Civil Rights Movement

MP
May 6, 2013

Civil Rights Movement. Two events of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States that had great impact on African Americans Struggle for equality were the Brown v. Board of Education ruling and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Brown v. Board of Education ruling was a beginning point of the Civil Rights Movement. The NAACP's chief counsel and director Thurgood Marshall focused his attention on public education and access for African Americans. One case that was brought to court with his help was Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. An African American girl, Linda Brown, was denied admission to her neighborhood school because of her race. Ultimately, in May of 1954, Supreme Court decided that it was unconstitutional to segregate public schools as violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote : " Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. " This important ruling made by the Supreme Court was controversial. There were protests both for and against. The ruling encouraged and supported African Americans to challenge other forms of segregation.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a necessary follow-up and gave power to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The 1964 Civil Rights Act removed poll taxes but it did not secure or guarantee African Americans access to vote. Local officials in many parts of the country still created additional barriers for African Americans the right to vote . The Voting Rights Act of 1965 gave the attorney general the authority to send examiners to register qualified voters. People had access to register. The Act also suspended literacy tests that some counties had in place. The literacy requirement was unfair because many counties that used it had traditional made access to education difficult. The Voters Rights Act Created federal laws to protect voting rights, that were made possible by the twenty- fourth Amendment.

The Brown v. Board of Education and Voting Rights Act of 1965 both hold significant place in the Civil Rights Movement. The court decision paved the way towards outlawing segregation. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 brought to law that segregation is illegal in public places such as schools, parks, restaurants and libraries. The Voters Rights Act of 1965 created law to enforce qualified voters the opportunity to exercise their right. Both the U.S. Supreme Court decision and then Voters Rights Act had great impacts on African Americans struggle for equality.