Essay Example on Montgomery Bus Boycott: A Fight for Equality

Montgomery bus boycott is remembered as the social and political protest campaign where the people were against the policy that allow the state to have segregation of the people in the transport system. The activists and the people wanted reforms that would give all the people equal opportunities to use the national transport system without discrimination. The protest attracted national activists such as Martin Luther Junior and Rosa Parks who made the protests to last for thirteen months until the Supreme Court ruled that all the people regardless of their race could use the transport system. The demonstrations united the people to form other civil rights movements that they later used to advocate for equality and other factors affecting the people.

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The white majority were used to discriminating the blacks hence even after the Supreme Court abolished the discrimination they continued using mischievous means to discriminate the blacks such as denying them seats. This was achieved by making the African American to pay for the transport last giving the white the priority to occupy seats before they are all occupied (Van Delinder 24). The white community believed that they were the Native Americans hence they deserved priority in the transport system because they believed that they owned the transport system with the authority to determine how its run. The activists demanded that black passengers to be treated with courtesy which the transport system was reluctant to implement.

The boycott led to the formation of the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) by the black ministers as well as other leaders of the city. The Association was led by Martin Luther King Jr. with the objective of dealing with racial discrimination (Van Delinder 43). The Association wanted this to be achieved by hiring black drivers, outlining a first come first serve policy so that a black could not be asked to give a white passenger a seat as well as enforcing courtesy.

The Montgomery protests led to the upgrade of the buses used to transport the people after the African and the whites boycotted boarding the buses that were too old, citing security negligence of the company that was offering the transport services (Burns 8). The legislators began to support the protesters by reforming transport laws to ensure the city transport system met the standard required in terms of the safety of the passengers and reducing discrimination of any kind during transport. The legislation brought the desired change to the transport system by changing how the bus system is run, including the respect of all people without discrimination.

However, it was not easy for the changes to be made as the city did not receive the association's demands despite them being reasonable. This, therefore, led to a legal case that was ruled by the federal court in 1956 and the ruling upheld by the Supreme Court (Rieff 193). Browder v. Gayle c challenged the city ordinances, Montgomery and Alabama statutes that allowed segregation in the buses. The lawsuit had been filed by four African American women who had been mistreated while traveling in the Montgomery buses. Fred Gray and Charles D. Langford represented them.

A panel delivered the verdict of three judges of the federal court. Two judges held that the segregation ordinance was unconstitutional as it violated the 14th amendment of the constitution. As per the 14th amendment of the constitution, a state should not deny any person's property or liberty without following the law (Rieff 193). Additionally, the amendment indicates that all persons within the state jurisdiction should be accorded equal protection of the laws. The city was not satisfied with the federal court’s decision and appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court, however, upheld the ruling of the federal court. The decision was effected on 20th November 1956, thus ending the boycott that had been going on for 381 days and subsequently integrating the buses. However, the integration was not positively received, especially by the whites who reacted violently. Consequently, there were sniper firing in the buses as well as the bombing of churches dominated by the blacks. The situation was, however, resolved by arresting the Ku Klux clan that was associated with the violence.

The protest reflected the challenges faced by African Americans in terms of how they were being treated by the rest of the communities and the challenges faced to get equal treatment and opportunities (Burns 7). The Montgomery protest gave people the confidence to fight for their rights. It made the people understand the importance of having unity of purpose when fighting for equality.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Montgomery bus protest is a remarkable event that helping in fighting racial segregation. The arrest of Rosa Parks triggered the protest after she refused to give her seat to a white passenger. The African Americans felt that they could no longer stand the segregation, thus conducting demonstrations that lasted for 381 days. The protest was ended by the federal court verdict upheld by the Supreme Court. The court held that segregation was against the 14th amendment and subsequently required the transport system to be integrated.

Works Cited

Burns, Stewart, ed. Daybreak of freedom: the Montgomery bus boycott. Univ of North Carolina Press, 2012: 3-8.

Rieff, Burt M. "Browder v. Gayle: The Legal Vehicle of the Montgomery Bus Boycott." Alabama Review 41 (1988): 193.

Van Delinder, Jean. Struggles before Brown: Early civil rights protests and their significance today. Routledge, 2015: 23-43.