Thurgood Marshall: African-American Civil Rights Activist

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A century after the 14th amendment was added to the Constitution, “separate, but equal” laws were still evident throughout society. On May 9, 1865, General Robert E. Lee surrendered to the Union forces at Appomattox Courtroom, bringing forth the end of the Civil War and a reunited nation. In addition, all slaves were finally released from their bondage and were eventually granted their freedom in civilization. Even though they were no longer in servitude, they were continuously discriminated because of their different background. Throughout U.S. history, African-American citizens were constantly faced with prejudice beliefs and injustice, which they endured by fighting for equal rights in the legal system, and by peacefully protesting through …show more content…
One colored man by the name of Thurgood Marshall, survived discrimination throughout his lifetime by taking his belief of equal rights for all citizens to court. Later in his life, Thurgood Marshall would become a Civil Rights Activist, a NAACP lawyer, and the very first African-American Supreme Court Justice. He started off as a lawyer who debated the life changing case of Brown vs. Board of Education. Later in his career, he was soon appointed to the bench of justices, where he vowed to find a way laws would benefit the black community and continued to believe that the Constitution will eventually give citizens equal rights. For example, he still continued to follow all of the segregation laws for “he is not a protestor, but a lawyer” (A&E Biography). Mr. Civil Rights is a man who is famous in history not just because of his skills with accessing the law, but he possessed passion in his beliefs and he continued to possess that through his career. Through his role on the Supreme Court, he broke barriers the day he was approved as a justice. He paved the way for other colored citizens tocitizensfolks to pursue their aspirations, and he inspired activists to change the future of our nation. Furthermore, he gave white citizens a new aspect that blacks could have importance in society. Overall, Thurgood Marshall survived injustice by taking a stand and changed views and ideas on the national level, for change happens when one man has an idea and puts it into motion. Without Thurgood Marshall’s contribution to the advancement of the Constitution, our society would undoubtedly be different than what is standing before us. For instance, he continued to stand up for his beliefs of eliminating “separate but equal” laws and continued to maintain perseverance despite barriers till the day he died. In other words, Thurgood Marshall has survived injustice by expressing his
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