The men in this war were willing to give their lives for the chance at freedom. They believed they should have an equal say in how the country was run. This is a wonderful ideal but while these men fought for equality, they did not truly believe all men were created equal. There were many people they thought did not count. The United States was founded on the belief of freedom but in the beginning, it was not extended to everyone. Many more battles were fought before every single person was declared free. Still, just because on paper people were free, it did not mean they were treated equally.
Almost 200 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed, another pieced of legislation was written to help all people attain the rights mentioned by the forefathers. On July 2, 1964 the Civil Rights Act was passed. It outlawed discrimination based on race, religion, color, gender or national origin. It stopped racial segregation in schools, workplaces and public places. In the beginning, enforcing the act was difficult, but more power was put behind it in the later years. Our document of the week was chosen in honor of this anniversary. It is titled Becoming Less Separate? School Desegregation, Justice Department Enforcement and the Pursuit of Unitary Status. It is a report put out by the United States Commission On Civil Rights. They collected data in seven states to determine how well these school districts were integrated. They wanted to know if the rising number of jurisdictions obtaining unitary status has had a negative effect on the levels of integration.
This document starts off with information on the historical and legal background of racial relations in the United States. It discusses different lawsuits brought forth in attempts to desegregate schools. It talks about the role the Department of Justice played in enforcing the laws put into place. There are many tables broken down by state and school districts that give much useful information. There is a great deal of information inside this document. Come by and check it out! It's sudoc number is CR 1.2: SE 6/2.