Idea of progress

Idea of progress

To begin, I had like to state the definition of progress. We can define the idea of progress as a improvement, a development or a change which contributes to making the world a better place. We can after ask ourselves ‘how does the progress affect our society and our world?’. Consequencly, this year we studied on civil rights in the world and how sometimes progress has changed the lives of many peoples.

Many fought against racism and for equality, for changes in the quality of life of minorities and we can tell that some great men have realized real social progress. We could talk first of Barack Obama who is the former president of the United States and notably the first president African American in the history of United States. Barack Obama’s victory is an event that has changed the lives of the United States and maybe of the world. This election of a half-breed to the presidency of the United States is a symbol of equality and hope for the black or half-breed population. Barack Obama had a unique destiny when he became the first president of African descent in a country where, until 50 years ago, black Americans were still fighting at the cost of their lives to regain their status as men.

Now we can talk about another great men, Martin Luther King, remembered as one of the most important African American leaders in history. Borned in the 1930’s in Georgia, he was a civil-rights activist and has also a serious impact on race relations in the United States. Through his activism, he played a major role in ending the legal segregation of African American citizens in the South and other areas of the nation as well as the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. For all the social progress he made, he received in 1964 the Nobel Peace Prize , among several other honors. He is notably often remembered for his « I Have a Dream » speech. On August 28, during a march he was leading on Washington DC, he gave a speech which is one of the best known in American hsitory. There are several reasons why this speech is so known, through the content he has been able to have a call to action clear and compelling, add to the fact that he was a master of literary devices, he included touchstones that spoke to both the head and the heart, reinforced key points through repetition and sharpened ideas through contrast. He will ends on a hopeful note with his inspiring presence and the great orator that he is. His strong message truck the minds, gnawed at consciences and pierced hearts. One year later in 1964, segregation was abolished proving the effectiveness of his speech in mobilizing those who heard him. Moreover, he has paid with his life. He was assassinated in 1968 as Abraham Lincoln, the man who abolished claver a century earlier (same causes, same effects). Thanks to Martin Luther King, the end of segregation will not be a frighttening breakthrough, but a new, logical, coherent in the history of United States.

Lastly we will talk about nelson Mandela. He is a world-renowned figure in the defence of human rights. He is hailed as the father of a multiracial and fully democratic South Africa, described as a "rainbow nation", even though the country suffers from economic inequality, social tensions and community withdrawal. Indeed, all his life nelson mandela has fought for racial equality and his history is not an easy one. after having been one of the historical leaders in the fight against the system of institutional politics of racial segregation, and then elected President of the Republic of South Africa, he is facing difficulties and his peaceful struggle is not yielding tangible results. He then decided to found and lead the military branch of the ANC, which in 1961 carried out a sabotage campaign against public and military installations. He was arrested for this in 1962 on the instructions of the CIA and sentenced to prison and forced labour during the Rivonia trial. Nelson therefore became a symbol of this struggle for racial equality and received growing international support. After twenty-seven years of imprisonment in often very harsh conditions, and after refusing to be released to remain consistent with his convictions, Mandela was released on 11 February 1990. In 1993, he received the Nobel Peace Prize for having jointly and peacefully ended the apartheid regime and laid the foundations for a new democratic South Africa. moreover, he became the first black president of south africa in 1994 and will pursue a policy of national reconciliation between blacks and whites and will continue to fight against economic inequalities. then, after a single mandate, he retires himself from active political life but continues to publicly support the African national Congress while condemning its abuses.

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