Analyzing Leadership and Key Issues in the Civil Rights Movement Through Journaling

Students often search for effective ways to reflect on historical leaders and social changes during pivotal eras like the 1960s in America.

You may have heard of The Diary of Anne Frank, a personal journal that brought to countless readers a young Jewish girl’s experience in hiding during the Holocaust. Keeping a diary during tough times helps people process their thoughts and emotions in a personal way. Those who read Anne Frank’s account learn the reality of genocide in a manner that brings to life the historical event.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, several organizations promoted journaling to encourage documentation of the experience of everyday life during a major historical event. Perhaps you or someone you know has kept a journal at some point. In this course, you will use an online journal to capture your ideas about social movements and history.

Many learners find that journaling deepens their connection to past events by making them feel more immediate and relatable.

• Select an individual you learned about in this week’s resources someone who served as a leader in the civil rights movement. Explain why you believe they were an effective or ineffective leader.
• Describe one specific issue from within the civil rights movement (e.g., equal pay, access to transportation, access to education).
• Within the specific issue that you have chosen, describe what role violence played. Explain whether the violence was justified.
• Describe an example of a change that occurred with your chosen issue as a result of the civil rights movement.

Reflecting on these elements allows you to see how individual actions shaped broader societal shifts.

Include at least three relevant quotes from this week’s resources that support your ideas. Place the quote inside quotation marks [“]. After the quote, include the chapter and page number where you found the quote within parentheses.

Adding these details ensures your journal entry stays grounded in the materials you studied.

Sample Answer Study Bay

Martin Luther King Jr. stands out as a powerful leader in the civil rights movement because his commitment to nonviolent protest inspired widespread support and led to key legislative victories. His approach emphasized peaceful demonstrations and moral persuasion, which effectively highlighted injustices without escalating conflicts. For the issue of access to education, segregation in schools created deep inequalities that limited opportunities for Black students across the South. Violence emerged in forms like attacks on students integrating schools, such as the Little Rock Nine facing mobs and military intervention. In many cases, the violence from opponents was unjustified and only underscored the need for change, while nonviolent responses from activists proved more effective in gaining public sympathy. A major change came with the Brown v. Board of Education decision, which declared segregated schools unconstitutional and paved the way for desegregation efforts nationwide. Activists like Rosa Parks played crucial roles by refusing to comply with unjust laws, sparking movements that led to broader reforms (King 1963, p. 45).

References/Learning Materials

1. Alexander, M. (2020) The new Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness. New York: The New Press. Available at: https://thenewpress.com/books/new-jim-crow (Accessed: 25 February 2026).
2. Joseph, P. E. (2018) The sword and the shield: The revolutionary lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.. Basic Books. DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780190937942.001.0001.
3. McGuire, D. L. (2018) At the dark end of the street: Black women, rape, and resistance–a new history of the civil rights movement from Rosa Parks to the rise of Black power. Vintage. Available at: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/191252/at-the-dark-end-of-the-street-by-danielle-l-mcguire/ (Accessed: 25 February 2026).
4. Theoharis, J. (2018) A more beautiful and terrible history: The uses and misuses of civil rights history. Beacon Press. DOI: 10.1080/03612759.2018.1471940.