The New Civil Rights Movement

February winds down and the end of another black history month is upon us. This last week of this month also marks the third anniversary of the still controversial, still discussed and very unjust death of Trayvon Martin. Three years later and the United States are still talking about the death of an unarmed 17 years old and the verdict that cleared his murderer and still allows him to walk free in the nation that holds as creed that all men are created equal. The two are very connected with the new civil rights movement.

Years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 the people of the United States decided that the act was enough that the country had done its duty and given African Americans - all minorities - their God given equality. The mainstream way of thought was that enough was done and that it was better to dwell on the positive rather than the negative. The election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States in November 2008 reinforced the view in many that the United States had healed from the wounds of racism, some even argued, post race.

While the United States had made massive strides in improving in regards to race and race relations and that yes, the election of Barack Obama showed how far the country had traveled, may problems were bubbling under and continued to be ignored. The African American community, despite obtaining full equality in the 60s was still saddled with many problems. Yes, they could now apply for any jobs and no one was allowed to refuse them employment based on race, but how? For years, since Jim Crow became king in the south and separate but equal had been enshrined by the Supreme Court, African Americans had received sub-par education and educational facilities. There was only a tiny segment of African Americans with college degrees or even high school diplomas. The Johnson administration after the Civil Rights Act, did nothing to try to solve that issue, it was soon to be mired with affairs in Vietnam. So while African Americans were given equality and so called equal opportunity, they were still at a deep disadvantage and nothing was done to try and bring them to equal footing with their European American peers. African Americans remained cluttered in ghettos and continued to suffer cultural and opportunity isolation. Unemployment, poverty, drugs and crimes were all problems that had been created by centuries of mistreat continued untreated.

Those problems continued rising untreated and those who spoke about them were called race hustlers, ambulance chasers and other names, everyone wanted the good narrative to continue. So the politicians, even the black ones stopped showing that stark disconnect that existed in the United States of America. huge swath of the United States population continued to live in ignorance and the utter belief that yes, the United Stated has repaid its due and had given African Americans equality, fairness had been achieved. Then the death of Trayvon Martin happened.

The fact that a 17 year old unarmed African American could be killed and his murderer walked free opened the eyes of many, and not only African Americans. While everyone was pretending that fairness had been achieved, they have to see the cracks in the foundations of that fairness. Stand your ground laws, enacted mostly in the south were Jim Crow once ruled supreme, had been passed and allowed for a murder that was racially tinted to go on excused as self defense, were passed. An outrage burst, starting from the African American community and spreading to the rest of those in the nation who had been interested in the fairness for all, regardless of race, creed or sexuality. Shootings that would have passed the attention of the nation normally, became talking points. Nothing could be hidden anymore.

Trayvon Martin

In the aftermath of the no guilty verdict that exonerated George Zimmerman of Trayvon Martin's murder, a movement was born. From the African American youth, incensed by this injustice, and through social networks like twitter, protests sprung out in the entire nation. The attention was drawn to the fat that the justice system had excused the murder of a young black man, Jim Crow was almost back. The noise and clamor reached the white house and the president made one of the strongest statements on race in his entire presidency. From the presidential pulpit, the president, himself a black man, made the argument for why so many African American were upset at the verdict. Legitimacy was given to the grievances.

Fort most of the youth who had grown up with the belief that justice and fairness had been achieved with the civil rights movement, it was inexcusable and impossible to understand. A massive look at how the country's institution had treated African Americans since the supposed fairness, was launched by the youth and what they discovered was unpleasant. The incarceration rate of African Americans compared to their share of the population was extreme, the sentences handed to African Americans were harsher and more extreme compared to their European American peers for the same crimes. The unemployment rate was more than double that of the Europeans Americans. In all metrics used to measure success, African Americans were doing much, much worse than their European American peers. The soul searching and organizing started for the generation of the internet and social media.

When Michael Brown was killed, they were ready and they protested. Their voices, loud enough to make the the president take notice again and issue another statement. Their protests created a nationwide conversation and even involved the Justice Department. While a big swath of the population believed that the police officer who murdered Brown was justified, the conversation was happening regardless. On all major networks, print and online news media, people were speaking the reasons why people were incensed. It wasn't only about the shooting, other issues relevant to African Americans and why they were doing worse than their peers were discussed. The protests were doing their work.

When Eric Garner fell, the movement was already solidified and in after his murderer was given a no indictment by the jury, the naked injustice that African American continue to suffer was exposed. The movement became a phenomenon and #blacklivesmatter was born. The idea that a black life was worth less than a white one has existed since the founding of this nation with the hypocritical 3/5th compromise that ignored the 'all men are created equal'. It certainly looked like black lives were worth less if all these black men were being killed and their killers, be they police officers or civilians were walking free, The fairness that the American system promised since 1964 was not being enforced and little by little Jim Crow was coming back and dismantling the foundation of the civil rights act that had been tough rock hard and untouchable.

Martin Luther King Jr.

The Supreme Court, which once enshrined separate but equal, gutted the Voting Rights Act, a law that had allowed the Justice Department to override any southern state that wanted to dim the right of all African Americans to vote for their representatives. After making the mighty VRA toothless, Jim Crow and the grandfather's law came back disguised as voter fraud laws in many state were Jim had one ruled Supreme. Yet, that did not go unnoticed by the newly awakened civil rights movement. People have continued to campaign against those fallacies and have attempted to get voters the forms of identifications that are being used against them in the manner of the poll tax.

This movement, the New Civil Rights Movement is here to stay. Months after the non indictment that were given to the officers in the Garner and Brown murders, people are still organizing and bringing to attention the many inequalities that African Americans and all minorities are suffering, in the country that claims to have given full equality and fairness to those it oppressed for centuries. Unlike what many people may hear from some medias this movement is not being manufactured by the so called race hustlers and ambulance chasers, but it is a genuine movement made up by the youth of this country that is interested in creating an equal and fair movement. Their protests and organizing have made sure that the Justice Department started an inquiry and a suit against the Ferguson police department concerning racism might be forthcoming in a matter of days. This movement has also insured that no one shall be killed by an officer or a civilian due to the color of their skin and have their name forgotten and stay in the obscurity, all the names are known and justice is clamored in their names and the government is paying attention.

This black history month, while it seems that there are many obstacles yet on the road of fairness for all. People ought to remember than there is a movement in this country whose goal is to make sure that everyone is treated the same regardless of the color of their skin. This is a movement that is the continuation of the great work that Martin Luther King and the civil right movement began. Rather than continuing to dwell on the problems, do something to bring forth the change that you desire. This is the New Civil Rights Movement.