The Civil Rights Movement: The Brown V. Board Of Education Case

The Civil Rights movement lasted for about a century, however, the strongest decades were between the late 1950s and the early 1970s. This movement consisted of peaceful protests performed by African Americans and others who believed in equality amongst all individuals. Some of these protests included the Brown v. Board of Education case, the Freedom Riders and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. These important events were led by powerful leaders like Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks. All of these different forms of protests helped the Civil Rights movement gain ground in the United States.
The Brown v. Board of Education case was an issue that was taken to the supreme court. This case was brought upon the courts by Earl Warren, Chief Justice, arguing that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional because it was violating the 14th amendment. Warren mentioned that “in the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ has no place [in schools]” (Lapsansky-Werner 471). This statement was controversial because

This tactic consisted of “the Blacks sitting in the front of the bus and the Whites sitting in the back of the bus” (Williams). These protesters did nothing but take advantage of the new rights granted to them but the white people did not exactly like it. White supremacists used violence to fight back against the Freedom Riders. With this group being integrated, white supremacists targeted the white riders before anyone else. These peaceful activists were beaten up several times for doing everything but illegal things. Alabama, where these protests occurred, was a main focus of the federal government because the state police did not enforce the law they were supposed to enforce. Therefore, activists became more motivated and powerful as no action was taken to end the uncivil and unconstitutional acts performed by citizens and the law