HIST 1302: United States History II Date of submission Analyzing an Historical Debate Part I: Introduction

The role of politics and federal government, through the supreme court of the united states has been an issue leading to serious debate on whether the court supported civil rights movements or whether it used its political influence and power to thwart the efforts of civil rights movements. For a significant period, historians have always differed and/or agreed on the roles that the supreme court of the United States played in supporting or destroying the efforts of the civil rights movement in almost equal measures (Humphrey 118). A crosssectional analysis of several court cases where the supreme court made decisions on issues relating to civil rights movement leave the historians with a serious debate on whether the highest court in the land supported civil rights movement or whether it used its power to subvert the efforts of civil rights activists. From my perspective, I agree with the assertion that the supreme court of the United States played a significant role in supporting the efforts of the civil rights activists and therefore supported civil rights movement in many significant ways. Part II: Historical Debate The evidences provided in this debate fully support the thesis. The central issue leading to this debate is whether the Supreme Court of the United States played in leading role in supporting or thwarting the civil rights movement based on the analysis of many decisions it made during the period of the civil rights movement in the United States. A crosssectional analysis of the many supreme court decisions that were made by the court provides

sufficient amount of evidence that the court played a leading role in supporting the efforts of the civil rights movement. Despite making good and ill decisions through the American history, there exist some key decisions that the court made that were considered landmark decisions in shaping the course for civil rights movement in the United States. In 1956, for example, the supreme court of the United States upheld the ruling by the lower courts that the Montgomery bus system’s segregation was illegal. This landmark ruling was a major victory for Civil Rights Movement that were being championed and pioneered by Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. in the United States (Burns 123). This was then followed by another landmark ruling in 1964 when the supreme court upheld the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This was a landmark ruling in the course of civil rights movement because it led to the prohibition of racial discrimination in places of public accommodation like the hotels and the restaurants leading to liberty for the blacks. Part III: Conclusion The reading(s) in this historical debate changed the way in which I first understood the role of courts in civil rights movement in the united states. Initially, I believed that the courts used its power and influence to subvert the will of the people and thwart the efforts of the civil rights activities. However, by reading on these two landmark rulings, I changed my perspective on the issue. The issues presented in the readings are relevant today because it gives an in-depth perspective of understanding how supreme court of the United States stood firm in ensuring the path towards civil rights movement was steadfast and achievable. If I would be asked to tackle a current national or global issue, I would use this reading to demonstrate to the supreme court that it has a leading role to play in ensuring that the rights and freedoms of citizens across the country are protected and secured accordingly