Racism, School Desegregation Laws and the Civil Rights Movement in the United States
The
African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955--1968) refers to the social movements in the
United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against black
Americans and restoring voting rights to them. This article covers the phase of the movement between
1955 and
1968, particularly in the
South. The emergence of the
Black Power Movement, which lasted roughly from 1966 to
1975, enlarged the aims of the
Civil Rights Movement to include racial dignity, economic and political self-sufficiency, and freedom from oppression by white Americans.
The movement was characterized by major campaigns of civil resistance. Between 1955 and 1968, acts of nonviolent protest and civil disobedience produced crisis situations between activists and government authorities.
Federal, state, and local governments, businesses, and communities often had to respond immediately to these situations that highlighted the inequities faced by
African Americans. Forms of protest and/or civil disobedience included boycotts such as the successful
Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955--1956) in
Alabama; "sit-ins" such as the influential
Greensboro sit-ins (1960) in
North Carolina; marches, such as the
Selma to Montgomery marches (
1965) in Alabama; and a wide range of other nonviolent activities.
Noted legislative achievements during this phase of the Civil Rights Movement were passage of
Civil Rights Act of 1964, that banned discrimination based on "race, color, religion, or national origin" in employment practices and public accommodations; the
Voting Rights Act of 1965, that restored and protected voting rights; the
Immigration and Nationality Services Act of 1965, that dramatically opened entry to the
U.S. to immigrants other than traditional
European groups; and the
Fair Housing Act of 1968, that banned discrimination in the sale or rental of housing. African Americans re-entered politics in the South, and across the country young people were inspired to action.
Desegregation busing in the United States (also known as forced busing or simply busing) is the practice of assigning and transporting students to schools in such a manner as to redress prior racial segregation of schools, or to overcome the effects of residential segregation on local school demographics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desegregation_busing_in_the_United_States