Youth March for Integrated Schools was the second of two Youth Marches that rallied in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

The second march occurred on April 18, 1959, at the National Sylvan Theater and was attended by an estimated 26,000 individuals. The march was a follow-up to the first Youth March to demonstrate support for ongoing efforts to end

racially segregated Racial segregation is the systematic separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Racial segregation can amount to the international crime of apartheid and a crimes against hum ...

schools in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Speeches were delivered by

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

, A. Philip Randolph,

Roy Wilkins Roy Ottoway Wilkins (August 30, 1901 – September 8, 1981) was a prominent activist in the Civil Rights Movement in the United States from the 1930s to the 1970s. Wilkins' most notable role was his leadership of the National Association for the ...

, and Charles S. Zimmerman. Other civil rights leaders that spoke at this event included Daisy Bates, Harry Belafonte and Jackie Robinson. At this event, the speech that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered was very impactful. King went on to state, "What this march demonstrates to me, above all else, is that you young people, through your own experience, have somehow discovered the central fact of American life that the extension of democracy for all Americans depends upon complete integration of Negro Americans." This demonstrates the overall reason why this march was so important. To rally citizens together for this march, there were flyers posted titled, "Why We March", in an attempt to motivate the youth to participate. This flyer stated, "We march to protest the century-long mistreatment of Negor citizens. They have waited long enough. We march to demand real democracy--now!" Information regarding this march was also published in Martin Luther King's book titled, " The Papers of Martin Luther King". In this novel, King describes how important it was that the youth were the ones participating and leading this march in order to make a difference. This march would show how much it meant to the African American youth to fight for integrated schools.

References

{{reflist 1959 in Washington, D.C. Civil rights movement Civil rights protests in the United States Martin Luther King Jr. Protest marches in Washington, D.C. 1959 protests

See also

References