Civil Rights Act Research Paper

The Civil Rights Act was a major historical event during the 1960s. Although it’s been 50 years since it was signed by Lyndon B. Johnson, African Americans still face race discrimination. There were people who made a huge impact during this time in history. Two presidents changed history in which they thought was for a positive change. There were also many African American Activist who saw fit that they needed to take a stand. In this paper you will get to know all of them and six of the eleven titles in the Civil Rights Act. This was a great start in history this act was not just for African Americans but all citizens, religions, and gender.

The civil Right Act was a federal law that took action against segregation in the United

States. It was signed by Lyndon B. Johnson on July 2, 1964. The CRA was for all American citizens. It protected them against voting rights, race discrimination, woman rights, religion, and education. However this paper will only focus on the rights of African Americans. They suffered more especially when it came to them being segregated from public places, public facilities, and the education system. The Civil Rights Act has eleven different titles that define the act of 1964; however, let’s focus on tiles I, II, III, IV, and VII. This paper will also focus on the major people who saw it was time for a change. July 2, 2014 marked the 50th anniversary of the CRA, and it defiantly still impacts many lives today. Think about it in 2008 the first African American President was elected into office.
Martin Luther King Jr a Baptist minister and a community activist had strong feelings towards the way African Americans were treated in the 1960s. King had an enormous protest in tin 1963 in Birmingham Alabama. Alabama was one of the states in the south that had a high segregation impact on its citizens. Kings marches and protest was started to let the government know, that African Americans had enough of the way they were being treated. He was hoping that his marches would open up new pathways to jobs, faculties, and stop police harassments among blacks. In August 1963 King and his protesters marched to Washington. There were over two hundred thousand marchers’ rallying in front of the Lincoln memorial. On this day Martin Luther King Jr had a Dream:
“I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
Martin paved the way for all African Americans and choose to be the leader of the civil rights movement for blacks. But he couldn’t do it all by himself he couldn’t pass his wants into office. He needed help and President John F. Kennedy was ready to take that stand with King to change the nation’s views on citizens’ rights. Kennedy felt the United States was faced with moral issue that needed to be fixed. On June 18, 1963 the administration had sponsored the civil rights legislation. This would provide equal rights to citizens.
John F.

Kennedy was the 35th president of the United States. Kennedy wanted all Americans to be treated fairly and equally. After World War II he wanted to get the nation to head in a new direction. When Kennedy stepped in office his followers was young and old. He had an outgoing personality, he was very attractive and very intelligent. However Kennedy vowed to attack segregation in the south. During the 1960s he also appointed plenty of African American to high government positons, this was a start. Before he had the chance to succeed with his inputs on the Civil Rights Acts he was assonated. Vice President Lyndon B Johnson stepped in on Kennedy

behalf..
Lyndon B Johnson grew up in poverty he was a country boy. Who had a tough guy personality, many thought he came off a little too strong. Although he knew he had great intensions he wanted others to be aware as well. So he signed the Act to honor Kennedy’s wishes. In the act there were eleven titles defining the Civil Rights Act and they all have an impact on all citizens of the United States. Here are a few starting with voting rights.
Title I which was the voting rights of American citizens.

During the 1940’s the Jim Crow laws kept African Americans from voting because of literacy and poll taxes. Numerous techniques was used to confuse, restrict, and discourage African Americans. Many of them struggled from poverty and could not afford to pay nor had the ability to read. Voting rights during the 1960’s was important to the civil rights movement. During this time in history Martin Luther King Jr a social activist and Baptist minister who gave a speech called “Give us The Ballot”:
Give us the ballot and we will no longer plead to the federal government for passage of an anti-lynching law; we will be the power of our vote, write the law on the statue books of the southern states and bring an end to the dastardly acts of the hooded perpetrators of

violence
Title I was about the voting rights, while Title II focused was on banning racial and religion discrimination in a public accommodations. This Included hotels, swimming pools, business, even privately owned business. All across the United States African Americans were not allowed to enter many places. It was time for a change, during the 1960’s four African American students took a stand. They choose to enter a lunch counter restaurant located in Greensboro, North Carolina. These four young men sat down in the dinner was refused services and still stayed until the restaurant was closed. This was the first step and students all across the US began to do sit ins. A movement was started and it was called the Student non-violent coordinating committee. The African American youth was paving the way and they were doing it peacefully.
Title III main focus was the Desegregation of public facilities. African Americans struggled with seeing white only signs or coloreds this way. In many public facilities there would be signs telling you instead of allowing you to choose which way to go. In 1961 the youth became more encouraged to take a stand for their chance to be heard. A group of volunteers called the freedom riders began to protest. The Freedom rides group was a biracial group who focuses was on the desegregating of trains, buses, and terminals. These young men and woman started a movement; however, it started out peacefully on the student’s behalf. Then while visiting Birmingham Alabama the freedom riders were attacked by a mob of angry whites. During this time in history Alabama was one of the top states in the south who still was going through the trails of segregation. This leads us to title IV of the Civil rights Act.
Title IV focused on the desegregation of schools. African Americans and whites were not allowed in schools nor classrooms together. Just like the voting rights Jim Crow laws had a major impact on the schools as well. This included elementary, middle, high school, and collage. The 1954 supreme court ruling in the Brown vs Board of education. Felt segregation in public schools are unconstitutional:
Brown decision found segregation in schools inherently unequal and initiated a long and difficult effort to integrate the nation’s public schools.
The last title that I will like to talk about is title VII. Equal Employment opportunity commission was created in 1964. The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting work place discrimination based on race, color, sex, and religion. John F. Kennedy on June 19, 1963 asked congress to make a “commitment it has not successfully made in this century to the proposition that race has no place in the American life or law”. Martin Luther king fought so hard for African Americans to have the rights to work and be paid fairly. Even though it took time it was still accomplished and Kennedy would have been very proud as well.
The civil rights act was a start in the new direction for many during the 1960s. African Americans struggled to be treated as an American citizen. To be honest all these years later many are still having to struggle to prove their rights. There has been some great historical events Kennedy, king, and Lyndon paved the way for all African American citizens. Who would have known the Civil rights act consisted of titles that defined the Act.