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Civil
Rights are the rights and privileges to which we are entitled
under the laws that govern our nation. In America, our civil rights
are guaranteed in the Constitution, particularly in the Bill of
Rights and other Amendments.
Even
though the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in 1865
and the 13th Amendment outlawed slavery and guaranteed black Americans
the rights to which all American citizens are entitled, many black
Americans in the South were not allowed to exercise their civil
rights, even until the 1960s. The Civil Rights Movement in the
United States helped to win equality for all Americans.
In
1987, a Presidential Proclamation declared August 12 to be commemorated
as Civil Rights Day. This day is an opportunity to honor those
who worked to help create an America where all Americans' civil
rights are protected. It is also a time to stand up for the continuing
protection of our civil rights guaranteed in the Constitution.
In
recent years, some have suggested that Martin Luther King Day
be observed as Civil Rights Day to commemorate the greater cause
to which Dr. King and so many others dedicated their lives for
the good of us all.
Civil
Rights Day Proclamation
Amnesty International
American
Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Bill
of Rights Institute
Carter Center
Center
for Human Rights
Human Rights Campaign
International
Association of Official Human Rights Agencies
Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights
Southern Poverty
Law Center
Universal
Rights Network
Witness
Women's Human
Rights Net
Civil
Rights Day - August 12
Citizenship
Day - September 17
Human
Rights Day - December 10
Bill
Of Rights Day - December 15
CIVIL
RIGHTS Quotes
HUMAN
RIGHTS Quotes
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