Federal Versus State/Local Gov
Throughout the Civil Rights Movement, the federal and southern state/local government battled each other on many issues. When the federal government set mandates, often times the southern state/local government had much resistance with complying. The southern state/local government opposed the Civil Rights Movement by non-compliance to federal mandates, refusal to provide adequate protection to civil rights protesters and the abuse of civil rights protesters. There were many situations when the state/local government hindered the flow of the Civil Rights Movement. Instances where the local police force did not do their job occurred. The police force was a branch of the local government and the local polices' duty was to protect and serve the community. This oath to serve and protect all did not apply to African Americans. During times of protest, either African Americans received much abuse from police officers or the police officers stood around and watched African Americans be beaten. During the freedom rides, the local government fought against the protests while the federal government protected not necessarily the
They were arrested just because they were trying to fight to gain equality for all. The Albany Movement was an example of how the government acted as a roadblock in the Civil Rights Movement. In the case of the Little Rock, Arkansas school incident, government intervention was needed in order for the school to comply with President Eisenhower's mandate to desegregate public schools. Despite the protection in Montgomery, the Freedom Riders had a much different experience when they entered Mississippi. Inevitably, the federal government won because they had more power than the state/local government and was willing to disperse it to upheld their mandates. The local government intervened in the protest because it challenged their traditional southern white aristocracy. This lead to much of the battles between the federal and state/local government. They actually encouraged the mobs to beat the Freedom Riders by "turning the other cheek" when it came to stopping the mobs. Many southern state/local officials felt that the federal government was over stepping their boundaries by making mandates and not allowing the states to use their own discretion when it came to its own citizens. As a result of this lackadaisical attitude to protect the riders, Robert Kennedy had federal marshals sent into Montgomery . The Albany Movement was unsuccessful because of the resistance received by the local government. The local police chief did research on Martin Luther King Jr. Not a single police officer was in sight when the riders arrived in Montgomery, Alabama.
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Acceptance Essays
