Jaymes Garner

American Civilization
April 28, 2016
Issue of the Week: Is it better to work inside the system or outside the system to affect
change? Why or why not?
The answer to this question is both really. The Civil Rights Movement was a time when
fighting for equality was in full force. Many people in minority groups were tired of not being
heard and being treated like second class citizens. Race, class, and gender have been reasons to
discriminate and treat people unequally since the beginning of history. Until people of a different
color, sexual orientation, or background started speaking up and making their voices heard,
equality was not for all. It took work outside the system to affect change within the system. They
go hand in hand. This was shown in Chapter 12 of the text for the class, and relates very closely
to the ENG 2760 course at SLCC.
Minorities during the civil rights movement formed alliances and groups. They used these
groups to stage sit-ins, form parades, and initiate boycotts. This brought attention to the
inequalities many were being faced with. We live in a patriarchal society, ran mostly by white
men. The men making laws and forming new policies usually arent the ones suffering from
inequality. Sometimes, minority groups have to get the attention of people within the system to
affect change.
African Americans did this during the civil rights movement when segregation existed in
all aspects of life. After boycotting and conducting sit-ins, four thousand marched on Nashvilles
county office and got the attention of the mayor. One woman asked the question Do you feel
like it is wrong to be discriminated against because of skin color? The mayor did some soul
searching within himself because he had never thought about it being wrong to discriminate.
Laws were changed and after this march, African Americans were allowed to be served in public
places without segregation.
ENG 2760 is a diversity course which has Race, Class, and Gender in the United States
as the assigned text. Within it are essays relating to these issues. In one of the essays, The
Segregated Classrooms of a Proudly Diverse School, we see recent injustices for people of
color. African American students at Columbia High School are part of an organization MLK
Association. Wanting to address the issues of contemporary segregation, they tried to get a
meeting with administration. When they were given the run around, students planned a walk out.
It wasnt until then, that an assembly was formed and the students could make their voices heard.
Another essay, Women in the State Police: Trouble in the Ranks, shows how women
within the New Jersey state police fought within the system to affect change. Women were being
treated unequally by their male counterparts. Two women filed lawsuits against the city police
office for mistreatment. Their lawsuits were justified and people were forced to take a look into
the discrimination. This paved the way for future female officers.

It takes working outside the system to get people inside the system to take note, and offer
change. This happens when people refuse to sit in silence. America has made huge advances
because of this, but it still has a ways to go in ensuring equality for everyone. This inspires me
more in my personal life. As a gay man, there have been many obstacles in my life due to my
sexual orientation. I was just able to marry my husband, who Ive been with for almost 8 years. It
took two men, a few years ago, to work within the system to affect change on gay marriage. It is
because of this that I am fortunate enough to share the same equalities that heterosexual couples
have.