Ever since the discovery of America, black rights in general had been suppressed until the current age where, more than ever, almost everything has become "equal". And it is becoming more evident than ever since being open-minded has become a symbol of respect for other people. However, how long did it actually take in order to achieve this?
Starting off with the basics, slavery was a key factor in many disputes concerning civil rights since it was a mistreatment of humans and disrespecting the Constitution of "all men are created equal". Yet many decades have went by without too much effort to try and solve this issue. Time and time again, they were promised of a future that would be paradise to all and time and time again, the prides and ego of white men(of the past) suppressed their integrity along with the future of trillions in the future.
The Civil War(1861-1865) was a major turning point in civil rights history as nearly 4 million slaves were freed. However it wasn't long after that the south started to reign again, having economic incline as a reason to hold colored Americans against their will. Although some were able to escape the title of "slave", they were still at the mercy of the whites as they had manipulated their earnings for a living especially if they were under the sharecropping system, which allows a farmer to give out par of his crops for rent.
Given that past information is just information, imagine being a minority college student starting from scratch, having around $100 (based on 2017 economics) for everything. This $100 would include clothes, academics, food, dorms, etc. and realizing immediately that you cannot survive, you go job hunting. Easier said than done considering that looking professional for a specific field is required, so you get a job at a fast food place. Seems like you have everything in the bag only to realize that your landlord had increased your rent based solely on your appearance and your wage is based on the person who hired you. Odds are, you wouldn't survive a month before crawling back to your parents or to the bank for some help. Even if this might seem overwhelming to many people, colored Americans have to face this constant worry everyday not to mention discrimination in schools all the while being "respectful" to "non-colored" Americans.
To answer the original question, not a long time was actually required to allow those people to attain equal rights on all grounds, yet it was the pride and greed for power that had prolonged what should have been done centuries ago without too much hassle. Had they gotten rid of their mindset that people of color are not worthy of any status and recognized the fact that being detained of their human rights should under any law be allowed to run within the society. And although it might seem like our modern vision of equal rights has almost aligned for everyone, the idea that whites are still superior to colored people exists, but had they allowed both parties to have access to equal rights, then mindset now may not even exist.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_equality#Thirteenth_Amendment
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Very interesting blog post Chi. I liked how you also tied the topic back into current times. I agree with you that the prolonging of true equal treatment for all races was a lot longer than the time it actually took to gain equal treatment. However, there is also a valid argument as to why our society is still not truly equal. I wonder what the people who feel that think true equality looks like.
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