Events That Affect The Civil Rights Movement

Movements across the world tend to make change. Events that lead up to these changes often times are impactful, or even critical to the movement 's success. If these events did not happen the movement may have been slowed or halted altogether. The world we see today would be very different. These events or actions by individuals pushed the movements into where they could grasp or make change, get attention from outside of the movement, or push the people involved to strive for more change or faster change. Some of these critical moments include Estonian protest against toxic phosphorus mining, the murder of three civil rights workers during Freedom Summer, and the jailing of Martin Luther King Jr. Estonia’s critical moment actually was based

This campaign worked to get voter registration for African-Americans in Mississippi. This campaign was started by the Council of Federated Organizations, but had major participation from the many civil rights organizations like SNCC and CORE. The strange thing is Freedom Summer overall did not get many African-Americans to vote. You may say, “Well if they did not even reach the goal they set out for how did this event impact the movement overall and get it moving or give it new strength?” The answer to this question lies in a tragic event that happened during Freedom Summer that led to new strengths within the movement. On the night of June 21 to June 22 in 1964 three civil rights workers were killed. These men were in Philadelphia, Mississippi trying to help people get registered to vote when they were abducted by members of the KKK and the local police departments and killed. Two of the men were white and from New York City the other man was black and from Mississippi. This tragedy got national news attention, and produced overwhelming support from the government and the white northerners. Many more people now saw the difficulties southern blacks went through and the real danger these civil rights protesters were in. If not for this tragedy many people would have went on not truly knowing what these workers were going through and how strong racial prejudice is in the south.

and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference moved to start a local movement in Birmingham, Alabama. It was designed to directly confront segregation in Birmingham, targeting stores during the easter season and the ability for African-Americans to vote. On April 10, 1963 a court injunction was made against the protests Martin Luther King Jr and others were performing. MLK decided that the injunction was unjust and unconstitutional and so on April 12th he went out and protested again and he got arrested. From the birmingham jail he wrote his famous letter talking about how we have a responsibility to break unjust laws and how we can not wait forever justice to come through the courts. MLK being jailed sparked the stagnating movement into motion. James Bevel got a bunch children demonstrators together to protest and the actions in the first week of May. It is here when the movement gets national attention again because of the actions of “Bull” Connor. Pictures of children being sprayed with firehoses sweeped the nation and made the United States look bad during the Cold War. These actions got notice from the government. If Martin Luther KIng Jr. did not go to jail for the cause the movement could have halted, waiting for justice from the courts as many had advised Martin Luther King Jr. to wait for. This halt in progress could have stalled the movement altogether and no future action would have been