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Civil rights protect an individual’s right to equal social opportunities and equal protection under the law. The right to equal employment, a fair trial, public education, public facility access, marriage equality, and freedom of religion are examples of civil rights.
- Overview
- The American civil rights movement
- Civil rights movements across the globe
Civil rights are an essential component of democracy. They’re guarantees of equal social opportunities and protection under the law, regardless of race, religion, or other characteristics. Examples are the rights to vote, to a fair trial, to government services, and to a public education. In contrast to civil liberties, which are freedoms secured by placing restraints on government, civil rights are secured by positive government action, often in the form of legislation.
Where do civil rights come from?
Unlike human rights or natural rights, in which people acquire rights inherently—perhaps from nature—civil rights must be given and guaranteed by the power of the state. Therefore, they vary greatly over time, culture, and form of government and tend to follow societal trends that condone or abhor types of discrimination. For example, the civil rights of the LGBTQ community have only recently come to the forefront of political debate in some democracies.
What is a civil rights movement?
When the enforcement of civil rights is found by many to be inadequate, a civil rights movement may emerge in order to call for equal application of the laws without discrimination.
What was the civil rights movement in the U.S.?
Civil rights politics in the United States has its roots in the movement to end discrimination against African Americans. Though slavery was abolished and former slaves were officially granted political rights after the Civil War, in most Southern states African Americans continued to be systematically disenfranchised and excluded from public life,...
In the 1960s the Roman Catholic-led civil rights movement in Northern Ireland was inspired by events in the United States. Its initial focus was fighting discriminatory gerrymandering that had been securing elections for Protestant unionists. Later, internment of Catholic activists by the British government sparked both a civil disobedience campaign and the more radical strategies of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), resulting in the violent sectarian conflict that became known as the Troubles (1968–98).
A high-profile civil rights movement led to the end of the South African system of racial segregation known as apartheid. The resistance movement began in the 1940s and intensified in the 1950s and ’60s, when civil rights as a concept was sweeping the globe, but it was forced underground as most of its leaders were imprisoned, and it did not regain strength until the 1980s. International pressure combined with internal upheaval led to the eventual lifting of the ban on the African National Congress, the major Black party in South Africa, and the release from prison of Nelson Mandela in 1990. Mandela later became the first Black president of South Africa, in 1994.
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A more recent movement that has striking parallels to both the American civil rights movement and the South African struggle against apartheid is the civil disobedience and political activism of the Dalits in India. The Dalits—formerly known as "untouchables" and now officially designated Scheduled Castes—constitute some one-sixth of the Indian population. However, for centuries they were forced to live as second-class citizens, and many were not even considered to be a part of India’s varna system of social hierarchy. Dalit activism, including the efforts of Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, led to great victories, including the election of Kocheril Raman Narayanan to the presidency. The fact that the president of India is elected by parliament, whose members come principally from the upper castes, underlines how much the mentality has changed.
In addition to these international movements, many groups in the United States have been inspired by the successes of the American civil rights movement to fight for government protections, with varying degrees of success. Most notably, women, having gained the right to vote in 1920 via constitutional amendment, also have made many gains in the area of employment rights. The women’s rights movement has thus far been stopped short of passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would have codified equal rights for women in the U.S. Constitution. Since its failure to be ratified in 1982, women have seen many gains in court decisions that ruled against sex discrimination and have seen the passing of legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which established a commission designed to investigate the persistence of the “glass ceiling” that has prevented women from advancing to top management positions in the workplace.
Sep 2, 2023 · Examples. Right to vote, freedom of speech, equal protection under the law. Right to life, liberty, property, pursuit of happiness. Right to education, healthcare, fair trial, freedom from discrimination. Rights vs Privileges: A right is something that everyone is afforded regardless of their contribution to society.
May 20, 2022 · Know your rights! Learn about the ways civil rights protect citizens in a democracy and read examples of civil rights movements around the world.
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Civil rights are a set of rights—established by law—that protect the freedoms of individuals from being wrongly denied or limited by governments, social organizations, or other private individuals. Examples of civil rights include the rights of people to work, study, eat, and live where they choose. To turn a customer away from a restaurant ...
Oct 27, 2009 · The civil rights movement was a struggle for justice and equality for African Americans that took place mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. Among its leaders were Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, the ...
May 11, 2016 · This example of civil rights revolt was the first salvo in a civil rights movement that would stall for more than a century. Civil Rights Act of 1866 At the end of the Civil War, a bill entitled “An Act to protect all persons in the United States in their civil rights, and furnish the means of their vindication,” was passed by both houses of Congress and presented to President Andrew ...
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