Montgomery Bus Boycott And The Sit-In Movement Essay

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Many decades ago Africans were brought to the United States to become slaves for the wealthy whites, but later Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery. African Americans faced segregation, disenfranchisement, and even lynching. Segregation was a big problem back then, Plessy vs. Ferguson made segregation constitutional under the doctrine separate but equal. There were several events that broke down segregation throughout society in the United States. The Montgomery Bus Boycott broke down segregation in public buses in the city. The Sit-In Movement integrated lunch counters throughout the South. Freedom summer gave the blacks a right to vote without any requirements or threats to their lives. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was the event that made segregation…show more content…
Fannie Lou Hamer was an early leader from the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) which led the movement. They were protestors that would sit in all-white counters. “He tried to protect his face, the man who’d thrown him down kept kicking him against the head” (Moody), they would face serious threat and even arrest. They refused to move unless integration demands were met or they were forcibly removed. When a group would get arrested another group would take their place and sit, and so on continued. They didn’t fight back and they wanted to prove that to the segregationists, also that they weren’t scared of their jails. They’d face violence, threats and humiliation; this was captured by a photo and video which helped bring about public sympathy for the movement. The students who participated inspired legions of protestors of every race and gender to join the movement, by the end of March 1960, the sit-in movement had spread to more than 55 cities in 13 states. The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was a northern group of students led by James Farmer, which also endorsed direct action. These groups became the grassroots organizers of future sit-ins at lunch counters, wade-ins at segregated swimming pools, and pray-ins at white-only churches. Over 1500 black demonstrators were arrested. But their sacrifice brought results. Slowly, but surely, restaurants throughout the

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