March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom of 1963

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Over 200,000 demonstrators participated in the March on Washington in the nation’s capital on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to gain civil rights for African Americans. There was a wide diversity in those who participated, with a quarter of all the demonstrators being white (Ross). Even southern people came to contribute which caused them to be harassed and threatened for coming to the march. The March on Washington became a very successful event for the rights of African Americans, and amended several peoples’ view-points towards the topic, even President John Kennedy’s. “The president feared that it might make the legislature vote against civil rights laws in reaction to a perceived threat. Once it became clear that the march would go on, however, he supported it” (Ross). The event took over a year to plan with heaps of organizations’ assistance. The event soon became the largest demonstration for human rights in Washington D.C. (Official Program). How did the March on Washington’s planning and set up help influence so many people and grant them the rights they fought for? The year of 1963 had an extreme amount of racial tension and arguments about the rights of African Americans. The white people were vastly prejudice towards the blacks and used all kinds of falderal. Several people began to stand up and show their opinions about the civil disobedience that the laws stood for. Many did this in a public manner therefore they were arrested and sent to jail. An example of this was Martin Luther King, Jr. when he wrote “Letter from Birmingham City Jail” during the time of the protests. All of the people’s opinions are what led to the March on Washington. “In the summer of 1941 A. Philip Randolph, founder of the Broth... ... middle of paper ... ...al rights that they deserved. Works Cited Brown v. Board of Education. n.d. 8 May 2014 . History: The March on Washington . 2013. 23 April 2014 . March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. n.d. 16 April 2014 . Official Program for the March on Washington (1963). n.d. 29 April 2014 . Ross, Schmuel. Infoplease. 2014. 21 April 2014 . Tomasky, Micheal. Bob Dylan, Joan Baez & More Music at 1963’s March on Washington. 27 August 2013. 14 May 2014 .

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