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Introduction
The United States of America is a country that prides itself in its history. America owes its present to its past events. Southern history forms part of the larger history which shapes contemporary America. The Souths history is traceable to colonization days and largely shapes todays the Southern United States of America. The rich cultural influences which inter-played during the 20th century are still visible today. The politics in 20th century southern history are an indispensable part of reminiscing American history. Many notable events occurred during this period including the American Revolution, the end of slavery, the American civil strife, as well as the famous American civil rights movement (The Mothers League 12).
Main body
Understanding the 20th-century politics of the south requires an understanding of the events recorded in the mid-1870s. Before the 20th century, the whites successfully put in place systems which prevented blacks participation in the regions politics (Perlman 45). This is the period when the famous Jim Crow laws came into force, locking out blacks in all decision-making arenas. The famous Jim Crow Laws were coupled by the phrase, separate but equal, as upheld in Plessy vs. Fergusson in 1896 (Citizens Council 26). Capping the events of the 20th century, an extremist white senator proudly expressed delight at having successfully barred blacks from voting and went ahead to declare that he felt no shame about it. In essence, the politics of the 20th century southern United States intertwines with racism during this period.
The 20th century was a time of change. Denying the black southern citizens a right to vote, they became politically vulnerable to archaic decisions by the all-white leadership. This explains the discrimination they faced during the preceding period. Not only were the blacks made to attend separate schools but also denied the opportunity to hold strategic offices irrespective of their qualifications. This is a time when laws making the blacks inferior to the whites came into force (Citizens Council 28). It is also during this period that lynching occurred across the southern United States. However, what makes the 20th century stand out is not the oppression, but the will of the people to fight for their rights. The 20th-century southern politics is a time when the blacks sought to break away from a tradition where all the work considered filthy was left to them (Sugrue 45). These completely altered Americas political landscape.
Conclusion
At one point, the Citizens Council is reported to have said, This extraordinary migration is trying to break away our endeavor to preserve our rights not to associate with the inferior race (17). Despite Civil Rights movements being present all across the United States all focused on the eradication of the Jim Crow Laws enforced in the south (62). In essence, this is where the history of the United States converges to the south. Most of the outstanding movements took place in the south starting from the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the match of Selma, Mississippi Freedom Summer, and the much-publicized assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. (Sugrue 57). The mid-1960s civil rights laws finally saw off the Jim Crow Laws.
Works Cited
Citizens Council. What have I personally done to maintain segregation? Selma Times Journal, 1963. Print.
Perlaman, Michael. Struggle for Mastery: Disfranchisement in the South, 1888-1908. Chapel Hill, N. C.: University of North Carolina Press, 2001. Print.
Sugrue, Thomas. J. The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit, The meanest and dirtiest jobs. New Jersey: Princeton University Press The Mothers League. Do you want Negroes in our school? Citizens Council. 1956. Print.
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