Very few of the presidents of the United States have been responsive to the African American quest for freedom and equality. Some of them in fact, have been rather hostile. An example would be when President Andrew Jackson vetoed civil rights legislation and the Freedmen’s Bureau Act. When Congress overrode his veto, he still refused to carry out the law and this lead to his impeachment. Most of the presidents however, have been largely silent on the issues of race. President Roosevelt spent 13 years in office without taking a stand on racial discrimination. Despite declaring that racism was morally wrong, President Kennedy too was reluctant to take a risk by supporting civil rights legislation. Even when he issued Executive Order 11063, banning discrimination in federally assisted housing, he did so reluctantly.
The Supreme Court has historically been against the African American quest for freedom and equality. They were so much against African American rights that in the case of Dredd Scott v. Sanford, Chief Justice Taney went on record to echo the sentiments of the entire court system, stating that the rights of African Americans were not universal but rather existed only as
. . .
This was done in order to increase minority access to government contracts. When white businesses challenged this 10 percent quota as unconstitutional, the Court in Fullilove v. While in office, African Americans made up approximately one-fourth of his cabinet. The courts began to enforce the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments by declaring state laws unconstitutional and upholding federal civil rights laws. In 1977, Congress added a provision to the Public Works Act requiring that at least 10 percent of federal funds granted for local projects be awarded to minority-owned businesses. Klutznik rejected their claims saying that the 10 percent quota was a reasonable remedy to past discrimination on minorities. Perhaps be biggest supporter of the African American cause is former President Bill Clinton. Not only that, he appointed the first black person in cabinet and the first black person on the Supreme Court.
It was only since after 1960 that the Supreme Court began to truly support the African American quest for freedom and equality.
There is no doubt that while Congress has been the most responsive to the African American quest for freedom and equality in the past, today it would seem that all three branches of the government are equally responsive to African American needs, although perhaps because the courts are generally looked upon as the most powerful branch of government today, their actions resonate louder and have a more lasting effect on the consciousness of the public and society in general. During the Civil War in 1862, Congress abolished slavery in the District of Columbia. Board of Education overruled the 1896 case of Plessy v. In 1787, Congress, through the Northwest Ordinance Act, banned slavery in the new territories of the upper Midwest. Then, in 1808, Congress abolished the slave trade.
Approximate Word count =
1017
Approximate Pages =
4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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