African American History It is often taught that the social and economic conditions of African Americans have been one of America's greatest struggles. For some, the struggle continues, although changes are evident, it has in no way erased the damage that was inflicted. Others believe that th...

A civil right is an enforceable right or privilege, which if interfered with by another gives rise to an action for injury. Examples of civil rights are freedom of speech, press, assembly, the right to vote, freedom from involuntary servitude, and the right to equality in public places. Discriminati...

Throughout the history of the United States, there have been many times when citizens have felt the need to revolt against their government. "...A little rebellion now and then is a good thing...It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government". Henry David Thoreau, a Transcendentalist ...

Henry David Thoreau, Fredrick Douglass and Martin Luther King, Jr. all had one thing in common; they all were looking for ways to increase awareness of civil rights for blacks and to abolish slavery and segregation. They all felt that the government was being unjust on the laws of segregation and th...

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Dr. Martin Luther King, a prominent African American leader in the equal rights movement, delivered his most famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln memorial to an audience of hundreds of thousands of citizens white and black. His inspiring speech pleaded for...

Although the Civil War brought about the freedom of slaves in the 1860s, blacks were not entirely free until the 1960s. Following the abolition of slavery, blacks found themselves still under racial oppression. The majority of the racial problems occurred in the South. In many areas of the South,...

When Disobedience is Acceptable In the year 2000, one can go to most any high school football game and observe a ritual that is becoming more and more widespread and symbolic in meaning to its participants. Before the football game begins, the Star Spangled Banner is played and sung, the flag is...

There were many political movements in history, each with their own strategy for mobilizing the people to rise to the cause. However, each of these strategies had similar goals -- to reach as many people as possible. Each movement was staged in different times and the social conditions of those ti...

A Dream Realized In Mary Louise Pratt's article "Arts of the Contact Zone," her "contact zones" are referred to as "[spaces] in which peoples geographically and historically separated come into contact with each other and establish ongoing relations, usually involvi...

Sitting here thinking about what topic to choose while I was watching TV, when I saw something on Martin Luther King Jr. he was giving one of his speeches. Right then everything came back up in my mind from all the years before that I have studied him. Getting a big grin across my face I knew that t...

African American HistoryIt is often taught that the social and economic conditions of African Americans have been one of America's greatest struggles. For some, the struggle continues, although changes are evident, it has in no way erased the damage that was inflicted. Others believe that the time...

Does Huckleberry Finn, the main character in Mark Twain's Americanclassic, deserve to be nominated for the "Individual of the Year" award'Considering that the judges for this award are Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,the great American civil rights leader, and Henry David Thoreau, the famousAmeric...

I have chosen to write my research paper on Martin Luther King Jr. My questionis, "Was Martin Luther King Jr.'s mission worth the trouble he went through toaccomplish what he did?" I will tell about the fight for civil rights, and the injustices. then I will state the troubles Martin Luther King J...

Law does not drive us, reason does. Civil Disobedience is the act of knowingly breaking a law that an individual feels is morally unjust. We all have a conscience - a moral compass, and a perception of what is right from wrong. Many individuals see injustices in our democratic system, yet few actual...

The 1960's were one of the most significant decades in the twentieth century. The sixties were filled with new music, clothes, and an overall change in the way people acted, but most importantly it was a decade filled with civil rights movements. On February 1, 1960, four black freshmen from ...

Rosa Parks was born Rosa Louise McCauley in Tuskegee, Alabama, to James McCauley, a carpenter, and Leona McCauley, a teacher. Both her grandparents were born into slavery. At two, she moved to her grandparents\' farm in Pine Level, Alabama, with her mother and younger brother, Sylvester. At 11, she ...

THOREAU ON CIVIL DISOBEDIANCE Henry David Thoreau's basis for objecting to the government was very well thought-out, as he details three main tenets in opposing an unjust government. He starts out by stating the individual duties each person has as a mere citizen, as a good neighbor. Things...

"Myriad names are documented in the manuscript of revolutions. Many an individual are to be defined as the main source of manipulation to start a rebellion leading to a change in the "system". My admiration goes to all who delivered a message of a cause through literature, music, and ...

Education is the Practice of Freedom When you're fifty-eight and seeking to obtain your first Master's Degree, the reality of bell hooks statement that "education is the practice of freedom" is easy to embrace. While there is no true comparison between the plight of a...

Henry David Thoreau may be most known for his lonely stint at Walden Pond also wrote many essays commenting on his times and the world around him. Thoreau consistently used his brand of civil disobedience to protest the wrongs he saw around him. One means he used to protest was his refusal to pay a ...

There have been times in the history of the United States when its citizens have felt the need to revolt against the government. The two essays, \"Civil Disobedience,\" by Henry David Thoreau, and \"Letter From a Birmingham Jail,\" by Martin Luther King, Jr., effectively illustrate the authors\' opi...

Justified by Birmingham Civil disobedience is one issue that has been revisited and disputed for many years because of the negative and positive ramifications it can have on society. Many great writers, philosophers, and revolutionaries, such as Martin Luther King Jr., have examined this with dept...

Affirmative Action Affirmative action is an attempt by the United States to amend a long history of racial and sexual discrimination. But these days it seems to incite, not ease, the nations internal divisions. Opponents of affirmative action say that the battle for equal rights is over, and that...

Jamaica Kincaid's novel, Lucy, is a first-person narrative of a young woman coming toAmerica from Antigua and does not latch onto anything in its path. Lucy herself absorbsonly small details of her new home, never trying to take in the place as a whole, notlooking beyond what is in front of her and...

It is simple to say that Henry David Thoreau's essay, "CivilDisobedience," influenced two of the most well known political figures ofthe past hundred years, Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King. It mightbe less easy to connect Thoreau's ideas with those of more flamboyantE"andone might also...