Civil rights have been one of the most controversial issues in the world since civilizations were established. In simple terms, civil rights mean that every person is supposed to be treated equally in all areas of life under the law and overall. Throughout the history of America and the world, white people were the only race that were entitled to have rights. No one else was allowed to have rights because white people believed that they were superior to all other races and cultures. It took white people in America about two hundred years to realize that everyone is created equal and it is an unalienable right to be free. The race most people associate civil rights issues with in America is African Americans. African Americans have been the primary group of people in this country that have been denied basic human rights for centuries. They were enslaved for centuries in America until after the Civil War ended. African Americans were never truly free from prejudice until a hundred years later in the late 1960’s. The Civil Rights Movement during the 60’s eventually led to African American’s freedom in America. “Black Power”, a speech given during the Civil Rights Movement by Stokely Carmichael, was one of the most powerful speeches given during that time period. Carmichael explains the hardships of African American’s in a white society and how they have been treated unfairly for so long. “Black Power” is a powerful speech that encompasses the racial divide in 1960’s America and it shows that America’s roots were built on hatred and racism. 

Carmichael explained many of the problems in America in regards to civil rights in his speech. One of the main points Carmichael brings up is that no man can give another man his freedom. Carmichael states, “In order to understand white supremacy we must dismiss the fallacious notion that white people can give anybody their freedom. No man can give anybody his freedom. A man is born free.” (Carmichael 314). This quote explains the general idea of the Civil Rights Movement in America. African American’s knew that they should be able to have the same rights as white people but white people did not grant them those rights. White people held the vast majority of the political power in the United States at the time which meant they had the power to oppress African Americans “legally”. As Carmichael says, “A man is born free”, but white people took African American’s freedom away when they passed laws to oppress them. The lawful way in which white people oppressed African Americans was through the “separate but equal” decision in the famous Plessy vs. Ferguson Supreme Court case in the late 19th century. It was deemed constitutional for white people and African Americans to be segregated in public as long as they had equal facilities and opportunities. (“Separate but Equal” 3). Obviously, white people abused this power and segregated every aspect of life in America. White people and African Americans were just as divided in the 20th century as they were during the slavery years due to segregation laws. This clearly ties back to what Carmichael was saying in his speech. Although African American’s are still free at hearts, they were stripped of their rights in once again “legally” by the white lawmakers of America. 

Later in Carmichael’s speech, he explains the problem in society does not have to do with African Americans, but with white people. African Americans knew they should be free to do whatever they wanted to do without any repercussions. Carmichael explains to the audience, “Every time I tried to go into a place they stopped me. So some boys had to write a bill to tell that white man, “He’s a human being; don’t stop him.” That bill was for that white man, not for me. I knew it all the time.” (Carmichael 315). In this quote, Carmichael explains the process of how African Americans gained their rights in America. It was an extremely slow process because white people refused to accept that African Americans deserved the same rights as them. Most white people could not understand a world where white people had the same rights as African Americans. As Carmichael mentions, the bills written were not for African Americans, but for white people. This trend carried on throughout the years. As one bill was passed that guaranteed African Americans more rights, white people constantly needed to be reminded that everyone was equal regardless of the color of their skin. White people did not understand a world where African Americans were equal to them. 

White people did not understand a world where African Americans were equal to them because the entire American system was built on racism. Carmichael mentions this in the speech and discusses what it means for the entire system to be built on racism. As mentioned before, white people ruled from the beginning of America’s time. They wrote the laws and established norms in America. The entire system in America had prejudice and an overwhelming hate for African Americans. The prejudice and hate was passed down from generation to generation which resulted in the norm of racism in America. People were insulted and scorned if they sympathized with African Americans. This connects to the quote mentioned above because the law changes in America were implemented to change how white people behaved towards African Americans. Obviously the entire system in America needed to change and the only power significant enough to end racism in America was the law.

In the end, the law was the only power strong enough to make a lasting impact in American society. Carmichael discussed the processes in which he believed America should change in his speech. First of all, he explains, “A new society must be born.” (Carmichael, 318). Carmichael means that in order for change to occur in America, the old American society needed to end. The old society in America had generations of racism and prejudice. The biggest problem with the old society in America was African American’s did not have the power to start a change. African American’s held no political power nor did they have a chance to get elected. For example, before the end of the Civil Rights Movements in congress, there were only 26 African Americans to serve in office from 1789-1969. (“People Search”, 2). The lack of African American Congressmen clearly led to very few civil rights act being passed. Carmichael then goes onto explain, “black people must be seen in positions of power, doing and articulating for themselves, for themselves.” (Carmichael, 319). Once African Americans were seen in positions of power, they would truly have the power to make a change in America. Also, the positions of power would show that African Americans can be as good of a leader as any other person can be.    “Black Power” explains the racist roots in which America was established and how racially divided the country truly was during the 1960’s. Carmichael discusses the idea that “A man is born free” and how white people took away that right for many years in America. He then goes onto explain that African Americans knew they had the same rights as white people, but white people needed the law to tell them that. Since America was built on racism, white people could not imagine a world where African Americans were equal to them. Lastly, Carmichael explained that a new society built on equality needed to be born in America with African Americans in positions of power. The civil rights movement had a lasting impact and people such as Carmichael lead the way to ending the racial divide in America. 
