"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase" -Martian Luther King. Since 1900, various groups in the United States have struggled to achieve full equality. One of the biggest groups that tried to obtain full equality were the African Americans. There were many leaders and figures who fought for full equality for African Americans. These figures include Martian Luther King, Rosa Parks, and Jackie Robinson.
During the 1900s there were many leaders who tried to abolish racism and segregation. Martian Luther King was one of the most well known black activists for his peaceful protests and marches. Another black activist was Rosa Parks, according to Study.com she practiced peaceful protest by refusing to switch seats on the bus and was arrested. A black idol during the 1900s known as Jackie Robinson was the first black baseball player in Major League Baseball and took a huge step towards ending segregation according to Biography.com.
African Americans faced many problems during the 1900s due to racism, the biggest was segregation. They were segregated from schools, restrooms, fountains, and even stores. African Americans were denied basic rights even though they were entitled to them, they weren't allowed to vote or own property in certain places according to Study.com. The first black sports players had to take a lot of racist remarks and be humiliated while keeping their composure.Another problem African Americans faced was that they had less money spent on their education, Caucasian children had an average of $60 while African children on had an average of $3 (PBS.org).
Although they faced many obstacles African Americans persevered through with marches and other types of peaceful protests. One of the most famous marches was the Million Man March when over 400,000 people gathered on October 16, 1995 skipping school, work, and teach-ins (crf-usa.org). Another example of peaceful protest was the Montgomery Bus Boycott when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a Caucasian man. This ultimately led to African Americans boycotting the Montgomery Bus Depot according to Crf-USA.org. Another step to stop segregation was when African Americans appeared in sports for the first time. Doing this provoked racism at first but eventually it was accepted.
The results of African Americans trying to end segregation and other racist acts are easily seen today. First of all there is less racism and segregation was abolished. Secondly African Americans have the same rights as anyone else in the United States and now have the ability to vote as well. Also African Americans now have their own organizations and schools to help further them as a community. Lastly African Americans are now normally seen in all sporting events and there are no racial slurs or disrespect to African American players.
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