Civil Rights

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Civil Rights

Equality is important with civil rights. It is important because civil rights is what keeps everybody and everything equal. Civil rights are important to civilians. The Declaration Of Independence states that "all men are created equal." "People are born with unalienable rights which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The Declaration of Independence also states that if the government were to do something that the people don't approve of, the people are "able to alter or abolish it." After so many years after the Declaration of Independence, there are still things going on, and everyday people go through situations where they have to look back and remember their civil rights and also remember the fact that everyman is created equal.

There is a significance of Obama's presidency to the civil rights leaders of yesterday. In the 1950's and 1960's, Blacks were not able to eat, hang out, or even drink in the same place as the white man. Now the President of the United States of America is a Black man. Even though this is true, racism is still not over in America. African American and Hispanic people are still considered minorities. Schools with predominantly Black and Hispanic students don't have the same or better resources as the schools that are predominantly of white students. This country has reached equality to a certain extent and compared to how it used to be back in the days. This does not mean that equality has been achieved completely. As explained before, schools, school supplies, and resources are not as good in a school of minorities as it is in a school of white students. Believe it or not, there are still a lot of people and places in the country where people are still totally racists towards the Black or Hispanic people. There are a few things that have been done such as laws that prohibit slavery and laws that prohibit segregation. Race is such a divisive issue in so many countries because of all the different races that exists, especially in the U.S because people of all races come here, which makes the U.S such a diverse country. Obama's election has affected a lot of people in the world. Minorities now feel the urge to do well in school and also succeed because it is now obvious that not only the white man can achieve something as great as being the President of the U.S. It has also affected a lot of people in a negative way. Some people that are still racists towards minorities and are obviously upset that an African American man beat a white man and is now the President of the United States of America.

Bill Cosby's "Pound Cake" speech, at the NCAA conference celebrating 50 years since Brown VS Board of Education, fits into the concept of civil rights. It does so because of all the fights that people back in the day had to go through to achieve something so great like winning the case of Brown v. Board of Education which gave people the equal right to learn in the same places with the same resources. Our rights are to learn and receive the same education as anybody else, and learn from the same books which should be in the same condition. Our obligation is to take advantage of this right and this case ruling and really take into consideration the hard work that people had to go through to achieve this right. We have the obligation to take our education seriously and take advantage or the rights that people have fought to give us.

The short story, "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., is a story about civil rights and equality in a different world, many, many years from now. The story describes a government that makes everybody equal. Nobody is prettier, smarter, more blind, or heavier then anyone else. And if anyone were any different, the government would put permanent weights on people, give them permanent lenses that would make them almost half blind, and put sensors in their ears that would shorten a person's thoughts if they were possibly smarter than anyone else. This definitely describes a time where people are equal down to every specific thing. This is obviously not realistic. Yes, everyone should be equal but not as literal to the point where everyone physically has to be the same way. This is where civil rights are very important, because people would have freedom of speech and religion and to excel.

The poem "SATURDAY'S CHILD" by Countee Cullen is a poem that describes the differences between two different families, a white family and a black family. The differences described are some as the place, time, and family they were born into. A child from a white family will have a lot more things, and be born in a nicer way then a black child. The poem "CHILDREN'S RHYMES" by Langston Hughes is a poem that describes what a child thinks about black and white people. It is obvious that this child was living in the times of segregation because it is already in the child's mind that they won't every amount to anything that a white child can amount to. The child of the poem even asks himself the question of Liberty, is it really for all? The poem "CROSS" by Langston Hughes is a very touching poem to me. It describes a child that was most likely brought into the world by a black slave and a white man, slave owner. The narrator describes the respect that he has for both their parents. He also describes the differences that he see's between both his parents. The fact that his white man father lives in a real nice big house and that his black slave mother lives in a shack. The child is confused about where and how he will live in die since he is both black and also white.

John Hope Franklin was a well known man. He was known for the fact that he was a very good man who taught people a lot of things. He was a part of the fight for equality in the times of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was around for a very long time and was a man that did a lot of hard work. He taught at many great schools and has been given many awards for all of his research, work, and dedication to what he believed in. He has been acknowledged by President Clinton and also by many other people and groups of people. He has impacted many people's lives, including the lives of his students. Even though he was an African American, he still managed to overcome all the racism in the world and succeed in teaching people and making a difference in the world.

The speech on February 24th, 2009 is a very inspirational speech. Our president spoke about our obligation to earning our education. He also spoke about how important it is to finish high school and lower the drop out rate of the U.S. He reminds us that even though it is sometimes hard for us to be motivated, that we still must take our education seriously. He states that he will give the schools better resources and reform. He also speaks about the tax cuts and all the ways that he will save and not waste the nations money and to better use it for more important things other than the war in Iraq.

Racism is still around in our nation even after all the laws and amendments that have proven equality between all people. William Julius Wilson one of the perfect examples of this. He is an African American and a professor at Harvard University. He goes through his days and is still being looked at wrongly by white people because of his ethnicity. He brings up a very important point, he is a professor at Harvard University and people still manage to look down on his because he is 'black'. This goes to show that even after all laws and amendments, people still manage to feel a certain way when it comes to African American people. It also goes to show that people are really ignorant because someone that is African American can be so important in society and be very successful but still be looked down on.

The beer summit was something really controversial in our nation. The President, Barack Obama met with a white cop and a black man to have a beer and speak about a situation that happened. This African American man lost his keys so was "breaking into" his own house. He was arrested by the white officer due to the fact that he also had no identification. This was seen as a crime of racism. "If it would have been a white man, he probably would have not gotten arrested," is what some people might think. The President took into his own hands to intervene in the situation and set up a meeting for all 3 men. Some people might question the fact that the President of the United States would intervene in such a local matter. I guess that is just how the President feels; he wants to be involved.

Even though this nation has gone through many situations where civil rights and equality is an issue, there still are many issues having to do with this. No matter how many people fight for equal rights, we will never really achieve it. A world where everyone is equal is not realistic. As described in the story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, a world where everyone is equal will be a horrible life to live. Although there are still issues having to do with civil rights and equality, the nation has overcome a lot of racism and has also overcame a lot of things. We now have an African American President.