Unit 3 Fairness for all
Pre-reading
1 Look at this list and work out the problems of the blacks in many parts of America before 1955.
Blacks must:
● sit at the back of bus or trolleybus
● drink from a particular fountain for blacks only
● eat in a special part of a restaurant
● register to vote (but if they do they could lo their job)
● go to special schools for blacks
● go to a black university for higher education
● take jobs with lower pay than whites
2 How would you feel if you had the restrictions in your life? What would you do?
Reading
The following passage is taken from the diary of Maryann Jones, a black woman who lived in Montgomery, Mississippi.
水浒传经典情节THE START OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Sunday, December 4th, 1955微信最多可以加多少人
俗人自嘲的句子Today we went to church where our minister, Martin Luther King, Jr, announced that a boycott of the bus and trolleybus will begin tomorrow. I've always hated having to sit in the worst ats on the bus so I'm happy to support it. Dr King encourages us to fight against this unfair system which prohibits us blacks from sitting where we like. It is regarded as an offence if we sit at the front of a bus and if we break this law, we receive a
heavy punishment. But on Thursday, I'm glad to say, this unjust paration of people on the basis of skin color was challenged. A black lady, Rosa Parks, got on board a city bus and sat in the fifth row with three other blacks. Gradually the ats for whites filled until one white man remained standing. By law he could not sit with Rosa and by tradition blacks were expected to move. All four were asked to stand. The other three submitted but Rosa was unwilling to do so and she refud. She was arrested. How brave she was! I'm not sure if I would have had enough courage to refu like that.
环境日是每年的几月几日King and the other black leaders in Montgomery have ized on this incident and decided on a collision cour to change the law. They're hopeful that they can negotiate a fairer situation if all the blacks support them. But I do worry about what will happen tomorrow. Will it be chaos ?
December 5th, 1955
This morning I yawned as I woke even earlier than usual, but my sister, Serena was already up. She urged me to dress quickly and to wear my most comfortable sandals. Im
mediately I jumped out of bed. I like to be punctual for work and no boycott is going to make me late. By coincidence a bus arrived as we reached the empty bus stop, but we ignored it. Normally we would have been only too happy, as it would have guaranteed us a at for the whole journey. But not today! Taxis pasd all full of pasngers as we pedestrians marched on the pavement. Tho in the cars waved and we saluted them back. The whites, on the other hand, shouted abu at us. We felt their hostility but it only made us firmer in our resolve. Luckily when I felt I could walk no further, a black taxi driver offered us a lift. It emed like an answer to a prayer! No chaos after all and I even arrived at work on time!
自娱自乐的幽默句子The boycott continued very successfully for a year. Maryann Jones became accustomed to travelling to work without the bus. Meanwhile the hostility of the whites grew.
January 25th, 1956
开水冲鸡蛋的正确做法What excitement! Serena came home to say that the news that the boycott was over was going to be all over the newspapers tomorrow. I was eager to know the result. "It's not tru
e," she shouted at me. "It's just a story made up by the whites to stop our campaign. We've been too successful for them. Martin Luther King, Jr came and told me himlf that it was just a trick. We must continue till we win." I've never en her as angry as that, so I kept quiet. Maybe white business are suffering now since we don't shop downtown anymore. But it must mean we're winning. I won't mind my tired feet tomorrow. I wonder whether they'll try other tricks?
They did. The hous of Martin Luther King, Jr and the other leaders were bombed. But this did not stop the boycott. Encouraged by a Supreme Court decision that public education must be mixed nationwide, the leaders went to court to argue against paration on bus. It was not until November 13, 1956 that the US Supreme Court declared paration on bus was not constitutional.
November 13th, 1956
鼻衄是什么意思Today is a red-letter day! In court we won a fundamental victory in the battle for our civil
rights. If black and white students must now be educated together, why should people be ated in bus according to the color of their skin? The Supreme Court agreed it was wrong, so from now on we'll be able to sit where we like on bus. My happiness is complete! We may only have struck one small blow for liberty but who knows where it'll lead?关于感恩的话
Maryann Jones was right. The success of the Montgomery bus boycott began the Civil Rights Movement that led to the improvement of conditions for black people in education, housing, jobs, voting and hotels throughout the USA.
