The Quest for Equality
Debbie Werley

U.S. History 1312
Dr. Wendell Hunnicut
Final Essay
March 21, 2012

Although the United States was founded on the ideal that all men are created equal, many Americans throughout our history have not enjoyed this privilege. Several issues, such as voting rights, labor equality, and equal opportunities in education have faced minorities and women in our country. Many gains in improving equality have been made. Voting rights for all Americans, improvement in workplace discrimination, and equal opportunities in education are some examples of these gains. Various prominent citizens have worked diligently throughout our history to accomplish equality for these groups using different methods. Some of these methods have worked better than others. Boycotts, peaceful marches and courtroom battles were some of the methods that brought better results.
Many equality issues have affected minorities and women in our country. The fight for the right to vote was long and difficult for both groups. Although the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified in 1870, granting all black men voting rights, (Jones et al, 2009, 373) it was not until after World War II that this right was realized. Women’s suffrage was an even longer battle. Begun in 1866, when women reformers attempted to secure this right along with African American’s right to vote, women would not gain the vote until ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920 (Jones et al, 2009, 476). Equality in educational opportunities was another issue that faced both minorities and women. In the beginning, African American children were not allowed to attend school. After being allowed to attend, they were segregated from white children and given inferior facilities, books, and supplies. Women, who were at least allowed to go to school, fought mainly for equal opportunities to attend colleges and trade schools. Other minorities also faced this issue, such as the case of Tape v Hurley which came before the California Supreme Court in 1885. In this case a Chinese child was barred from public school in San Francisco (Jones et al, 2009, 412). Another key issue facing minorities and women has been the issue of job discrimination. Mexican workers in California did grueling work as migrant farm workers for extremely low wages. Chinese workers also faced discrimination. The Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882 decreased the number of Chinese entering America due to the fact that white workers feared the Chinese immigrants would take their jobs (Jones et al, 2009, 395). Women, once they entered the job market, fought for equal pay for equal work. Again perhaps the most difficult struggle has been for African American citizens. After the abolition of slavery, they had to contend with the sharecropper system. The Great Migration saw huge numbers of African Americans move north for jobs in which they were discriminated against. In the 1930s, unemployment for this group was a horrendous 50% with little assistance from the federal government (Jones et al, 2009, 515). While many laws and acts were passed to address these issues through the years, it was not until the 1950s and 1960s that things began to improve for minorities and women.
Voting rights for all Americans, improvement in labor discrimination, and equality in educational opportunities are some of the areas in which gains in expanding equality have been made in our history. With the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870, African American men gained the right to vote, although this would not become a reality until several years later. The passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920 gave this freedom to women. Creation of the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC) in 1942 by President Wilson lessened the discrepancy in pay somewhat between white workers and minorities and women (Jones et al, 2009, 549). Passage of the Equal Pay Act in 1963 furthered this cause (Jones et al, 2009, 594). Equality in educational opportunities has made huge gains during this period for both minorities and women. Colleges are now open, and in fact welcoming of these groups. Segregation is no longer an issue in our country, although it took until the 1950s and 1960s for this to be true. Brown v Board of Education brought the first victory in this area (Jones et al, 2009, 582).
Methods of non violence worked best in furthering the cause of civil rights. Booker T. Washington’s stance of non agitation and accommodation (Broesamle, 2005), A. Phillip Randolph’s threat to march on Washington, D.C. and Martin Luther King Junior’s campaign of nonviolent civil disobedience are some examples of these methods. Randolph’s threat to President Roosevelt resulted in the creation of the FEPC. Boycotts and sit-ins were other successful methods. The Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted 381 days, successfully ended segregation on the buses of Montgomery (Jones et al, 2009, 583). The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) also employed the very successful strategy of taking the battle for civil rights to the courtroom (Jones et al, 2009, 469). Although many laws were passed to attempt to secure equal rights, until these laws were tested in the courts very little changed. The National Negro Committee was the predecessor to this organization. Many prominent civil rights activists, such as Ida B. Wells and W.E.B Du Bois founded this organization.
The struggle for women’s equal rights is the best example of where a civil rights movement fell short. This movement had a long history of division in the ranks. In 1869 a difference of views resulted in the development of two women’s rights organizations, the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA) (Jones et al, 2009, 380). Another example was the opposing opinions of Betty Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly regarding the Equal Rights Amendment. Friedan was of the camp that women were the same as men and should have equality in everything. Schlafly represented the view that women were different from men and deserved privileges and protections. The Stop-ERA campaign that Schlafly waged effectively stopped the ratification of the amendment (Broesamle, 2005).
Great strides have been made in American history toward equal rights for all Americans. Voting rights for all is one of these. All Americans enjoy equal opportunities in education. Great improvements have been made in workplace equality. Many famous citizens have worked diligently throughout our history to further these causes. Our country is closer today to the ideal that all men are created equal that our country was founded upon.

References:
Broesamle, John, Anthony Arthur. 2005. Clashes of Will. New York, NY: Pearson Longman
Jones, Jacqueline, Peter H. Wood, Thomas Borstelmann, Elaine Tyler May, Vicki L. Ruiz. 2008. Created Equal: A History of the United States. Brief 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. https://elearn.uta.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_135392_1%26url%3D http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/history/MHL/US/documents/Brown_v_Board_Ed_Topeka54.html http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/history/MHL/US/documents/Gibson_Robinson_Bus_Boycott.html http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/history/MHL/US/documents/King_Letter_Birmingham_Jail.html
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/history/MHL/US/documents/Natl_Negro_Committee_Plat_1909.html