Civil Rights: A Global Fight for Equality

What are Civil Rights?

Civil rights are basic rights that every citizen has under the laws of the government. In the United States, the civil rights of each individual citizen are protected by the Constitution. Civil rights for every person means that regardless of gender, skin color, religion, nationality, age, disability, or religion, a person should not be discriminated against. Civil rights include the right to free speech, privacy, religion, assembly, a fair trial, and freedom of thought. Anyone who is considered a citizen of a country should be treated equally under the law.

Civil Rights Movements Throughout History

Throughout history, there have been different civil rights movements. Each movement fought for the rights of a given section of the population that was being discriminated against. For example, the women's suffrage movement fought for the right for women to vote.

• African-American Civil Rights Movement
• Apartheid
• Disability Rights
• Native American Rights
• Slavery and Abolitionism
• Women's Suffrage

Prominent Figures in the Fight for Civil Rights

• Frederick Douglass
• Mohandas Gandhi
• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Nelson Mandela
• Rosa Parks
• Mother Teresa
• Harriet Tubman
• Booker T. Washington
• Ida B. Wells

Key Events and Legislation

• Jim Crow Laws
• Montgomery Bus Boycott
• Little Rock Nine
• Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Bill of Rights
• Emancipation Proclamation

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Vision

Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision changed the world in a major way. In fact, anyone who's been through elementary school in America has likely heard the name Martin Luther King.

A Society Free from Racial Prejudice

Martin Luther King had a vision of a society in which race was not an issue in how people were treated or in how they were allowed to live their lives. It's a sad fact of today's society that King's vision is not a reality in America, or anywhere else in the world; but it is possible to say that his vision affected us.

The Impact of King's Legacy

While nothing is perfect or complete in the battle for civil rights, the efforts of King and those like him have, in fact, changed the country and the world, for the better, in noticeable ways. His vision has made the world a more equal place, if not an equal one, and it has helped to ensure that minorities have a voice.

The Loss of a Leader

King was assassinated in 1968. With his death, the country lost not only a great leader, but a prominent person who had carried the power to change society for the better. The loss of King was a loss for people of all races.