Langston hughes voice of a tim
Langston hughes voice of a timLangston Hughes: Voice of a Time and a People
In 20th century America, the oppression facing African-Americans is possibly the most controversial and historical ever. The constant battle they have fought is voiced clearly in the works produced by African-American authors, poets, artists and musicians during and prior to the Civil Rights Movement, particularly in a period known as the Harlem Renaissance. The voice that perhaps rang the truest among all people is that of Langston Hughes. His work so sincerely expressed the needs, wants, and passions of his people, during a time when, perhaps, these issues were being pushed aside. Hughes� poetry reflects the views of African-Americans during the 20th century. He speaks with a passion for life, love, and the basic human desire for happiness. Very rarely does someone like Hughes come along, someone whose voice can speak for an entire people.
In 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution was passed, abolishing the practice of slavery. Although this was a great leap in the freedom of African-Americans, they were still far from the equality that they so longed for. The struggle had just begun.
The turn of the century brought many changes for African-Americans. They had slowly built up communities in America�s urban areas or rural land. Although a very few number of African-Americans could actually be considered successful at this point in time, most had cut all ties from their family�s slave master and had made a life for themselves and the generations to come. Despite the advances made, African-Americans were still treated horribly by whites. They were segregated from society, placed on the outside and looked upon as outcasts. They were not given the same freedoms or opportunities as the white man. Although white America kept assuming that African-Americans would accept their preconceived place in society, many revolutionary sparks began to fly in the early 20th century. Protest groups began to form all over the nation. Many prominent leaders in the African-American community began to speak out, often times loudly, about the unjust treatment their people received.
�The Great Depression of the 1930s increased black protests against discrimination, especially in northern cities. Blacks protested the refusal of white-owned businesses in all-black neighborhoods to hire black salespersons. Using the slogan �Don't Buy Where You Can't Work,� these campaigns persuaded blacks to boycott those businesses and revealed a new militancy. During the same years, blacks organized school boycotts in northern cities to protest discriminatory treatment of black children.� (Encarta)
The Civil Rights Movement in America technically lasted from the early 1930s through the late 1960s. The movement was led by such historical figures as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, Medgar Evers, and Malcolm X. The spirit of the Civil Rights movement was motivated largely by the whites� reaction. They seemed to be...
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