James+Farmer+and+the+Congress+of+Racial+Equality

Tim Ennis October 24, 2007 Block 2 Group #5- __The Home Front__

Thousands of African Americans left the South during World War 2. Most of them, including me, relocated to the Midwest because the region had better jobs. This area in the United States had such good jobs that the amount of African Americans that had skilled or semiskilled jobs grew from 16 to 30 percent between 1940 and 1944 (Danzer et al. 592). However, many African Americans faced discrimination especially in the already crowded northern cities (Danzer et al. 593). It seemed that every day I went outside of my apartment in Topeka, Kansas, blacks were getting treated brutally by other whites. I responded to this horrible problem by joining the Congress of Racial Equality, or CORE, in 1943. The Congress of Racial Equality was established in 1942 by James Farmer. James, who later became the National Director of the Congress of Racial Equality in 1953, and many other members of CORE, including me, are pacifists. We admired Mahatma Gandhi’s peaceful campaign that he exercised against the rule of the British in India. We believed that the same system could be used by blacks to get civil rights in the United States (Simkin, “Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)” 1). Although we were pacifists, we did protest against unconstitutional laws such as the poll tax that kept Blacks in the South away from poles. Other examples of us being active were the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott, the March on Washington in 1963, and the Freedom Summer campaign (McElrath1). http://www.africanaonline.com/Graphic/rosa_parks_bus.gif During the Montgomery Bus Boycott, we traveled by riding taxis, carpooling, and walking because buses in this city were segregated. Walking was es-pecially dangerous for us, African Americans. The Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted one year, caused the Supreme Court in 1956 to declare that it was unconstitutional to have seating on buses that separated blacks and whites. Thus, our actions and other African Americans helped eliminate this unconstitutional law (“Montgomery” 1). Another example of us fighting for African American civil rights was in the March on Washington in 1963. Although I could not go to this very famous march, James Farmer; of CORE; Martin Luther King Jr., of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference; and John Lewis, of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee were some that did participate. Some of the things the marchers wanted included legislation that would give African Americans civil rights, abolishment of racial segregation in public schools, and laws that stated that the minimum wage was $2 an hour. The March on Washington was a success because it led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the National Voting Rights Act of 1965. These two acts ended segregation in schools and public places, and it also abolished poll literacy tests (Ross 1). Another event that I and CORE participated in was the Freedom Summer. The main goal of the Freedom Summer campaign was to discontinue the fact that southern blacks could not vote. As a result, CORE, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People created 30 Freedom Schools in Mississippi. These schools taught blacks about their history and the philosophy of the civil rights movement. The Freedom Summer campaign was another reason why Congress passed the National Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Simkin, “Freedom Summer” 1). Student sit-ins during 1961 were an action by CORE that helped win civil rights to African Americans (Simkin, “Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) 1). The student sit-ins during 1961 defined James Farmer’s legacy. He was the one who played the biggest part in its success because he pretty much organized it all. http://www.firstyearbook.umd.edu/TMarshall/images/16_student_sitins.jpg During the sit-ins, African Americans, including me, sat in seats that were “prohibited” to us (Danzer et al. 593). We would do this many times until we influenced Americans to put an end to segregation in restaurants and lunch-counters. Finally, twenty-six restaurants and lunch-counters in southern cities responded to our demands (Simkin, “Congress of Racial Equality” (CORE) 1). In conclusion, CORE had made a huge impact on African Americans lives. The March on Washington, student sit-ins, the Freedom Summer campaign, and the Montgomery Bus Boycott helped African American get civil rights. I really hope that CORE will continue its success in the upcoming years. __Glossary__ __Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)-__ a group established by James Farmer in 1942, that tried to eliminate segregation especially in northern cities. __James Farmer-__ founded the Congress of Racial Equality Equality and played a large part in the student sit-ins and the March in Washington during the 1960s.
 * Name**: My name is Michael James
 * Age**: I am 43 years old.
 * Hometown**: My hometown is Birmingham, Alabama.
 * School**: I attended Wiley College.
 * Relationships**: I have two parents. Both my mom and dad are very poor. I had a brother but he died in 1932. The rest of my family makes enough money to live on, but I have not spoken to them in years.
 * Ethnicity**: I am an African American
 * Birthday**: I was born on July, 25 1920
 * Occupation**: I am a member of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).

Works Cited McElrath, Jessica. “Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).” __About.com: African-American History__. (indent)2007. 24 Oct. 2007 (indent)http://afroamhistory.about.com/od/congressofracialequality/a/core.htm. __Montgomery Bus Boycott__. Toonari, 2007. __Africanaoline__. 2007. 24 Oct. 2007 (indent)<[|http://www.africanaonline.com/introduction.htm>.] Ross, Shmuel. “March on Washington.” __Infoplease__. 2000. 24 Oct. 2007 (indent) Simkin, John. __Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)__. Simkin. __Spartacus Educational__. 1997. 23 (indent) Oct. 2007 Simkin, John. __Freedom Summer__. Simkin. __Spartacus Educational__. 1997. 24 Oct. 2007 (indent)<[|http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/author.htm>.]