Civil Rights Protests

People of color in America have fought for their rights since the American government was founded on inequality. The 1950s through the 1970s were a time of change in America. From the Little Rock Nine to the March to Selma, activists of all ages, races, and social standing bound themselves together and demanded change. Let's take a deeper dive into Civil Rights Protests.

Protests: Civil Rights Movement

The major protests of the 1960s civil rights movement were landmark gatherings and initiatives that spread the message of equality throughout the United States. Various demonstrations were used throughout the campaign, from sit-ins to bus boycotts and even marches, which faced physical violence from the opposition. Leaders of the movement were influenced by their personal experiences in their preferred form of resistance.

Non-Violent Protests: Civil Rights Movement

The following protests were non-violent. This meant that the activists involved remained peaceful no matter what was done to them. Protestors were called names, spit on, and attacked but never returned the violence.

Greensboro Sit-Ins

In the segregated South, even lunch counters were separated by race, and segregation extended into all aspects of daily life, no matter how minor. On February 1st, 1960, four young Black men sat at a Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro. North Carolina. They asked to be served politely but were refused service because they sat in the whites-only section. When the young men were denied service, they remained seated. They didn't cause conflict but protested with inaction no matter what happened within Woolworths.

The Greensboro Sit-Ins were a shining example of non-violent protests or protests through inaction; the four men did not react physically or verbally to anything happening around them; they continued to sit at the lunch counter. The four young men were joined by more activists who sat in silence. People across the nation were so inspired by it, that they organized sit-ins in their areas.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The Montgomery bus boycott was a protest against the segregation on public buses in Montgomery, Alabama. The initiative began with the confrontation between Rosa Parks and bus driver J. Blake. Parks and two other African Americans were ordered to give up their seats so that one white man could sit down. Due to local ordinances, people of color were required to sit separately on public transit. When Parks refused to get up, she was arrested.

Fig. 2 Rosa Parks

After Parks' arrest, local political organizers belonging to the Women's Political Council (WPC) began circulating flyers asking for a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. This boycott happened on December 5th and resulted in almost 40,000 black citizens refusing to ride the bus. Most riders of the Montgomery bus system were Black citizens, so this had a dramatic effect.

On May 4th, 1961, the journey through the South to protest segregated bus terminals began from Washington DC into the harshly segregated South. The trip was intended to test the Supreme Court's 1947 decision that segregated bus terminals were unconstitutional. The original 13 riders were Black and white people who planned to ride through the South via bus lines. The Freedom Riders were met with violent opposition throughout their journey.

On May 14, 1961, the first bus reached Anniston, Alabama and an angry mob assembled. They prevented the bus from stopping at its pre-arranged drop-off location. The bus later suffered a tire blowout, and someone threw a bomb. The bus exploded in flames, and those who fled the bus were met with physical violence at the hands of the mob.

The second bus reached Birmingham, Alabama, where the assembled mob beat the group of Freedom Riders. This event was marked by the media coverage of the Public Safety Commissioner of Alabama, Bull Connor. He argued that police protection would not be offered because it was Mother's Day.

Fig. 3 A mob of racists beats Freedom Riders in Birmingham, Alabama

The rides continued through the South. Federal marshals were deployed to protect the riders when the police escort abandoned the bus upon reaching Montgomery, Alabama. Over 500 federal marshals had to be sent in after the white mob escalated to attacking the riders with bats and clubs when they exited the bus. These rides continued through 1961 until the Interstate Commerce Committee issued regulations banning segregated interstate bus terminals under intense public pressure.

March on Washington

On August 28th, 1963, over 200,000 people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, for the March On Washington. The official name used during the organization of the march was the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The civil rights movement leaders addressed the gathered supporters; the speaking roster included A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, John Lewis, plus musicians and actors.

Martin Luther King, Jr. gave one of the greatest speeches of all time during the March on Washington; the "I Have a Dream" speech. He was scheduled to be the day's final speaker, and his speech grew from the planned 6-8 minutes to over 15 minutes. King deviated from his prepared remarks, but the result was one of the most moving speeches in US History.

Fig. 4 Civil Rights March on Washington

Selma March

The Selma March resulted from weeks of building tension with demonstrators attempting to march from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital Montgomery. The march was a protest against the disenfranchisement of African Americans and the death of the young African American activist Jimmie Lee Jackson.

Fig. 5 March from Selma to Montgomery

The march lasted from March 21 to March 25, 1965, with an estimated 25,000 people participating. The Selma March was met with violence every day of the event. It led President Lyndon Johnson to pledge his support to the cause. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 resulted from the Selma March's impact.

The Little Rock Nine

Nine children were selected by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to push desegregation in Little Rock, Alabama. The nine teenagers were verbally and physically abused at Central High School every day. President Johnson had to send the 101st Airborne to protect the children. The soldiers weren't allowed in restrooms or classrooms, so those were areas where the kids were targeted.

Fig. 6 Little Rock Nine

Ernest Green was the first member of the Little Rock Nine to graduate from Central Highschool. Many of the children continued their activism in their adult lives.

Peaceful Protests: Civil Rights Movement

Peaceful protests center on the foundation that non-action presents the most logical and non-confrontational approach to bringing attention to an issue. There are many non-violent Civil Rights Activist groups. Martin Luther King, Jr. led the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which focused on non-violent protests. It organized many resistance movements throughout the era and had chapters across America.

Civil Rights Movement: Activists

The different types of protests reflect the leaders' views in each organization. While Martin L. King Jr. is depicted as the leading figure of the civil rights movement in the United States, he was not the head of the movement. The campaign was a combined effort of different organizations and leaders.

Martin L. King Jr.

Martin L. King Jr. captured audiences unlike any civil rights leader of the time. He reached people individually and inspired action from people of color and allies. During the March on Washington, King gave the "I have a Dream" speech which is hailed as one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century. His stance on non-violence was a shared view by many, but there were differing views on non-violence within the movement.

Malcolm X

Malcolm X was born into a family of civil rights activists; both his mother and father were members of the United Negros Improvement Association, created by Marcus Garvy. After his father's death, Malcolm became a young man who committed petty crimes. While in jail, he became a member of the Nation of Islam. The general public did not know of Malcolm X until he led the response to the assault of a member of the Nation of Islam by NY police officers in 1957. His alignment with religion shifted over time.

Fig. 6 Malcolm X in March of 1964.

Ella Baker

Ella Baker is considered the Mother of the Civil Rights Movement. She organized many different Civil Rights Organizations, one of which was King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). When Baker heard of the Greensboro Sit-Ins, she helped them organize the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). King wanted the SNCC to join the SCLC, but Baker encouraged them to pursue their version of non-violent protest.

Current Civil Rights Protests

The effort to achieve true equality continues in modern America, and several initiatives have begun in recent years. The efforts to highlight the differing treatment of Black Americans in private and public sectors continue to spearhead progress. In modern America, the most visible civil rights issue has been the deaths of Black Americans while in custody or in the process of being detained by police officers.

Civil Rights: Progress made but not finished

Social progress is a slow change, and recent events have illuminated the importance of the history of civil rights protests in the United States and its applicability today.