. The importance of this case is that In 1883, the Supreme Court finally ruled that the 14th Amendment did not give Congress authority to prevent discrimination by private individuals(Plessy v.

Not only did her testimony confirm her authority to speak for those affected by injustice but Fannie Lou Hamer’s general history and experience as a civil rights activist shows that she was fit to speak on the behalf of those demanding action from the government. As a civil rights activist, “Hamer dedicated her life to the fight for civil rights, working for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee” (“Fannie Lou Hamer Biography”). The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was an organization of African-Americans who fought against racial segregation in the south by engaging in civil disobedience (“Fannie Lou Hamer Biography”). Hamer was a passionate member of the SNCC who truly wanted to liberate black citizens from an unjust

The trial of the Scottsboro boys was a trial that was the cause of two white women accusing nine black men of raping them. Their appeals, retrials, and legal proceedings attracted the attention of the nation and produced to Supreme Court rulings in their favor. The Scottsboro boys trial demonstrates that nonconformity to unjust practices can lead to justice for all people because their trial triggered The Supreme Court ruling that had a major impact on the American system of laws for the right to adequate counsel, the ruling for the right to not be excluded from a jury based on race, and still has a continuing effect in our own time which affirms the principle of equal protection under the law. Their case not only saved them from the death sentence but also started up debate about equal protection under the law such as in the first Supreme Court ruling.

Barack Obama’s win for President in 2009 was a historical moment for the United States. His inaugural speech was much anticipated, because this was going to set the tone for his presidency. His speech told the American people that improving the economy is one of his priorities, but there were also other areas he would like to improve like healthcare and the education system. This was a speech that was meant to persuade the American public to take action for them to rise as a nation again, and for them to put their trust into him. His message addressed a couple of specific points like his gratefulness to the American people, the different crises America is facing, how America will overcome these crises, replying to his cynics, addressing the world, and then he reminded America again to be brave like they’ve always been to overcome the hard times (5 Speechwriting Lessons from Obama's Inaugural Speech, (n.d.).