The Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Movement

The civil rights movement served as a catalyst for social transformation that altered American history. One of the most significant movements that addressed equal rights for all Americans was the social movement. In the US, racial tension had persisted since since slavery was abolished in 1863. Racial tension, inequality, segregation, and discrimination increased significantly throughout the Reconstruction Period, especially for African Americans in the South. Despite efforts on the part of the federal government to grant everyone equal rights, black people’s rights were infringed. The Black Codes denied African-Americans their rights to civil liberties while the Jim Crow laws promoted segregation and discrimination using the slogan equal but separated (Banting, 2014). However, the changes brought by the civil rights movement led to violent opposition from majority of white southerners and the death of important civil rights leaders. All in all, the civil rights movement created a roadmap for other social change and justice movements in America and served as an instrument against systemic oppression. Therefore, the civil rights movement was a reformative social movement and as such, it is the ideal example for social movement. In this paper, I seek to explore this movement using a sociological lens and explore its progress using the four stages of social movements.

Emergence

Emergence is the first stage in the formation of social movements. Sociological research refers to this stage as a widespread discontent as potential participants may be displeased or unhappy with certain social conditions (Larson, 2013). With this note, the civil rights movement emerged due to systematic racial oppression, discrimination, segregation and job inequality. The reconstruction era led to massive poverty among the black communities in America and especially in the former Confederate states. The abolition of slavery left ex-slaves without financial resources for a descent lifestyle. During the Second World War, majority of blacks enlisted in the US military in the pursuit of better wages and salary and most importantly, they were escaping poverty (Banting, 2014). The men and women in uniform were promised equal rights and democracy, yet they served in a very segregated military. After their return home, the situation was the same. There was widespread discrimination for the people of color. In the American South, the blacks were denied their rights to vote even though the federal government had enacted a legislation that gave black people a right to vote. However, the southern state governments implemented eligibility tests that denied African Americans voting rights because majority of them were illiterate. Similarly, the Jim Crow laws had led to massive segregation in public primary and secondary schools. Segregation was also in the public transport system and the black communities were not allowed to mix with their white counterparts (Mcadam, 2016). The African Americans mostly lived in rural or poor neighborhoods. Black schools lacked adequate funding and there was systemic discrimination in the labor market. The blacks were denied access to better paying jobs even if they were educated. As a result, the black community in America was tired of being in the sideline. It was time for them to air their grievances in call for social reforms. Therefore, the civil rights movement emerged as an equality campaign for all people in America regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion and political affiliation (Mcadam, 2016).

Coalescence

After the emergence of the civil rights movement, the social movement initiated a series of high profile campaigns that illustrated the plight of blacks in the highly segregated southern states. The civil rights movement was at it coalescence stage that is a lifecycle in which social movements overcome challenges that they may otherwise overwhelm them. It is also known as the popular stage in which social movements coordinate widespread mobilization. In this stage, the social movement is not driven by the sense of uneasiness and discontent, but a sense of the people affected by the discontent. It is at the coalescence stage that leadership and demonstrations emerge to display the power of the social movement and make clear demands (Larson, 2013). The civil rights movement organized lunch counter sit-ins when students of African descent sat down at segregated counters waiting to be served or to be forcefully evicted by the police. Another example was Montgomery Bus Boycott. The aim of the campaigns was to gather countrywide support and the exposure of how the segregationist would do anything to protect their status quo. At the coalescence stage, Martin Luther King Jr. emerged as a prominent leader. After many years of strong leadership and fought out campaigns, the civil rights movement became a powerful political force (Banting, 2014).

Bureaucratization

Bureaucratization is the third stage of social movements. This stage is characterized by the use of coalition strategies and efficient organization because the social movement has accomplished the creation of awareness. During this stage, the movement cannot only rely on its leaders and long demonstrations (Larson, 2013). The civil rights movement needed political support to support its grievances. In 1957 President Eisenhower commanded the protection of nine black students as they attended Central High, Arkansas after they had been denied access to the institution. The civil rights movement had become a political force that political elites could not evade (Luders, 2009).

Institutionalization

The Civil Rights Movement was very successful in its appeal for social reforms. In the institutionalization stage, social movements either enjoy success or failure. The civil rights movement had been previously perceived as a rebellion that would end in failure. However, the pace had already been set and the blacks would not relent or shy away from achieving their objectives. President Eisenhower signed the Civil Rights Act in 1957, a major legislation since the Reconstruction Era (Santoro, 2015, p.635). The act allowed federal persecution to any individual that would hinder blacks from voting. In 1963, over 200,000 African Americans matched to Washington DC in peaceful protests demanding for equal job opportunities for all. In the following year 1964, President John signed the Civil Rights Act that had been initiated by President Kennedy before his assassination. King, Philip Randolph and other leaders witnessed the enacting the historical legislation that gave equal employment to all American citizens irrespective of their color (Santoro, 2015, p.640). Another great achievement happened in 1965 when President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act, a legislation that eliminated voting eligibility tests. However, Malcolm X and King, two prominent leaders paid for the success of the civil rights movement after they were assassinated in 1965 and 1968 respectively. Nevertheless, the movement hit another scoreboard when the Fair Housing Act that prevented sexual, racial, religious, and nationality discrimination in housing in 1968 and ended segregation (Santoro, 2015, p.646).

Impact

The Civil Rights Movement reformed the American society and changed the working of institutions. The movement challenged every dimension of the American way of life. The movement led to the change in the Justice System when Thurgood Marshall was appointed as the first African American judge of the US Supreme Court (Luders, 2009). He was the lawyer that won the case that ended segregation in public schools. Moreover, the civil rights movement gave other minority groups the voice to air their plight and opened a door for equality in the US. Racial discrimination in housing, employment and voting was eliminated. The social movement was an institution for democracy. In the 20th century, there was no other social movement that single-handedly impacted the education, government and legal institutions in the US like the civil rights movement. It also impacted the economy in that more blacks gained access to better jobs and they contributed to the economic prosperity of the country (Luders, 2009).

Conclusion

Conclusively, the Civil Rights Movement was one of the most dominant reformative social movement that opened doors for other movements in the US. It created new societal norms and values in the respect for human dignity and equality. It made Americans live as per the constitution that states all people are created equal. Segregation in schools, public transport and neighborhoods were a thing of the past, even though certain regions in the US remain highly segregated. The movement incorporated practices that accommodated diversity as the US adopted laws that barred the discrimination of immigrants. In summation, the Civil Rights Movement was a social movement that led to the social, political and economic changes in the US and its impact is still felt in the 21st century America.

References

Banting, E. (2014). Civil rights movement. New York, NY: AV2 by Weigl.

Larson, J. A. (2013). Social Movements and Tactical Choice. Sociology Compass, 7(10), 866-

879. doi:10.1111/soc4.12069

Luders, J. E. (2009). The Civil Rights Movement and the Logic of Social Change.

Doi:10.1017/cbo9780511817120

Mcadam, D. (2016). The Civil Rights Movement. Oxford Handbooks Online.

doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199566631.013.10

Santoro, W. (2015). Was the Civil Rights Movement Successful? Tracking and Understanding

Black Views. Sociological Forum, 30, 627-647. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/socf.12181