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CHAPTER SIX Explore Civil rights organizations
The National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the country's oldest civil rights organization. Its
web site includes information about the association's major initiatives, its
history, and how you can get involved. Especially interesting is the Long Shadow of Jim Crow
report that examines intimidation and suppression
of African American voters today. Adobe Acrobat is needed to access the report. The National
Urban League is another African American civil
rights organization founded around the same time as the NAACP. It focuses on
empowering African Americans through community-based movements. This site
provides an annual report on The State of Black
America, which includes significant amounts of
research on African Americans' progress in education, home ownership,
entrepreneurship, health, and other areas. The full studies are available for a
fee, but detailed abstracts are viewable for free. The Southern Poverty Law Center is an internationally recognized civil rights law firm
that focuses on, among other things, tolerance education programs and tracking
hate groups. Although the site has substantial information on all of the
groups' activities, particularly interesting is its map of active hate groups
in the United States. The Native
Americans Rights Fund is the most comprehensive
site devoted to the rights of Native Americans. Visitors can read the
organization's annual
report on the status of Native Americans (Adobe
Acrobat required), follow current cases regarding Native American rights, or
browse the National Indian
Law Library. The Mexican
American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) is
the leading legal organization dedicated to fighting for the civil rights of
Mexican Americans. The site is particularly useful for students who are
researching Mexican American rights. See the Publications section for reports on topics such as desegregation and
voters' rights. The League
of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) works
toward advancing the civil rights, education, and employment opportunities of
the U.S. Hispanic population. LULAC's site contains a wealth of information on
the organization's programs and events as well as details on how others can
participate in the organization's efforts. The National
Council of La Raza is the largest national
Hispanic organization in the country. It aims to reduce poverty and
discrimination and improve opportunities for Latin Americans. Visitors to the
site can follow the current legislation on which the group is working as well
as read news releases and studies. The National
Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium fights
for the civil rights of Asian Americans. On its web site, visitors can learn
in-depth detail about subjects in which the organization is involved, including
immigration, television diversity, and voting rights. The National
Organization for Women (NOW) is the preeminent
women's rights organization. NOW's web site contains extensive information regarding
efforts to protect women's rights. Top issues currently include a constitutional
equality amendment, reproductive
rights, eliminating
racism, lesbian rights,
and violence against women.
Particularly interesting is the information on the
organization's political action
committees; for example, students can view a
list of NOW-endorsed political candidates by state. The Human
Rights Campaign (HRC) and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force are both dedicated to fighting for the civil rights of
the gay, lesbian, and transgender communities. The sites each contain
information on every major current issue faced by these communities, including
the right to marry and the issues surrounding religion, work, and family as a
gay, lesbian, or transgender citizen. For those wondering how their
representatives or senators fair on gay and lesbian rights, they can view the
HRC's ratings of current members of Congress (Adobe Acrobat required). Interested in learning about legislation
that affects the elderly? Then visit AARP's web site. It
includes everything from coverage of upcoming elections to special travel deals
for senior citizens. Because of the vast array of information available, this
site will especially help those working on research projects on the elderly. The American
Civil Rights Institute is the organization led
by Ward Connerly (see the "Profiles in Citizenship" for this
chapter). It was founded to educate the public on the impact of racial and
gender preferences. One of its goals is to end affirmative action. The web site
provides news regarding the organization's efforts and speeches given by
Connerly. Civil rights history on display
On-line coverage of the Library of
Congress's Voices
of Civil Rights exhibit documents the events of
the civil rights movement in the United States, drawing from major
organizations, libraries, and also personal stories and oral histories. This
web site gives an overview of the exhibit, including compelling photographs, and
provides a bibliography for those interested in learning more about the civil
rights movement. Visiting Memphis? Be sure to stop by the National Civil Rights Museum. The web site provides descriptions of a number of
galleries in the museum, including those dedicated to the Montgomery bus
boycott and the March on Washington, and contains a list of the Museum's most
recent Freedom Award
recipients. The Freedom Award is dedicated to
individuals whose "accomplishments depict the spirit of the Civil Rights
Movement." Representing the agency in the Justice
Department responsible for enforcing the nation's civil rights statutes, the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights
Division has a web site that includes guides to
civil rights laws, cases the agency is currently involved in, and reports on
special topics. KEEPING THE REPUBLIC Ensuring that all Americans are given equal access to the rights afforded them in the Constitution is the duty of every citizen.
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