The Impact of the Election of President Barack Obama on the Contemporary American Civil Rights Movement.doc

The Impact of the Election of President Barack Obama on the Contemporary American Civil Rights MovementStudent name : Yuanlin College major: Business EnglishCollege : Guangdong University of foreign studiesNumber of certificate : 060109400478Supervisor : Abstract This research examines the election of President Barack Obama in light of the American Civil Rights Movement. By researching the history of American Civil Rights Movement, the far-reaching effects of the Civil Rights Movement can be shown to contribute to the overall success of Obama being elected as President. However, what is more important and the core of this work, is the discussion of what impact Obama has made and can make on the contemporary American Civil Rights Movement and to analyze the possible future directions of the contemporary American Civil Rights Movement. There exists some research on President Obama and Civil Rights Movement home and abroad. This has been mainly in the analysis of the impact of President Obama on the contemporary American Civil Rights Movement, and by pointing out that there is yet a lot of work to do to accomplish the stated aims of the American Civil Rights Movement. This study hopes to enhance the understanding of how the election of President Obama is related to the American Civil Rights Movement. 1 . Literature ReviewIn his book Racial Justice in the Age of Obama, Roy Brooks (2009) states that there are new opportunities for hard working and talented African American people. The future is brighter than before. However, many challenges remain within the black community. Brooks contends that America “in the age of Obama” is not post-racial. There still exists clear inequalites in terms of income, financial resources, educational levels and and in many other areas. He analyses the situation and posits four categories of understanding: traditionalism, reformism, limited separation, and critical race theory. Describing these theories in detail he eventually arrives at suggesting his own theory of civil rights. He uses affirmative action to address the problems of racial inequality. In a book titled, The Breakthrough, veteran journalist Gwen Ifill throws new light on the impact of President Barack Obamas victory in the American election. She also introduces emerging young African American politicians exploring new paths to political power (Albooks, 2010). Ifill argues that the black political structure formed during the Civil Rights Movement is giving way to a generation of men and women who have benefited from the the 1960s civil rights struggles. She offers insights about President Obama through interviews with leading African American political leaders based on her own observations and analysis. She considers issues such as generational conflict, the race and gender clash, and the Black enough conundrum. Ifills book explains why this could be a vital moment in American civil rights history. The Breakthrough is a notable look at contemporary American politics and a foundation for understanding the future of American politically influenced race relations in the age of Obama. Barack Obama did make an important impact on American politics to some degree. However, she states that we should not focus all our attention just on Prseident Obama, because there are also many prominent African American leaders making their own contribution for the democratic future of blacks. This book describes the tremendous efforts that the African American politicians have made from the time of the civil rights movement to the current days. 2 . The history, significance and influence of the American Civil Rights Movement2.1. History of the American Civil Rights MovementIn 1619 the first group of Africans were shipped to North America, who then served as slaves mainly on farms of Southern America in order to solve the labor shortage problem. In theory, President Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation had freed the African slaves. After the Civil War, U.S. Congress adopted three constitutional amendments relating to slavery, they were Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1865, Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 and Fifteenth Amendment in 1870. The core of these three amendments is the abolition of slavery, recognition of the status of “Black” citizens and the right to vote. From these amendments, todays African Americans gained legal freedom and liberty. Thus, they were on an equal Federal government legal footing as equal citizens. In fact, African Americans had to rely on their employment by white people in order to earn a living due to an impoverished background and poor education. In the late nineteenth century, racial discrimination and racial violence was growing, This period is sometimes referred to as “the nadir of American race relations”. (Civil rights movement, 2010) Racial segregation, one of the acts of racial discrimination, was adopted because of the United States Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, which established the legitimacy of “separate but equal” This judgment dealt a huge blow to the civil rights of the African Americans, particularly in the Southern states where in certain areas, African Americans were a population majority. In the beginning of twentieth century, a group of African Americans intellectuals began to rise in the North, they received better and higher education and became the main force of leadership in the civil rights movement They started to found organizations to fight for their civil rights, mainly in the Southern and ex-confederacy states. The NAACP, officially founded in 1909, whose major members were African American and white middle-class intellectuals and is one of the more noted civil rights organizations. The NAACP fought for civil rights of African Americans mainly by means of litigation, as they attempted to change the serious racial discrimination situation through laws. Meanwhile, the NAACP tried lobbying attempts in Washington, D.C. “These efforts were a hallmark of the American Civil Rights Movement from 1896 to 1954.” During 1950s to 1960s, as post-war capitalism in the United State developed, a large number of educated African Americans stepped into the available working class jobs. In this period, there was a continuous improvement of political awareness, education levels and cultural quality for the African Americans. This formed the basis of an organized and strategy based mass movement, and so the civil rights movement became better known and gradually expanded. However, removing racial segregation had huge obstacle, the “Separate but equal” principle. Politically aware African Americans realized what they had to do was to abolish racial segregation from the Supreme Courts interpretations of the American Constitution in this area. They had to express themselves to pressure government authorities. “These citizens adopted a combined strategy of direct action with nonviolent resistance known as civil disobedience,” (Civil rights movement, 2010) these actions were protests, boycotts, and sit-ins. In Montgomery, Alabama, December 1955, African American woman Rosa Parks was arrested on the account of refusing to offer her seat to a white person. This event triggered the famous Montgomery Bus Boycott, which also involved Martin Luther King Jr., and Ralph Abernathy. The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was duly elected as president of the Montgomery Improvement Association to oppose racial segregation in the Montgomery public transit system. The boycott lasted for 382 days and it finally succeeded in forcing local government to abolish segregation in the Montgomery public transit system. More importantly, this boycott led to a litigation win in the United States Supreme Court which adjudged racial segregation in the Montgomery public transit system to be unconstitutional. From that point Martin Luther King Jr. had become a leader within the Civil Rights Movement. 2.2 Significance and influence of the American Civil Rights MovementThe American Civil Rights Movement has achieved major successes, and abolishing racial segregation was a major triumph. The passage of the Civil Rights Act (1964), the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the victory in Brown v. Board of Education case, had abolished racial segregation and discrimination in all aspects of public facilities use, public transit systems, education, housing and so on. These civil rights acts were of important significance and played a exceptional role in the history of the American Civil Rights Movement. The establishment of constitutionally guaranteed voting rights had offered the opportunity for African Americans to make a difference in the political field as well. The number of African Americans registering and actually voting grew rapidly after the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This, in the American democracy, is the greatest power available to “people of color,” as it allows fundamental political power to the voter or elector to be harnessed and used for their and their communitys benefit. 3. A Biography of Barack Obama3.1 Biography of Barack Obama In 1983 Barack graduated from Columbia University and begun working in Chicago in 1985. In 1991 he graduated from Harvard Law School being the first African American ever elected as editor of the Harvard Law Review. In 1992 he Married Michelle Robinson, one of his colleagues from Harvard Law School, and began his political career. Barack was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996, and was re-elected in the next three terms. Barack campaigned for the U.S. House of Representatives In 2000 but failed Afterwards he focused his attention on the Illinois Senate. On February 10th, 2007, in Springfield, Illinois, Barack made an announcement to run for president of the United States in 2008. Barack Obama concentrated on ending the Iraq War and improvements in the Health Care system as his election platform. On June 3th, 2008, Barack was designated as the Democratic presidential candidate, and on August 23, at the Democratic National Convention, Barack Obama was formally nominated to become the first ever African-American U.S. Presidential candidate. On November 5th, 2008, in spite of having just a few years of political experience, Barack Obama defeated Republican candidate John McCain and was elected as the 44th President of the United States. 3.2 To what extent is the success of Obama due to the American Civil Rights Movement?To what extent is the success of Obama due to the American Civil Rights Movement? We need to take a view at the efforts of his predecessors. Robert Clifton Weaver, was the first African American who served as the first United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1966 to 1968. Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr., a Democrat, the first African American mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. Edward William Brooke, the first African American elected to the United States Senate. Thurgood Marshall, the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. Harold Lee Washington, the first African American Mayor of Chicago, is but a few successes of African Americans. What these predecessors had contributed prepared the ground for the success of Barack Obama. Through their struggle they became true citizens of the United State of America, and they have the same rights as the white population. Talented African Americans could contribute to the political domain of establishing and maintaining political rights. The foundations of these crucial improvements in the social and political status for African Americans, relies upon the persistent efforts of a previous generations. All have paved the way for Barack Obama. These recent and past achievements and what Jesse Jackson has accomplished provided the resources for the successful election of Barack Obama. Jesse Louis Jackson Sr. is an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. On November 3th, 1984, Jesse Jackson announced a campaign for presidency as a Democrat. It was an unusual event politically that brought attention and comments from all across the United States. He named his campaign platform The Rainbow Coalition, advocating equality among all ethnic groups, just like the colors of the rainbow. In the end, he gained 21% of the popular vote, yet had only 8% of delegates, and was defeated in his initial campaign. In 1988, he ran for presidency again, this time, “he captured 6.9 million votes and won 11 contests; seven primaries (Alabama, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Puerto Rico and Virginia) and four caucuses (Delaware, Michigan, South Carolina and Vermont).”(Jesse Jackson, 2010) Though he failed again, the significance and influence of his campaign established the ground for Barack Obama.4. What impact has the success of Barack Obama had on the contemporary American Civil Rights Movement? “The age of Obama is not post-racial. Its racial.”(Brooks, 2009) Race problems still exists in the age of Obama, but acts of racial discrimination is no longer as obvious as in the time of the civil rights movement. What black people face is inequitable resources in financial, human, and social capital. African Americans are making progress in social and economic status, however comparing to the whites, the gap is still enormously huge. The New York Times pointed out that in current days, once a black man is arrested, he has a high chance of being sentenced. The possibility is three times higher than the whites. In the same charge, sentences for blacks are on average three months longer than for whites. Black slums are still widespread throughout the United States. Half of the blacks can not complete high school education, a quarter of blacks are living below the poverty line, one out of twelve black men is serving a prison sentence. So to solve the disparate resource problem and enhance the economic status of the African Americans is going to be a priority for President Barack Obama. 5. What are the likely future trends of the contemporary American Civil Rights Movement?5.1 The contemporar