Essay Sample on Civil Rights Movement: A Template for Change

Introduction

Many of the positive changes that are witnessed today are as a result of movements that have staged demands for the changes. The Civil Rights Movement, in particular, has been instrumental in positive changes such as equality amongst races, worker's rights, and many more other freedoms. Those issues the movement solved might still be in existence today if not for the methods such as protests, strikes, and petitions used to end them. As such, the Civil Rights Movement created a template that can be used today to solve current issues such as racial profiling and minimum wage. The Civil Rights Movement established a method for progressive change that involved creative lawyering, peaceful protests, and savvy messaging that provided a template for other efforts with lessons for today (Weiss-Wolf and Plant-Chirlin, 2015). The model for the Civil Rights Movement still works today with notable changes for abortion rights and rights for the LGBT community.

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Reproductive rights are one of the most recent social injustices where women feel they have been denied the autonomy of the destiny of their lives. There are laws barring women from having abortions in several states with the claim that it is equivalent to murder. There have been debates over the issue where two sides have emerged supporting and disputing the right to life. There have been prominent people who have spoken against the systematic control of women including celebrities who have been tacticians in the movements for women's right to choose. There have been mass movements organized by concerned citizens and activists which has, in turn, appealed to the sense of justice and fairness of the American public. There have also been appeals to the courts against the oppressive legislation against abortion.

These strategies to try and find justice are women's rights to use the template from the Civil Rights movement. The model still works and there have been notable changes in some states where women have access to reproductive health. An example is the planned parenthood organization that has been established as a result of following the Civil Rights Movement template.

The rights of gay people have been an ongoing discussion to give them an equal opportunity as the rest in society. Similar to the Civil Rights Movement that sought equal rights for blacks, the gay rights movement has used strategies to achieve its goals. There have been nationwide demonstrations to sensitize people and the government on the issues affecting them. It is unfortunate that the movement lacks visionary leaders akin to the Civil Rights movement, but there have been some celebrities who have come up with films and documentaries as well as showing support on gay rights. Just as the Civil Rights movement appealed to the American public through messaging, the gay rights movement has done the same. Finally, they have sought redress from the court system. The model has worked owing to the right to marriage, right to employment, housing, adoption and many other rights that the gay community enjoys currently.

Conclusion

The Civil Rights movement used a model that affected social and judicial change such that there are no segregations and the discrimination in the early years. The movement recognized the need to have visionary leaders, mass awareness, and then court appeals to achieve its goals. The template has been used to good effect in recent years to realize justice in many areas including reproductive rights and rights of the LGBTQ community. These steps can help future generations find resolutions for other issues such as gun violence and voting rights.

References

Weiss-Wolf, J, & Plant-Chirlin, J. (2015). Legal Change: Lessons from America's Social Movements. Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.