Anne Moody: Fighting for the Common Cause
Martin Luther King Jr., Ella Baker, Rosa Parks...Upon hearing these names, many people immediately think of the arduous and prolonged struggle that these leaders endured in order to achieve racial equality. In fact, famous figures such as these are often given most of the credit for the Civil Rights Movement. Although the efforts and leadership of these people were extremely powerful and influential in the movement, the movement would not have been possible without the efforts and support from many ordinary people who were willing to sacrifice for equal rights. For instance, a young woman named Anne Moody was one of many Black Americans that contributed towards the fight for equality. Through her autobiography Coming of Age in Mississippi, Moody describes her life as a young, black woman in the rural south and illustrates the motivations, goals, and frustrations that she and many other activists encountered. Although slavery was abolished in 1865 with the Thirteenth Amendment, African-Americans remained captive to the restrictions of American society until the Civil Rights Movement began in the 1940's. It was then that the combination of prominent leaders and the appalling realizations of unfair racial restrictions
After working with Miss Claiborne, when shopping for furniture with her mom, Moody asked for a "bed with big tall brown posts" which would have "cost more money than her house" (50). Innumerable African-Americans, including Moody, were placed on the Ku Klux Klan black list of people they wanted to kill. This type of situation presented yet another impediment in the path towards freedom. They were not looking to become rich but instead, they wanted security. " From public restaurants to public water fountains, almost every aspect of society was unequally segregated. Probably just being a Negro period was enough, I thought" (125). Although these experiences were torturous at the time, they eventually helped toughen Moody and other participants of the movement and drive them to fight for what they were being deprived of. African-Americans were not hoping to surpass the white race or have power over them but they merely wanted to be treated as equals within their our own country. Upon realizing that this type of lifestyle was possible, Moody and others were provoked into battling for the right to enjoy these same luxuries. During many protests, such as the Woolworth luncheon sit-in, voting rallies, and the March on Washington, Moody and other participants risked their safety, freedom, jobs, and lives daily in order to stand for what they believed in. Although it was impossible at the time, Moody was motivated to strive for this goal that she felt was just within reach. Countless sacrifices such as these were unfortunate but necessary in order to attain the freedom that the Civil Rights Movement was so desperately striving for. Activists began to demand that restaurants, public parks, public libraries, public schools, restrooms, and jobs become integrated and more equal (269). Besides developing into a prosperous civil rights activist, Moody was influenced by this incident to achieve many accomplishments such as receiving all A's and B's throughout school, learning to play the piano, becoming Homecoming Queen, keeping numerous jobs, receiving a basketball scholarship to Natchez Junior College, and eventually graduating from Tougaloo College.
Common topics in this essay:
Rights Movement,
NAACP CORE,
Washington Moody,
Separate Equal,
Anne Moody,
Miss Claiborne,
Probably Negro,
Anne Moody's,
Mississippi Moody,
Emmitt Till,
civil rights,
rights movement,
civil rights movement,
anne moody,
rights leaders,
type lifestyle,
civil rights leaders,
racial equality,
coming age mississippi,
white people,
black people,
movement efforts,
willing sacrifice,
autobiography coming age,
|
Acceptance Essays
