A Quick History of Social Justice Movements in the United States

The movement behind the phrase “say their names” might be a modern rallying cry, but the history behind it has been hundreds of years in the making.

If you want to get a quick understanding of what has led to this moment, you need to grapple with American history and a fight for justice that has been going on since America was a British colony.

Here’s the history you need to know to understand how we got where we are today.

The End of Slavery

Slavery was a part of American history since its founding in 1776 until the passing of the 13th Amendment in 1865. However, slavery existed in North America before that with European powers who brought slavery with them when they colonized North America.

Slavery didn’t just end with the defeat of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, although that was a key part of social change. Abolitionists throughout the United States had been fighting against slavery since before the American Revolutionary War. These fights ranged from slave rebellions to efforts similar to modern protest movements.

All of these events form the foundation of contemporary social justice movements in America.

The Civil Rights Movement

Even after slavery officially ended, the fight for justice and liberty continued.

During Reconstruction, Black Americans took on leadership roles throughout the South as they won equal protection under the law with the 14th Amendment and the right to vote with the 15th Amendment.

Jim Crow laws, which created a separate world where Black Americans could not use the same public facilities, businesses, or even live in the same towns as whites. These laws didn’t exist in the North, but the same discrimination was still felt—even though it wasn’t always written in law.

Major protests like the efforts of Rosa Parks, the Little Rock Nine, the Freedom Riders, and the Woolworth’s Lunch Counter protest challenged the “separate but equal” doctrine of Jim Crow. These efforts combined with the work of more radical leaders like Malcolm X who sought to change society for the better.

These efforts won the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

When We First Hear “Say Their Names”

The beginning of today’s biggest social movement, Black Lives Matter, starts in 2013 after Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teen, was shot and killed in a Florida town.

Today’s protests are fighting the same systemic racism that was fought when formerly enslaved people won their freedom and the legends of the Civil Rights Movement won the freedoms we have today.

“Say their names!” can be the next chapter in the ongoing story of people winning back their freedom. The next chapters in the story of our society are being written by us today.