Steve Cohen: “in recognition of the 45th anniversary of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, I believe it is appropriate to…”

“in recognition of the 45th anniversary of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, I believe it is appropriate to reflect upon this country's history on the issue of civil rights and express some thoughts about the direction the country is heading today. In 1950, when the Leadership Conference was first formed, we essentially had a system of racial apartheid in many parts of the country. It was illegal for black and white children to attend school together, it was illegal for black and white adults to marry. Black Americans were shut out of the political system--they were not permitted to serve on juries, run for office, or, in many cases, cast a ballot. There was no meaningful equal protection of the laws, especially the criminal laws. Blacks who dared to assert their political rights or buck the mores of the racial caste system, were beaten or lynched. The police and formal legal system always looked the other way. Blacks could not receive a fair trial in a court of law as racial prejudice clouded the normal American presumption that justice is blind. Through Federal court litigation, and eventually legislative action by the U.S. Congress, many of these barriers were cast aside, the chains of Jim Crow were unlocked, and the Constitution's promise of equal opportunity began to become a reality.”