EOTO #4: The Equal Employement Opportunity Commission

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or employee because of the person’s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability. Most of the time, employers with 15 or more employees are covered by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission also covers most labor unions and employee agencies. The laws protected by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission apply to all types of work situations including hiring, firing, promotions, harassment, training, wages, and benefits. They have the authority to investigate charges of discrimination against employers and settle the charges. If the charge is not settled the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission holds the right to file a lawsuit against the employer. They also work to prevent discrimination before it occurs through outreach, education, and technical programs.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was established to uphold Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Civil Rights Act is what caused the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to open one year later in 1965. In its early years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was strengthened through other organizations. The NAACP collected individual claims to pressure the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Congress to establish affirmative action and other policies to advance Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. 

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has faced issues throughout the time after its establishment in its funding. They receive thousands of calls a year about discrimination claims but they consistently lack the funding to ensure accountability of employers. States have the ability to help fund the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission but very few do anything to help anti-discriminatory laws. 

There has been a lot of progress within the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In 1972 Congress gave the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission the right to reach private employers. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission also worked in hand with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The commission was able to help with more than just the African-American population. There was help to all different minority groups in the United States. 

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was used in 1976 in the case of Jenkins vs. Blue Cross Mutual Hospital Insurance. This case was a case about black women's natural hair in the workplace. The court of appeals upheld a race discrimination lawsuit against the employer for employee bias. The appeals court agreed that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act applied to this situation and workers were entitled to wear afros in the workplace. One thing this case did for African Americans was help start the natural hair movement. In the eighties and nineties, there was social pressure for African Americans to alter their natural hair. There were many waves of the natural hair movement which was started because of the advancements from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. 

Overall the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has helped in many cases to prevent discrimination in the workplace. This was a major step for African American progress to create a more equal workplace. It also helped for the acceptance of African Americans in the workplace because of the decreased discrimination as a result of the Equal Opportunity Commission.

Driving Miss Daisy Reflection

    Driving Miss Daisy was a film from the 1980s about an elderly Jewish woman, Daisy, and her driver, an African-American man, Hoke. In this film, the audience sees the struggles of both communities and how their friendship grows over time. Originally, Daisy did not want a driver and was very stubborn about having a driver in the first place. Over time, Daisy grows more fond of Hoke. The first instance the audience can see of their bonding is when Daisy teaches Hoke how to read at the graveyard. At the time, education still wasn’t easily accessible to African Americans, so the effort put in by Daisy to help him learn how to read was an act of kindness

    Later in the film, Daisy’s synagogue is bombed which allows Daisy to see how prejudice in the United States affects her as well. The political and social tensions in the United States are shown through this and also the dinner Daisy attends where Martin Luther King Jr. delivers a speech. However, Daisy wouldn’t let Hoke go in with her to the speech, she only let him drive her there. 

    Throughout the entire film, we see instances of them bonding and getting closer, and also overcoming prejudices together. In one scene with an instance with police, they make a comment about there being an African American and Jewish woman together. They both face adversity and get closer because of it. At the end of the film when Daisy is in a retirement home, Hoke comes to visit her. The biggest sign of their friendship was when Daisy began struggling with dementia and Hoke called her his best friend. 

EOTO #3 Reaction

    The EOTO #3 teams presented the two sides of how black people were affected during the Brown v. Board of Ed time frame. Both teams helped the class gain a better understanding of all the things that happened during this time.

    The team showing the negative side presented the Birth of a Nation, 2nd rise of the KKK, Sundown Towns, Four Little Girls, Emmet Till, and the Mississippi Burning. The Birth of a Nation film received a lot of backlash for its negative portrayal of black people and heroic portrayal of the KKK. The film still was released and ended up sparking the second rise of the KKK. The KKK was trying to make the United States 100% American. Their violent and racist efforts affected the black population in the United States. Sundown towns were all white towns that kept black Americans out. They had a rule that African Americans must leave the town by sundown. They began in the great migration when African Americans left the South. Businesses that hired or served black people were boycotted by white people. There was also violence to chase black people away. The Four Little Girls, Emmett Till, and the Mississippi Burning were violent acts towards black people. Thesecases didn’t receive justice until many years later, and things like this would happen often. 

    The team showing the positive side presented the Great Migration, Integration of the Armed Forces, Jackie Robinson, the Harlem Renaissance, the NAACP, and UNCF. The Great Migration was when African Americans were able to relocate from the South. They gained more economic and job opportunities. It allowed many families to lead better and more fulfilled lives. They were able to avoid the extreme and unfair segregation that was in the South. Black people had better access to education in the North. The integration of the armed forces was Truman's executive order that put an end to discrimination in the United States armed forces. It was a pivotal accomplishment and milestone in the civil rights movement. Truman established a national commission to show the moral importance of civil rights. Jackie Robinson was the first professional African American sports player. His accomplishment showed that black people were able to participate in traditionally white American traditions. The Harlem Renaissance encouraged a sense of racial awareness. Black people’s creative art and literary work thrived. The NAACP is America's oldest and largest civil rights organization. It works locally and nationally to promote equality for all. It aims to secure the rights guaranteed in the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. It increased opportunities for black people in America. They were focused on anti-lynching, legislation, voter participation, and education. UNCF supports the colleges and supports students by giving scholarships.

Brown V. Board of Ed: School Segregation Positives

    In 1954 during the Brown v. Board of Ed trial there were many arguments for and against segregated schools. Today I will be presenting the side in favor of segregated schools. 

    The first main argument was that the constitution did not require white and African American children to attend the same schools. After exiting the Civil War era, the South entered into a period of separate but equal facilities. Brown vs. Board of Ed cited Plessy v. Ferguson where the equal protection clause stated that the Constitution did not require integration and the states had begun an effort to make equal facilities. After the Plessy v. Ferguson case, segregation continued in the United States. The segregated schools were going and there was a separation between white and black students, but the black students were still able to learn in a school setting.

    Segregation was also a custom for many states. This was the way things were at the time. Stopping segregation in schools could cause issues in the social order that had been established. The South was dealing with a lot of racial prejudice. Keeping black and white students separated kept issues and arguments out of the learning environment. Along with this, many people in the South were used to segregation. It was a custom in their society, and they wanted things to stay the way they were, and stay with what people were comfortable with.

    People in favor of segregation argued that states should be able to regulate the way things are segregated if they want to. This argument cites the 10th Amendment which states the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. Using the 10th amendment, segregationists claimed that the constitution did not mention anything about segregation, and Plessy v. Ferguson allowed separate but equal; therefore, states should have the right to segregate schools.  

Another argument was that segregation was not harmful to African Americans. White people were making an effort to equalize institutions. However, the effects of slavery were still showing in African-American children. Black children were behind in their education because it hadn’t been offered for them until recently. Their reading and writing skills were behind those of white children. To make schools work they would either be behind for the white children, or ahead for the black children. Black children needed time to be able to compete and learn at the same pace as white children. There was also an issue with teaching. Many black teachers lost their jobs as a result of desegregation in schools. The white teachers were the ones who got to keep their jobs instead of the white teachers. Issues would also arise because the white teachers that would be teaching the students likely hold the same racial prejudice as most people in the South. This causes the teachers to give more attention and care to the white children's education instead of the black children.

    

Plessy v. Ferguson Reflection

The trial team presented arguments from the side of Plessy and from the side of Ferguson to argue who should have won the case. The case was started because Homer Plessy, an ⅛ African American man, got onto a white-only train. People on the train knew he was part African American and reported him for it and got him arrested. 

The team on the side of Plessy presented many arguments. The main one is the legal argument. The Declaration of Independence says all men are created equal with the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and property. African American's rights need to be protected because if they are not it gets rid of the liberty in America. The 14th Amendment makes it so African Americans need equal protection under the law. Segregation is completely the opposite of equal protection. There was also an economic argument presented. Having an extra train to fit African Americans was spending money that was not necessary to spend. There was also an issue with employment on white trains because African Americans couldn’t work on white trains. Another argument presented was the ethical one. There is a lack of justice in equality in the American legal system at the time. Segregation is completely unnecessary and does more harm than good. Classifying people based on their race is unconstitutional. Plessy would not have even been caught if people on the train didn’t already know who he was. Ethical precedent for civil rights activists was set after this case. 

The team on the side of Ferguson also presented many arguments. Plessy’s decision to sit on the white train deliberately undermined the Louisiana Separate Car Act. The punishment allowed for a $25 fine or jail time. The separate but equal doctrine covers social arguments whereas the 14th amendment only covers legal arguments. The Separate but Equal Document does not conflict with the 13th Amendment because it does not allow or institute slavery. This was an act of civil disobedience. The separation on the trains had no legal inequality. African Americans stayed with their equal legal standing even if segregation was in place. There was also a civil and state rights argument. Segregation is a logical way to organize society. States rights argument says that the 10th amendment allows different states to have their own laws about segregation. States should have the authority to be in charge of their own choices. 

Each team presented good points and showed the court how tricky of a case this was at the time.