The 20th century was a time of conflict in America. The Civil Rights Movement had been formed and taken gigantic strides, and America was fighting a war in Vietnam. Americans at home were mostly concerned with Civil Rights. Whites wanted nothing to do with blacks, and blacks wanted to be treated equally in society. This problem led to riots, rebellions, and death in parts of America. This was a problem that needed to be dealt with and addressed by government. The government did not intervene so the blacks responded by launching the Civil Rights movement. Looking back at the Civil Rights movement in the 1960's through primary and secondary sources helps Americans in today's society understand the significance and hardships of the Civil Rights movement. 

Stokely Carmichael was a very decorated and honorable man. He held positions atop many civil rights movement groups. His first well known position was the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, or the SNCC. The following year, he becomes the Honorary Prime Minister of the Black Panther Party. In 1969, Carmichael returned to Africa and led the All African People's Revolutionary Party until his death in 1998. Carmichael gives a speech at UC Berkley in 1966 and opens with the line, "It's a privilege and an honor to be in the white intellectual ghetto of the West." (Carmichael 248). He delivers this eye opening speech to a crowd of white college students and alerts them of the struggles of a black man and his goal as a civil rights leader. Carmichael delivers this speech in a bold, and unique way. He hangs a massive "Black Power" banner behind him during this speech and proceeds to say whatever he wants without question. During this speech, Carmichael addresses the absence of a civil rights bill. He informs the students and others gathered at UC Berkley that the blacks are not the ones who need the civil rights bill, it is the whites who need it. He goes on to say, "It is the incapability of whites to deal with their own problems inside their own communities. That is the problem of the failure of the civil rights bill." (Carmichael 249). His viewpoint on this is very powerful. He changes our modern day view on the civil rights movement and how the different civil rights leaders tried to achieve the same goal. That line says that if the whites in America have a problem with the way the blacks affect society, then the whites are the ones who would benefit off of a Civil Rights bill. When hearing speeches from Carmichael as opposed to Martin Luther King Jr, the reader realizes that Carmichael's addresses the issues head on in a more difficult to understand way, compared to Martin Luther King Jr who slowly tries to get his point across in a passive way. The contrast in the multiple Civil Rights leaders, Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, and Stokely Carmichael can be viewed as a burden upon the Civil Rights movement. After analyzing and gaining a better understanding of these figures, if the three leaders would have come together and agreed to teach the same message across America the same nonviolent or violent message would reach many more blacks. These blacks would be able to come together with other blacks in communities close by that heard a similar message, and create tremendous growth nationwide in the Civil Rights movement. 

During the time of Civil Rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson was the president of the United States. He addresses America in his first state of the union address on January 8th, 1964. Johnson lays down the ground work for his presidency and addresses the issues he sees in America. The Civil Rights issue comes up several times throughout this speech. Analyzing and reading the speech now compared to hearing it when it occurred in the 1960's gives us a better understanding of the issues discussed. Understanding the conflict in America in the 20th century while living in the 21st century changes the way we view the contents of this speech. The 1960's were a key decade in Civil Rights, however, it should be noted that America had their hands in many different baskets and did not focus all of their resources on establishing Civil Rights. We as a country were at war in Vietnam and were spread thin as far as man power on American soil. Johnson's state of the union speech informs Americans that Civil Rights is an issue, but it is not the only issue America is facing at that day in time. He ties this together in an interesting, sensitive way. "Today, Americans of all races stand side by side in Berlin and in Viet Nam. They died side by side in Korea. Surely they can work and eat and travel side by side in their own country." (Johnson) This is a powerful, yet effective way to remind blacks that they are not being ignored and that there are other issues being dealt with. That quote also tells whites that discrimination due to race seems unimportant and that integration should be achieved without government intervention if blacks are willing to fight for us in Vietnam. Johnson approaches his term as president with high expectations for himself and for the American people. "For our ultimate goal is a world without war, a world made safe for diversity, in which all men, goods, and ideas can freely move across every border and every boundary." (Johnson) This point informs Americans he wants the war to end and America to be integrated so society can once again flow without conflict. Johnson does an excellent job in getting his points across and at the same time being respectful to both whites and blacks. While laying the groundwork for his campaign, he lays the groundwork for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In an article titled, "Looking Back at Freedom Summer" the author, Nisma Ellis, gives an in depth view of the difficulties of being a colored man in the 1960's.  The Freedom Summers had a goal of going to different towns in the south and encouraging blacks to make a bold move which was registering to vote. The idea of this was to go door to door and interact with blacks in local communities, however, what was accomplished ended up being national recognition of the Freedom Summer Movement. Not many blacks registered to vote, but in the process of going town to town their cause was spread nationwide. "Looking Back at Freedom Summer" is a closer look at how this actually happened. Ray Raphael and Fred Winyard were two students who wanted to help out the Freedom Summer. Their first task was to deliver supplies to Fannie Lou Hamer in Mississippi. This is an excerpt from their first task. "Nobody knew who Fannie Lou Hamer was at this point, she was just a local activist," explains Raphael. "At the very last minute they said there were two other people who needed a ride." The other two turned out to be SNCC field secretaries Stokely Carmichael who would become a prominent figure in the Black Power movement and Charlie Cobb who was instrumental in promoting the concept of Freedom Schools, which were set up to encourage political participation by teaching the history and philosophy of the civil rights movement, along with math, reading and other subjects." (Ellis) Looking at the names listed in that ride that took place, it is evident how crucial the Freedom Summer was in the Civil Rights Movement as a whole. Charlie Cobb is responsible for educating many blacks through the concept of Freedom Schools and Stokely Carmichael was the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and later on the Honorary Prime Minister of the Black Panther Party. It is important to analyze sources like "Looking Back at Freedom Summer" to gain an increased knowledge of how the Civil rights movement progressed from small to large. This article contains the roots of Stokely Carmichael who is such a prominent figure in the Black Power movement. Many people realize he is a prominent figure, but have no idea where he came from. He started small and participated in the Freedom Summer just as many others did. When analyzing an article like this it seems like an abstract idea that he started at such a small event and later on is one of the most influential figures in the Civil Rights and Black Panther movements.

The Civil Rights movement started small and blossomed into a huge monster that could not be ignored. Carmichael along with other influential figures of this time, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and others encouraged blacks to have a voice. They called for desegregation of society and wanted to be treated equally. These figures, along with others apart of the movement, endured unfathomable hardships. Reading old and new sources about these figures experiences give us an understanding of some of these hardships. These readings also show us how a small movement can transform into a large movement that will shape our history forever. They encourage us to have a voice in everything we are passionate about and to be loud about it. Close analyzation and understanding of sources available to us today shine light on issues that occurred in the past, and encourage us to understand and interpret them with a higher knowledge.

