The Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Movement was one of the most important events in US History. During the 1950s and 60s, African-Americans fought for equal rights to voting rights, education, healthcare, justice and more.
Before we watch the video, can you think of people and events that happened during this period?



Look at the infographic. Which events on the video are mentioned in the image?

On the third Monday of January every year, the US celebrates the birth of one of the main leaders of the movement, Martin Luther King, who was born on the 15th of January.

What do you know about MLK? Watch the video and check if the facts match what you believe. Who else is in the video? Why do you think that is?




Martin Luther King was a great speech writer. His best known speech is probably the "I have a dream" speech, which he gave during the Civil Rights March on Washington in 1963. It is believed that 250.000 attended this protest.



The speech is so famous that it has been put into song by rapper Common for the soundtrack of the film Freedom Writers.

 

Another famous film about the Civil Rights Movement is the film Selma, which received an Oscar  nomination for Best Film in 2015. The main soundtrack song, Glory, received the award for Best Song on the same year.


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Selma deals with the difficulties the black population in the American South faced in order to register to vote and participate in elections. Here's a fragment of the film. What do you think about how the two people in the clip behave? What conclusions do you draw about the situation in the 1960s in the US?




Finally, February is Black History Month. Do you think it's still relevant to celebrate this month? Why?