For the past few weeks we have been learning about the Civil Rights movements that went on in the past. Before we started this unit, I didn’t know much about what had happened or what they were protesting for. Honestly, I didn’t even know that Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi were fighting for the same issue. I knew about them and what they did, also Rosa Parks, but just the big picture. I never realized how big this fight for freedom was and how much it affected us and how we live today. I have learned so much about what exactly happened and more importantly why. I now know that people of color weren’t getting what they rightly deserved even though it was in the Constitution which we supposedly went by. For example, in the Civil Rights museum walk we did in class, I learned about the Freedom Summer Act that led to the access for colored people to freely vote without any restrictions. But before that act got passed the whites put so many restrictions on the colored like the grandfather clause, poll taxes, and literacy tests. There was always something stopping the colored people to have their own identity and make it in the world not being pushed around by anyone because of their past. Knowing about this made me think and realize that colored people didn’t really get freedom when they were supposed to be free men. Another movement that really stood out to me was the Children’s March. The fact that not only adults, but children and teens, went out to fight for their freedom makes me remember that no matter how old you are, you can stand up for what you believe in. It helps me realize that if there is something going on that I don’t feel is right, to an extent there is always something I can do. The big and small acts all made a contribution to the big victory of having colored and white people live in unity like we do today.
Today America still has not achieved equity or equality, but we have gotten closer to it. It is a long way before we get to equality, but equity is how we get there and how we achieve that is to give everyone the chance for equal opportunities to succeed and the help that they need. Any financial aid, sponsorship, and given the chance to do something in life is a way we can get to equity. Equality is having everyone get the same outcome, but of course that is almost impossible because in the world that we live in the richer end up becoming richer and the poorer not given any opportunities. But, if we can give everyone a chance to strive for their best without judging them on their skin tone, we can get to equity. Today, people still have mind sets that interfere with treating everyone the same way. For some people unconscious racism exists because they don’t realize that they are doing it and they are used to it because they were brought up like that. We can’t tell people to change, but in order for us to have equality we must have the mind and heart to accept people for who they are, not based on their skin color or appearance. A world like this I would love to see! But we aren’t as bad as we used to be. The fact that colored and white people are allowed to use the same bathroom or drink from the same water fountain and have had the same accomplishments in history shows that we have gotten to a point of not being completely unjust. We know that they are both capable of achieving great things, and we do acknowledge that colored as well as white people both deserve to be treated with the respect that they give.We just have to remember "separate is NOT equal."
The ideas that come from the Civil Rights movement still connect to the world that we live right now. We have learned from this movement to fight for what we believe in, and that nonviolent protests can work just as good, or even better, then a fight with violence. We have the determination that we can be a change for something that we think is unjust. Connecting the movement to the present, we see some racism that still goes on. Now when I watch the news most likely it has a colored man being charged with something that he might not even have done, but he was accused just because of his nationality. We put stereotypes on people all the time, on purpose or not. We have a certain feel for a particular race or just an attitude toward them that we can’t really change because that’s just the way we have been taught. But, if everyone can realize what they are doing and try to change their thinking we can get closer to having a community of unity. I hope one day we can get past all the racism and stereotyping and just acknowledge the fact that no matter what skin color you are, we can all do something significant for the world.
1 comment:
Hi Monisha, great blog post :) I liked how you described the ways people of colored were treated and how unfair it was for them to be judged based on their skin color. Separate is definitely not equal and you showed examples of how white people and black people were treated differently. There is in fact a lot of unconscious racism that occurs today, and it's important for people to realize how big of an impact their negative attitude towards people can be. There are a lot of stereotypes that people believe in that aren't even true and we really do need to change our behaviors and attitudes in order for us to reach equality. :)
-Your sister.
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