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How Did The Sit-Ins Affect The Civil Rights Movement

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There are times when people must rebel to make a change. It has happened throughout different movements to change unjust laws, and go against unjust people. One big example of civil disobedience during the civil rights movement were sit-ins. Sit-ins were when people continued to peacefully sit in on a restaurant when they were denied service. It was almost a way of life for many people. Sit-ins were a justified act of civil disobedience during the civil rights movement because they were non-violent, they spread the news, they brought people together, and they helped people to stand up for themselves. One of the most important parts to civil disobedience is remaining non-violent. Sit-ins during the civil rights movement were great examples of remaining peaceful. There was a sit-in in Chicago that only happened because they were refused coffee. Because they were not given coffee, the group remained in the restaurant until it closed …show more content…

Many people today would probably give up if they were arrested. This is what made sit-ins very motivational to people during the civil rights movement. Greensboro students waited at lunch counters for five months to either be denied service or arrested, but after the five months, they were finally served (The 1960s in America: Crash Course US History #40). Had the Greensboro students given up their mission to be served, then they would have failed. That very same thing is true for every single sit-in that worked. Sit-ins played an essential part in the civil rights movement. They helped keep people from becoming violent. Also, they helped other people to hear the news about what was going on with the movement. Sit-ins also helped to keep everyone united, and helped to keep them from giving up their cause. Without sit-ins, the civil rights movement may not have been as successful. That is why sit-ins were a justified act of civil

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I agree with James Baldwin’s argument, because like me, he sees sit in protest as something that shouldn’t be labeled passive, but something that should be seen as an act of bravery he explains this by saying: “I don’t agree that it is necessarily passive. I think it demands a tremendous amount of power, both in one’s personal life and in terms of political or polemical activity, sometimes to sit down and do nothing-or seem to do nothing” (Baldwin). The sit in movement as I see were black taking action and demanding what they want in a country that has oppressed them for hundreds of years. An example of the power of the sit in movement is The Greensboro Protest of 1960 when four students from black Agricultural and Technical College of North

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The Greensboro Sit-In was a series of non-violent protests that made a huge impact on the Civil Right Movement. It made a change by changing the segregation laws of stores and helping make a difference in ending segregation in the southern United States. The Greensboro Sit-ins helped african americans during times of segregation because, even though times were tough and people were getting harmed for standing up, it showed there was still chances and places to make a difference. This event is important because it inspired others to make a difference, and help end segregation, and help pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. There were four men who lead the protest.

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For many years, African-Americans had been treated as slaves or subsidiary to whites. Even after blacks were hypothetically supposed to have been granted freedom and equality (Plessy v. Ferguson), blacks found themselves in a world of segregation and inequitable standards. African-Americans began stand up for equality after the first steps of desegregation in the military and defense. The Civil Rights Movement did not fail because blacks never loosened the grip on the fight for equality, even though blacks were harshly treated, and in some cases with brutal violence and murder, but blacks pushed for civil rights throughout the movement until the goal was reached at last. Each event throughout the course of the Civil Rights Movement contributed to the impetus for protests and served an important purpose that many African-Americans will never forget.

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It's easy to get angry and/or violent protests confused with civil disobedience. Many overlook the effectiveness of civil disobedience and see it as just another way to protest the government but civil disobedience has a long history. A few examples of civil disobedience include Rosa Parks’ famous refusal to move from the back of the bus in 1955; the interracial marriage between Richard and Mildred Loving in 1958; and most recently, the protest against the Dakota Access pipeline construction. In each instance, people stood up for what they thought was just and right.

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Civil Disobedience In the dictionary civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest, but Thoreau and Martin Luther King have their own beliefs to civil disobedience. In Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” he writes about the need to prioritize one’s conscience over the dictates of laws. Martin Luther King uses civil disobedience as something that effectuates change in the government. Both Thoreau and Martin Luther King has similar yet different perspectives on civil disobedience.

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I have never advocated any violence. I 've only said that Black people who are the victims of organized violence perpetrated upon us by the Klan, the Citizens ' Council, and many other forms, we should defend ourselves. And when I say that we should defend ourselves against the violence of others, they use their press skillfully to make the world think that I 'm calling on violence, period.” Indeed sit ins are effective because they get national attention an example when sit ins were successful where in 1960 four

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Sit-ins where another form of nonviolent protest that let the country know that these people were not going to give up. The people had to tolerate curses, ill-mannered remarks, vulgar comments, and even food being flung at them. Nevertheless, the point of this demonstration was to show the people who the violent ones were, by not fighting back no matter what transpires. In addition, they were not leaving until they were not deprived of the simple right of receiving service; which showed their perseverance. Religion assisted these people to stay at peace and center-minded.

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My Standpoint Civil Disobedience is an effective method of change that has been used throughout history against unjust laws. “Antigone” The story of “Antigone” uses this idea of civil disobedience through Antigone who defies the law given by her new king. As Creon starts off his first day of work he is emotional due to the loss of his eldest son. Because Creon is so emotional, he states that the person who brought war to the land causing his eldest son’s death, shall not be buried.

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Furthermore, on August 19, 1958 Clara Luper would have a sit in at Katz Drug Store. She would participate in many more sit-ins and 26 of them would end with her being arrested (8). This is only one of many sit ins and even though it is only one it shows how important the groups of people. They would come together and make a difference to bring attention to their views in order to get more people helping with the movement. Also, many pictures from around the 1950’s show how children also would participate in sit-ins by going in day after day waiting to be served (10).

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People partaking in sit ins were told to take abuse, and were arrested. This movement was used to show that violence was coming from the white community and helped achieve the goals of the civil rights movement towards racial equality. A more recent example of civil disobedience is the woman's march occurring January 21st 2017.

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People's justification to engage in civil disobedience rests on the unresponsiveness that their engagement to oppose an unjust law receives. People who yearn for a change in a policy might sometimes find themselves in a dead end because their “attempts to have the laws repealed have been ignored and legal protests and demonstrations have had no success” (Rawls 373). What Rawls says is that civil disobedience is a last option to oppose an unjust law; therefore, providing civil disobedients with a justification for their cause. Civil disobedience is the spark of light that people encountered at the dead end and they hope that this spark of light will illuminate to show that an unjust law should not exist at all. Martin Luther King, Jr, in his “Letter from

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631 Words | 3 Pages

Civil Disobedience is Morally Justified Civil disobedience is an effective, peaceful way to resist against a certain law. Civil disobedience is protests, strikes, marches, sit-ins, and blockades. Individuals have been protesting and challenging government laws in order to achieve basic human rights that would allow them to explore their full, natural capabilities. An Irish Author, Oscar Wilde, claims that civil disobedience is an important practice that helps achieve change. For instance, Gandhi and Rosa Parks were some of the most inspiring people in history that disobeyed the law and accomplished their goals.

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This form of civil disobedience shows the government that they can’t just sign off on things they want without proper consultation from all people involved. As Henry David Thoreau said, “The government is best which governs least.” Thoreau believed that the best way for a country to be governed was by the government intervening as little as possible. Next, civil disobedience is also a non-violent way to show the government what you want changed, and why you want it changed. In a study done by Maria J. Stephan and Erica Chenoweth in Why Civil Resistance: Works of Nonviolent Conflict, it was discovered “that major nonviolent campaigns have achieved success 53 percent of the time, compared with 26

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The bus boycott was significantly effective because it was not only getting the right for bus but also it showed the African Americans’ determination of fighting for equal rights. Another example of non-violent strategy was sit-in. A group of black students broke down segregation by sitting in the white section in restaurant.

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Using nonviolent resistance does not include killing off anyone that doesn’t share the same opinion, it is simply protesting to prove and persuade a need for change. Also, peacefully protesting attracts attention from all over the world; thus, educating more people about a serious issue in society. If no one takes action, no one will realize the problem and it’ll only continue to grow. Also, many political leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King, Jr. are extremely known for their delightful use of civil disobedience. Even better, all of them were successful in bringing about a change in society.

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