Racism and the Civil Rights essays

Racism and the Civil Rights essays Racism has existed in the United States for hundreds of years. While the issues of racism came to a head in the civil rights era of this country, the issue is still alive and well within many aspects of society. Research shows that Americans are still very influenced by ethnic origin, and that there are still enormous differences in the treatment of people in this country based on race. The President's Initiative on Race, a research organization, has also found that discrimination against groups based on their race still exists today, and still limits the opportunities available to them. This is seen in almost all areas, from the housing market, to employment and banking institutions (Diversity Digest, par. 1). While great improvements have occurred, there is still much racism to overcome. As early as the 1860's, the civil rights movement was beginning to slowly take form. With the end of the Civil War, and with the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery, the Fourteenth Amendment, which guaranteed protection of citizens, and the Fifteenth Amendment, which barred voting restrictions, the issue of civil rights came to the forefront. Yet the so called "freedoms" gained through the passage of the Amendments were quickly doused by "scientific" ideas that whites were supreme, and by state governments enacting numerous laws to severely restrict suffrage in the South. Through the combination of local, state and federal government, racial segregation began to emerge as a result. In addition, group such as the Klu Klux Klan formed to show white supremacy and began to emerge in both the north and the south, further limiting the freedoms of the African Americans (Sullivan, par. 1-6). By the 1900's, African Americans were virtually eliminated in all forms of government. Most areas in the south had banned African Americans from streetcars, created se...