The American civil rights movement is considered the most influential and significant movement in our history. Throughout the history of America, African Americans have been severely discriminated against, but it was a long chain of events that pushed the entire black population of America to demand change. America was founded on freedom, and this spoke to much of the population. The main reason for the change, however, came after World War II, as the African-American population believed that they should share the same rights as whites, as they all fought side by side. While there were many reasons that started this movement, it was the wide variety of activities that occurred afterward that contributed significantly to the civil rights movement. When talking about the effectiveness of the contributions of local grassroots activists, we must also mention Malcolm X's other substantial influences; the extensive media coverage of the activists and, of course, the involvement of the American government of the time. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayWhen we think about the civil rights movement in America, two of the names everyone seems to remember are Martin Luther King Junior and Rosa Parks. Both of these incredibly influential people fought for the same idea, equality regardless of race. The relationships they established with grassroots activists meant that they quickly became very involved in the civil rights movement. Rosa Parks is famous for her history of not giving up her seat, and it can be said that her arrest was the key event that triggered the beginning of the movement. This has also led many other grassroots activists to use these peaceful yet effective methods in their own campaigns. Martin Luther King Junior planned some of the movement's large-scale events, through the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLL), such as the Montgomery Bus. Boycott and march on Washington. These are some of the main reasons why the actions of local activists have been so effective. An example of this can be seen in the Montgomery bus boycott, "...working class blacks walked for miles to get to their jobs...Black cabs lowered fares to the same penny price that the buses charged and they packed in the passengers." This quote demonstrates the unique bond that the African American community shared at that time and supports the argument that everyone was willing to take part in a fight for long-term results. This led to a successful 13-month boycott: "While the bus company, downtown businessmen, and the city lost $1 million, local authorities tried to destroy the boycott." This was considered a huge step forward in the movement, it was a victory. And not just a victory because companies lost millions of dollars, but because the African American people felt like they were finally getting something. Their protest was working and they felt their voices were finally being heard; “We felt like we were somebody. That someone would listen to us, that we would force the white man to give up what we knew [was] our citizenship…”. Furthermore, the horrific attacks on peaceful protests have gained much media attention due to their public nature. This also helped the movement gain a lot of sympathy from whites across America. It is very clear and irrefutable that Martin Luther King Junior's tactics were no different from Gandhi's,so it is understandable that he was popular with the entire nation. He was smart and used all the media attention to his advantage, showing the calmness of the ongoing protests. This has aided grassroots activists' efforts in spreading the word about the movements; and their commitment to the cause, through boycotts, protests and sit-ins, is one of the reasons the movement was so successful. An example of this success is the Washington riots. The activists, however, hoped to have 100,000 protesters; “Rustin was concerned that he would fail to reach his goal of 100,000 marchers… On August 28, 1963, 21 special trains, 1,514 buses, and countless carpools brought 250,000 marchers to Washington.” This underlines the growth in popularity of the movement. Protesters traveled from all over America to join these marches, which once again demonstrates how quickly grassroots activists were able to spread the word about the events. It wasn't just black people marching, there were hundreds of white people participating in these protests as well. This shows how successful this part of the plan was, they had gotten the message across. Another great example of the success of grassroots activists can be shown through the numerous rides by whites and blacks, as they demonstrated their belief in their cause and how brave they were. Arguably, the most effective ride-in was when the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) enlisted about thirteen people of color who had no prior harmful reputations – meaning the media had no reason to attack or criticize the knights of freedom – to ride into New Orleans, through many other incredibly racist and segregated states. The reason they were so successful was more due to the extensive media coverage it received, not the fact that they had actually been to all these states. Their courage and willingness to die for their cause; “I think all of us were prepared for all the violence that could be thrown at us. We were prepared for the possibility of death” proved that they were a force to be reckoned with. This showed the entire black nation that there was a fight to win, gave them purpose, and demonstrated what they could achieve if they banded together; and they did. The media intervened when one of their buses finally landed in Birmingham and was set on fire, which allowed them to expose America for its prejudice and racism, something the Kennedys did not want to happen. This media coverage angered the South and its people even more and, more significantly, generated a lot of awareness of the movement and why they were fighting. It was the support and push of grassroots activists, combined with highly trained public speakers (like MLK Jr), that made it clear that they were finally getting the message across. And it wasn't just a voice that the world heard; but millions of black voices across America were being heard. Most people remember major faces of the civil rights movement like MLK Junior and Miss Rosa Parks; however, there were many other factors that contributed to the success of the movement. One notable case during the civil rights movement was five similar cases that were combined to form Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, which ultimately challenged the segregation of African Americans in schools. The main reason this particular case had such a significant impact was that it dictated to political figures that blacks deserved equal opportunities: “We must consider public education in light of its full development and its present place in American life ... in the fieldof public education". the doctrine 'separate but equal' has no place in public education." This once again demonstrates the speed and success with which the message was spread. The outcome of this case was better: “On May 31, 1955, the Supreme Court ordered school boards to develop desegregation plans. Over the next twelve months 350 school boards representing nine Southern states had desegregated…by the 1956-57 school year 723 Southern school districts had been desegregated and 300,000 black children attended formerly white schools.” This shows the extent to which this message was spread and involved people and politicians. America saw these changes which ultimately caused a nationwide shift. This was a huge step forward for the movement and demonstrates how important grassroots activists and the role of their leaders have been in the fight for equality. Another influential figure in the civil rights movement was Malcolm X. He was a black supremacist, and although his methods and ideologies were extremely different from those of Martin Luther King, he too wanted to fight inequality. He managed to convey his message, albeit a very radical one. His message was this: “Yes, I am an extremist. The black race in the United States is in terrible shape. Show me a black man who isn't an extremist. Even though Malcolm The people in the ghettos, who felt the most abandonment by their communities, were the ones he helped to fight back and rebel, to spread the message in this way because he firmly believed that otherwise they would not be taken seriously. “In the summer months of 1954, 1965, 1966, 1967, and 1968, massive black rebellions swept across America… The Watts Rebellion left $40 million in damage to private property… fourteen square miles of downtown Detroit were given to the flames. The ghetto riots from 1964 to 1972 caused 250 deaths, 10,000 serious injuries and 60,000 arrests...". While these statistics are not due solely to Malcolm how beautiful. and they continue to send the message that they would not stop fighting until their arguments were heard. The media and the role they played were so important because without them the movement's actions and ability to spread their message would have been limited. Looking back at photographs of these riots we can see, to some extent, how fierce and ruthless the opposition was, as well as how resilient the grassroots activists were in their fight against discrimination. If the media had not been involved, people across America (both black and white) would not have known about the movement, would not have heard MLK's infamous "I have a dream" speech, and would not have seen the brutality that black they had to endure. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Looking at all these facts, it is clear that all these factors combined significantly influenced the fight against segregation, inequality, and racism through the civil rights movement. That said, we cannot downplay the significant influence that Martin Luther King and grassroots activists had on the movement. MLK's approach of using his words to denounce.88.