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The Role Of Martin Luther King And The Civil Rights Movement

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During the 1950s and 1960s the US was considered the leader of the free world. However, in the Unites States the population began asking questions. How could the US be the leader of the free world, when there were people in their home country that did not have the same basic freedom as the white Americans? Martin Luther King Jr, an African- American civil rights activist, played a major role in the Civil Rights Movement. King’s impact on the American society changed the US for the better. King’s actions in the March on Washington, the Marches between Selma and Montgomery and his overall actions lead to a better life for the black Americans. “One day right there in Alabama little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.” To begin with, before and during the Civil Right Movement black Americans were greatly discriminated due to their skin color. Not only were they forbidden to be in the same place as the white, but they also did not have the same opportunities as them when it came to jobs and education. However, The Great March on Washington changed that. The March took place on August 28th, 1963 and they marched for effective civil rights laws. More than a quarter million people both blacks and whites showed up to show their support for civil rights. It was also at this march King held the famous speech “I Have a Dream” which many sees as a historical symbol for the Movement. In “I Have a
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