Essay about Jim Crows Legacy - 616 Words

While the Emancipation Proclamation marked the end of slavery in the U.S., it did little to address the racism that remained. Left unchecked, that racism, like a weed, grew and its roots permeated almost all sectors of American culture spreading from the southern white population throughout the local and state governments south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Jim Crow laws provided legal loopholes that skirted the spirit of the Emancipation Proclamation and they gave legal cover to those who longed for the pre-Civil War/Reconstruction era. The insidious nature of Jim Crow easily converted bigotry and intolerance from vile vices to prized virtues. Although Jim Crow laws were settled by the 1954 court case, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka,†¦show more content†¦This attitude resulted in an assortment of legislation that spanned many states throughout the south; they included statutes governing education, the use of public facilities, dining, cohabitation, health care, transporta tion, personal relationships, hygiene and even sports (Randall). These laws so completely engulfed black consciousness that even accusing a white person of lying, or of being deceitful in any way could place a negro in jail (Pilgrim), or worse, dangling from the business end of a noose; these tactics served to crush the spirit of the American Negro. While if this same approach were applied by white people against other white people, they would have been considered illegal, immoral and inhumane; the second-class citizenry that Black America had been received no such indignation. By the time Plessy v. Ferguson, the statue that established legal inequality, was overturned by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, several decades of degradation and intimidation had already stripped the newly found dignity from the Negro population; In essence, Jim Crow had run its course and served its purpose. Today, Jim Crows legacy is a problem that continues to adversely affected the lives of thousan ds upon thousands of minorities in the U.S.. After roughly four and a half generations, the American black population has started its rebound, but the effects of Jim Crow stillShow MoreRelatedThe Strange Career of Jim Crow by C. Vann Woodward1063 Words   |  5 PagesWoodward wrote The Strange Career of Jim Crow for a purpose. His purpose was to enlighten people about the history of the Jim Crow laws in the South. Martin Luther King Jr. called Woodward’s book, â€Å"the historical Bible of the civil rights movement.† (221) Martin Luther King Jr.’s quote revealed the true importance of Woodward’s book. Woodard’s book significance was based on it revealing the strange, forgotten facets of the Jim Crow laws. Assumptions about the Jim Crow’s career have existed since its creationRead MoreLetter From A Birmingham Jail And Barack Obama s A More Perfect Union1304 Words   |  6 Pagesunfortunate circumstances, the great injustice of slavery makes up a significant portion of America’s history. Even after this chapter of history ended, it left its legacy of â€Å"blacks† being portrait as subhuman and it developed a sense of racism in the new generations. In addition, following the Civil War, that legacy was expressed through the Jim Crow Laws, which promoted segregation. These new laws violated the fundamental American tenet that â€Å"all men are created equal† and are â€Å"endowed by their creatorRead More Search for Identity in the Poetry of Langston Hughes Essay2704 Words   |  11 Pagesplace in the society. The poet shows this inequality in the poem Merry-Go-Round. The so-called social whites have no sympathy even for a black child. He has to sit in a segregated section. The poet says: Colored child at carnival: Where is the Jim Crowe section On this merry-go-round, Mister, cause I want to ride? Down South where I come from White and colored Cant sit side by side.17 Thus merry-go-round is a metaphor for America. It is a kind of satire on American societyRead MoreIdentity in the Poetry of Langston Hughes2807 Words   |  12 Pagesplace in the society. The poet shows this inequality in the poem Merry-Go-Round. The so-called social whites have no sympathy even for a black child. He has to sit in a segregated section. The poet says: Colored child at carnival: Where is the Jim Crowe section On this merry-go-round, Mister, cause I want to ride? Down South where I come from White and colored Cant sit side by side.17 Thus merry-go-round is a metaphor for America. It is a kind of satire on American society called a free