Running Head: OUR BATTLE FOR FREEDOM AND EQUALITY

Our Battle for Freedom and Equality

Ashleigh Napier

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte

OUR BATTLE FOR FREEDOM AND EQUALITY

Abstract:
In our society today, we are surrounded by the maltreatment of minorities. As time goes on, the

fight for justice and equality becomes more notorious. Social media platforms serve just a small

part in the development of our battle. Another major factor is our history. Our ancestors fought

so vigilantly for freedom and equality, so it’s only fair that we further their progress. Coming

together for this common cause will make us stronger and produce change.

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Do you ever look around the world today and think, “why is there a sudden influx of

racial issues now rather than 8-10 years ago?”. Yes, we know about the history of our ancestors

in slavery, and injustice they suffered, but why now, all of a sudden, is our race being challenged

and mistreated again? In reality, I am not fully educated on this topic. The only information

about this topic that I know is what is shown on the news or on my Instagram timeline. I know

that over the past few years, there has been a great controversy about police brutality against our

fellow African Americans and the movement of ‘Black Lives Matter’. I know that in the past

couple of years there has been a number of movies being produced lately highlighting the

injustice and discrimination we minorities face and our fight against it. But why? Why is this

happening to us now? If we find out why this is happening, we can find a solution for it and stop

the unnecessary violence, tension, and death. We could also bring about the much-needed

change. Personally, I am interested in this topic because I am a minority. As a minority I feel like

I have a responsibility to contribute to this fight for justice and equality. Even though I might not

face discrimination right now, or see the injustice and pain first hand, who says I won’t see it in

the future? What if my child has to face this worry, fright, and pain? In my mind, this is my

small contribution to this movement for justice. We have to do this for not only the present, but

also for the future.

As Sanford Biggers so importantly pointed out, the racial injustice, murders, and

unfairness isn’t just now happening. The inequality of races has been occurring for over 500

years (Biggers, 2018). From racial segregation in schools, on buses, in stores, and everywhere

else, to lynching, burning, and brutal beatings, our ancestors faced many hardships due to the

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color of their skin (Morris, 1986). We’ve all seen the movies and heard the stories, but do

actually realize that this happened to our ancestors and could’ve been us.

“Africans were first brought here as slaves to help build the new nation into an economic

power house during the 17th and 18th centuries” (History, 2018). During that era, slave masters

had no constraints on how they treated their slaves. Our ancestors were beaten, starved, and even

murdered, if they didn’t obey their masters in every way. Some of the women were even taken

advantage of sexually, and could not do anything about it (History, 2018). Slaves were

mistreated to such an extent, it was like they weren’t even humans. Could you imagine simply

being referred to as property? Constantly living in fear of the pain that could be brought to you.

Even then, our ancestors fought for their rights.

“Slave rebellions did occur within the system. The slave revolt that most terrified white

slaveholders was that led by Nat Turner in Southampton County Virginia” (History, 2018). Nat

Turner, a slave, along with about seventy-five African Americans, murdered about sixty white

men before stopped by armed local whites and state militia two days later (History, 2018). That

was just one of many rebellions during that time. One very important battle did occur that would

affect the fight for freedom. The Civil War. “The American Civil War was a four-year war,

between the United States and eleven Southern states that seceded from the Union forming the

Confederate States of America, that broke out once Abraham Lincoln was elected and threatened

the abolition of slavery” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018). It was Abraham Lincoln’s

Emancipation Proclamation and most importantly the Thirteenth Amendment, that finally freed

all slaves (HistoryNet, 2018). But the racial divide didn’t stop there.

After slavery was abolished, there was still the problem of racism and segregation. Our

race was still constantly being discriminated against. “Immediately following the Civil War and

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adoption of the Thirtieth Amendment, most of the former Confederacy adopted Black Codes,

laws modeled on former slave laws. These laws were intended to limit the new freedom of

emancipated African Americans by restricting their movement and by forcing them into a labor

economy based on low income wages and debt” (Hansan, 2011). Immediately after getting a

taste of freedom, our ancestors were in a way re-enslaved by the numerous laws created to limit

their freedom. Black Codes were not the only laws created to bound African Americans. There

were laws like the Jim Crow laws that segregated blacks from whites, and led to treatment as

well as accommodations inferior to those provided to the whites (Hansan, 2011). “The Jim Crow

laws required that public schools, public facilities, and public transportation, keep the blacks

separated from the whites” (Hansan, 2011).

Even in the face of all these trials, famous activist like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther

King Jr. still fought so hard for equality for us. They put their lives on the line for fairness and

our freedom. Here is where the Civil Rights Movement comes to play. Thanks to the fight of

many, the Civil Right Act and Voting Rights Act made racial segregation and discrimination

illegal. However, our fight does not stop there!

Skip to 2012, where freedom and equality seems to have gotten better. Until the murder

of a young African American named Trayvon Martin. “On February 26 of 2012, unarmed

Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman” (Bates,

2018). Zimmerman was tried for second degree murder but eventually acquitted of Trayvon’s

murder (Bates, 2018). Then in August of 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed, black teenager

from Ferguson, was murdered by Daren Wilson, a white police officer (Buchanan, 2018). Both

of these young gentlemen were only teenagers and both unarmed. These are only two of the

many victims within the past decade. Even though we live in 2018, our race is still being treated

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discriminatorily. We still are not being treated equally or seeing justice! This proves our fight is

not over. And that’s exactly what we’re doing, fighting. The deaths within our race started the

Black Lives Matter Movement, a “member-led organization whose mission is to build local

power and to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes”

(Usatoday.com, 21018). he Black Lives Matter movement is a way to combat the injustice and

violence being brought to us as a race. As a community.

Why, nearly fifty years later, is there an outbreak of racial inequality, injustice, and

controversy? And why are these situations so well known? Well for one, we see the injustice first

hand and are in desperate need for a change. We want, and need, to be heard. With all the types

of media we have today, we give everyone an easily accessible platform to be heard. “News

media play a substantial role in giving protestors a platform to express their voices” (Kilgo,

2018). Most of the world has social media and the world has integrated it into our day to day

lives. In fact, “so many contemporary protest movements use social media to influence, organize,

and protest” (Wayne, 2017). Social media has allowed the Black Lives Matter Movement to

spread to all over the world, drawing a large following. The movement has allowed our voices to

be heard.

Another reason why this racial controversy has grown to such an extent is because the

movement is “a coping method” (Wayne, 2017). “Individuals facing societal stressors, such as

racial bias in policing, engage in the dynamic process of coping with shared stressors collectively

as members of a group” (Wayne, 2017). The group members are able to offer support for each

other. They also engage in emotion or problem focused coping methods such as protest, or other

actions (Wayne, 2017). We, as a race, have a common stressor that should bring us together.

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Together we are stronger and can actually bring about change. Therefore, we should let it. We

should all join in together to continue the fight our ancestors fought.

Now I know what’s on all of our minds. How can my small voice contribute to this

major, ongoing battle? What can I do to help enforce change? First, we must realize that our

fight was never over. We still face injustice to this day, from the murders of colored people just

like us, to the inequality in the workplace. And the sooner we realize that, the sooner we will

desire a change.

Next, we must make a choice. Even if we aren’t directly facing hardships now, who’s not

to say we won’t see them later? We have to make the choice to fight for change and equality for

all minorities. We have to make the conscious decision to stand together to fight the fight our

ancestors fought before us.

But how can we fight? Even if we feel like we have nothing to contribute to this battle,

we do. We have our voices. We have the ability to make our opinions known and to bring

awareness to our fight. We have our own social media, to share our battle. Another way we can

contribute, is by voting. Many before us fought so hard to give us that right. Why let their fight

be in vain? Voting is one very large, important way to make our voices heard. Doing your

research and voting when the time comes, can bring about much change. The question I leave

you with now, is what will you do now? How will you contribute to the fight for equality and

justice? We know the pain and suffering that has been brought to our race throughout time, so

let’s not let their efforts die. If we don’t fight now, change will never come. Let’s be the change!

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References

Bates, K. (2018). Npr choice page. [online] Npr.org. Available at:

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2018/07/31/631897758/a-look-back-at-trayvon-

martins-death-and-the-movement-it-inspired [Accessed 14 Nov. 2018].

Biggers, S. (2018). An artist's unflinching look at racial violence. [online] Ted.com. Available at:

https://www.ted.com/talks/sanford_biggers_an_artist_s_unflinching_look_at_racial_violenc

e?referrer=playlist-talks_to_help_you_understand_s [Accessed 12 Nov. 2018].

Buchanan, L. (2018). What happened in ferguson?. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/us/ferguson-missouri-town-under-siege-

after-police-shooting.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2018].

Encyclopedia Britannica. (2018). American civil war | Causes, Definition, History, & Facts.

[online] Available at: https://www.britannica.com/event/American-Civil-War [Accessed 13

Nov. 2018].

Hansan, J. (2011). Jim crow laws and racial segregation - Social Welfare History Project.

[online] Social Welfare History Project. Available at:

https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/eras/civil-war-reconstruction/jim-crow-laws-andracial-

segregation/ [Accessed 13 Nov. 2018].

HISTORY. (2018). Slavery in america. [online] Available at:

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/slavery [Accessed 13 Nov. 2018].

HistoryNet. (2018). Slavery in america | HistoryNet. [online] Available at:

http://www.historynet.com/slavery-in-america [Accessed 13 Nov. 2018].

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Kilgo, D. (2018). Shibboleth authentication request. [online] Www-tandfonline-

com.librarylink.uncc.edu. Available at: https://www-tandfonline-

com.librarylink.uncc.edu/doi/full/10.1080/17512786.2018.1507680?scroll=top&needAccess

=true [Accessed 14 Nov. 2018].

Morris, A. (1986). The origins of the civil rights movement. New York: Free.

Usatoday.com. (2018). [online] Available at:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2016/07/11/black-lives-matter-what-what-

stands/86963292/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2018].

Wayne, C. (2017). The social psychology of the black lives matter meme and movement - Colin

Wayne Leach, Aerielle M. Allen, 2017. [online] Journals.sagepub.com. Available at:

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0963721417719319 [Accessed 14 Nov.

2018].

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Reflection:
After going through this project, I would define inquiry as an investigation for
information. Seeking comprehension and knowledge of a subject to then add to the topic. Inquiry
is an important tool to understanding the world around us and giving it a purpose and reason. We
won’t realize how it can benefit our lives until we’ve gone through the process ourselves.
In this process, the most interesting thing that I learned was, that common stressors will
bring a group or community together. The desire for something can bring about remarkable
alliances and results.
The thing I struggled with the most, was finding information and sources on my topic.
Everything that I found had little to no relation to what I was looking for. Then I remembered
what one of our class discussions were about. Changing the phrasing of the question to find
results. That is exactly what I did. In the end it looked like a brand-new question, but it brought
results.
The context and background of your question can change the results of your research. It
can also change your opinion, thus changing your argument. That, in turn, affect your paper.
Through my project, I feel like I presented my argument in such a way that others would
be encouraged to do their part in this fight.
During this process, my question and argument changed from “why is this happening
now” to “how can we bring about change”. My question didn’t directly change, but my argument
did.
Overall, the whole group, myself included, gave useful critique to each other. We all had
unbiased opinions which allowed comments like, “this isn’t needed” or “explain on this”, to help
better our work.
My time management on this project was better than my last project but I still could’ve
done better. I started searching for sources later than I should have, but I did set out large sets of
time to work on my project.

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