The Emancipation Proclamation issued by the then President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, freed the black slaves in 1863. However, freedom did not guarantee the rights of equality and acceptance to these slaves. For years to come and generations to follow, the black man of America, and other minorities for that matter, have had to struggle for his rights of freedom, liberty and justice. The most significant, volatile, violent and dynamic time of this struggle was during the civil rights movement in the middle part of this century. During the 50's and the 60's many feared that the civil rights movement might fall apart or it will fail to achieve its objectives. Amongst them was Anne Moody who, thinking about overcoming the racial barriers, says, " I wonder, I really wonder." (Anne Moody, "Coming of age in Mississippi", Dell publishing 1968). Today, fifty some years down the road from the movements of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Bobby Seale, basic education is accessible, public facilities and institutions are open to all, affirmative action is required by employers, educators, governments and other entities. Despite these tremendous forward leaps we find minorities in America still wanting to be equal, respected and accepted. The civil rights struggle, not the just the movement years, is still going on and will go on till all races and minorities are practically treated as equal citizens of this country.
