Jim Crow Laws Essay

During the beginning of the civil rights movement, racial segregation was a growing issue in the southern United States of America. The Jim Crow laws were enacted in the 1880’s and their soul purpose was to enforce separation of the races. Jim Crow laws were a set of black codes, in which mocked black citizens of the Southern United States and enforced racism. “‘Jim Crow’ was a derisive slang term for a black man” (A Brief History of Jim Crow 1). These laws got their name from actor Thomas Dartmouth, who would impersonate and mock African Americans citizens and servants. Thomas, would paint himself black to appear African American, while this was very offensive it seemed to amuse the Caucasian population. The Jim Crow laws are an example of

A common misconception is that all white citizens hated and disrespected black citizens; however, “Even when the Jim Crow laws were being enacted, many people (including white people) felt that they were not fair. They believed that blacks and whites should have equal access to opportunity” (The Impact of Jim Crow Laws on Education 1). The Jim Crow Laws legally separated black citizens and white citizens with segregation in schools, public bathrooms, water fountains, and many more public places. Signs that read “Colored Only” or “White Only” were visible everywhere during that time period (Racial Segregation in the American South: Jim Crow Laws 1). Shockingly, in South Carolina, black textile workers could not even enter through the same door as a white man, let alone work in the same room (A Brief History of Jim Crow 1). Black citizens had a hard time earning money because of this, especially because many unions passed laws that disabled African-americans from working there (A Brief History of Jim Crow

According to the America’s Black Holocaust Museum, African-Americans were restricted from voting with violence, literacy tests, property tests, and poll taxes (Voting Rights for Blacks and Poor Whites in the Jim Crow South 1). “Blacks who tried to vote were threatened, beaten, and killed. Their families were also harmed. Sometimes their homes were burned down. Often, they lost their jobs or were thrown off their farms” (Voting Rights for Blacks and Poor Whites in the Jim Crow South 1). This clearly affected their right to vote because it scared them away from the poles. In addition to this, they were given literacy tests and property tests. If they were deemed illiterate, they were unable to vote (Voting Rights for Blacks and Poor Whites in the Jim Crow South 1). This was especially unfair because even if the black citizen could understand what was being said to them, the administrator of the test would say that they couldn 't in order to prevent them from voting (Voting Rights for Blacks and Poor Whites in the Jim Crow South 1). For the property tests, only citizens that owned property could vote, and many black citizens did not own property (Voting Rights for Blacks and Poor Whites in the Jim Crow South 1). This was also unfair because African-Americans could not afford to own property because of their extremely poor economic situation. Finally, there were poll