Racial equality

Racial equality is an equal regard to all races. It can refer to a belief in biological equality of all human races, and it can also refer to social equality for people of different races. Racial equality is a stated goal of most current political movements. The divergence of any particular society from a state of racial equality is often contested by members of that society of different races. In today's society, there is more diversity and more integration among races. However, attaining equality has been difficult for African Americans, Asians, and Latinos, especially in schools.[1]

Attitudes

Since 1942, there has been an increased rate of two particular issues that evolved in racial equality. In these two different issues, it gives a great deal to what has occurred during this era. One is the handling of blacks to ensure equality, which was favored by the white community, and the other is the differences between southerners and non-southerners. These two issues were observed by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC). They made questions that plotted five main topics that targeted blacks at the time. The five points that affected racial equality and tracked during the years 1965–1980 were year, region, cohort, and education.[2] Many educational systems in the south and non-southern areas were in favor of segregated educational institutions among blacks. They also didn't want blacks near their neighborhood or interracial marriages to happen.[2]

African American Society

There was a certain Civil Rights group that came together to fight over the corruption and segregation. They fought in a nonviolent manner, creating a well-known group named Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) that grew profoundly after the 1950s. It all began by James Farmer who later becomes leader of the group and a civil rights activist, in 1941. He went back to his " Native South". He went to a local movie theater to where he came upon the "crow's nest". The area was reserved only for Negroes. He opposed the Jim Crow's laws. He realized that his friends and himself supported those laws by what they did in their daily actions. He soon wrote a memo and summoned for the formation of a group of individuals that were powerful from mind and body to be able to take personal nonviolent actions to end discrimination.[3]

First of all, Core began in the North. And it mainly concentrated in public areas. About two decades ago, the North had segregated spots where Negroes were not allowed. Those places for example were restaurants, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and barber shops. More successful efforts were the work settings where there were some experiments with interracial workers and in housing co-operatives. CORE’s main focus was to increase public recognition in the north. In the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, CORE moved to the border states of Missouri, Maryland, and Oklahoma.[4]

CORE was established in 1942 in Chicago. It was a branch of a "Peace-Lover" organization, which was called the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR). CORE used nonviolent actions procedures that involved sit-ins, which were done in lunch counters in Chicago. By 1947, CORE contributed with an interracial bus ride across the upper part of the South. They were testing state buses that the U.S Supreme Court ordered to be desegregated, which was Morgan v. Virginia decision in 1946. This led to some success for the facilities that were testing out the orders they were given, but it didn't grab much attention especially in the national level, which was their main goal. By 1960, there was a new wave of nonviolent direct action protests that initiated through the student sit-in movement. Core's national director James Farmer repeated the Journey of Reconciliation. Then there was another Supreme Court ruling in Boynton v. Virginia (1960) that ordered a stop to segregation in the interstate bus terminals. And that came to be the Freedom Rides. The Freedom Riders traveled deep into the south and were attacked by Segregationists along Alabama.[5]

Congress of Racial Equality Technique

CORE's technique was always nonviolence. And that was the method of fighting racial injustice. CORE was the first organization to use nonviolent actions in order to stop many issues that affected the black community. The student sit- ins started in February 1960. Within the year, , 130 eating locations opened up in the southern communities. They were interested to how CORE approached the segregating issues.[6]

The Sit-Ins

The sit-ins have been used by CORE the most and it has been the oldest technique compared to others. CORE divided into three different groups. One was all black individuals, the second was all whites, and the final one was interracial. And these three different groups would go to a segregated eating area before the busiest hour and wait to be attended quietly. This was used to open up restaurants, then later is was used for other stores.[6]

The Standing Line

This was used at cafeterias, ticket booths, and other places where one stands in a line in order to be served. The way it works, if a negro is refused, the CORE members who might be in line before him/her will also refuse to step out of line and interrupt service. CORE did this at movie theaters in Kentucky, and at a swimming pool at Palisades Amusement Park in New Jersey. This technique was also important for stopping segregation.[6]

Expansion of CORE

CORE grew in the early 1940’s, but continued to be composed of small groups. They persisted in being small because of the students who were part of the organization. The students would graduate and move away. Also, others were fighting for a specific cause and once the issue has been dealt with, they disappeared. CORE was only a voluntary organization; there was no paid staff.[4]

CORE's Main Goals

In the South:

In the North:

Due to the commitment and sacrifice of the individuals in the group, many outsiders started to notice the efforts of the group. They supported them and started the Freedom Rides. CORE was more involved in the Black Power movement around the mid-1960s. Then things shifted to integration and nonviolent actions toward the organization of communities, the separation of the people, and Black Power. Also, as whites and blacks started to work together to fight over the dilemmas of segregation, white liberals weren't fond of the idea that they were working together. CORE's issues changed over time, so they worked in different actions that would pop up.

Main focal point for each decade

As of now, Congress of Racial Equality is devoted to Equality and Nonviolence.[7]

Laws and racial equality in education

As of now, the Supreme Court puts attention to the Fourteenth Amendment. The amendment has been confirmed since July 9, 1968. It prohibits states from opposing any person's "life, liberty or property, without law coming forward on the individual" or to "deny to any person within its authority the equal protection of the laws."[8] This amendment has been used in more legal cases than any other amendment, due to its relevance to civil rights.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Landauro, Victor. "Racial Equality." Junior Scholastic Apr 26 2004: 10-1. ProQuest. Web. 29 Mar. 2016 .
  2. 1 2 Case, Charles E., and Andrew M. Greeley. "Attitudes Toward Racial Equality." Humboldt Journal of Social Relations 16.1 (1990): 67-94. ProQuest. Web. 1 Mar. 2016.
  3. ↑ "The Congress of Racial Equality and Its Strategy on JSTOR". www.jstor.org. Retrieved 2016-04-12.
  4. 1 2 Rich, Marvin. “The Congress of Racial Equality and Its Strategy”. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 357 (1965): 113–118. Web.
  5. ↑ KIRK, JOHN A. "Please Help Us": The Fort Smith Congress Of Racial Equality Chapter, 1962-1965." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 73.3 (2014): 293-317. Academic Search Complete. Web. 5 Apr. 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 "This is CORE. | ucf.digital.flvc.org". ucf.digital.flvc.org. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  7. ↑ Jaynes, Gerald D. "Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)." Encyclopedia of African American Society. Ed. Vol. 2. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2005. 218. SAGE Knowledge. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ "Primary Documents in American History." 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Primary Documents of American History (Virtual Programs & Services, Library of Congress). Web. 29 Mar. 2016.

External links

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