Myths and heroes : to what extend had some heroes of the past paved the way to the future african american generation ?

We are going to deal with the notion of myths and hereos. To begin with I’ll like to give a definition of the notion. A myth is a popular believe on which social values are often based while a hero could be someone who is ready to sacrifice his or her life in order to make things evolved positively. In relation to the notion the subjetct of my presentation will be the struggle for segragation in America. We can ask ourself to what extend had some heroes of the past paved the way to the future african american generation ?

In order to illustrate this notion I will present you first the different means of protest of black people and then some heros who have play an important role for the advancement of segregation in America.

For more than 200 years before the Civil War, slavery existed in the United States.  But after the war things began to get worse for blacks.  The south thought they needed to do something.  The Southern legislatures, former confederates, passed laws known as the black codes, after the war, which severely limited the rights of blacks and segregated them from whites.

The first document I have chosen is an article entitled « sit-ins » it deals with black people's reaction to segragation. Indeed, On February 1, 1960, a new tactic was added to the peaceful activists strategy. Four African American college students walked up to a whites-only lunch counter at the local store in Greensboro, North Carolina, and asked for coffee. When service was refused, the students sat patiently. Despite threats and intimidation, the students sat quietly and waited to be served.

Then, the second document is a movie called « the butler » which is an american historical drama movie. The film traces the dramatic changes that swept American society during this time, from the civil rights movement to Vietnam and beyond, and how those changes affected this man’s life and family.

As matter of fact, both the article and the film make us realize that the Black people were segragated by white people and the birth of non violent means of protest which were organised to protest against segragation: sit-ins at cafeteria, wade-ins at the beaches, read-ins at libraries and kneel-ins at churches.

In this respect, from the 1880s into the 1960s, a majority of American states enforced segregation through « Jim Crow » laws . Many states could impose legal punishments on people for consorting with members of another race. The Jim Crow laws established segregation between black and white people. They were separated in daily life, which which meant they couldn't share the same public facilities. Finally, supreme Court decisions, the Civil right Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 ended Jim Crow Laws.

Secondly, many heroes have played an important role during segregation in America.

Let us take the example of Rosa Parks. She was very active in the NAACP and was deeply involved in the pursuit of racial justice. Indeed the NAACP is the National Association for the advancement of Colored People created by white and black activists in 1909. We must not forget that at time black and white were seperate everywhere : in public transport, in restaurants... That’s why this association was a big step for the advancement of segregation.

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