Over the years, the black man has freed himself from the oppression of the white man. This important end of history is one of the most important building blocks of our nation. As a people, we have learned and grown through knowledge of the mistreatment of black people as slaves. Although the world has not yet completely rid itself of all racial injustice and prejudice, the apparent liberation from the shackles of society is just a step in the right direction. The plight of the black man has endured since the very beginning of the founding of our young nation, enslaved and neglected, culturally and humanly. The oppressors of a unique and different race are the Caucasians, who in many circumstances have been responsible for the degradation of many people. All men are created equal, what does this phrase mean for the popular masses? Strictly speaking, some people assume that men are referring to the men who wrote the constitution and what constitutes skin color. This however does not apply to the African American race. Since the founding of the nation, black people have been used as a source of labor. They were brought by Dutch settlers as a cheap labor alternative to indentured servants. Black people were brought against their will, captured from their homes, or purchased from tribes as prisoners of war. These men and sometimes these women crossed the Atlantic during a perilous journey. They did not benefit from first-class travel and traveled on lower decks in cramped quarters for almost a month. They remain in their own excrement and waste throughout the journey, which has caused an epidemic and death among them. Once they got there, their lives weren't any easier. The white man's treatise...... middle of paper...... the mind, is involved again. Peace did not ensue, however, and Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Just as hope seemed to be hitting rock bottom, Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This ensured that there could be no discrimination based on race. Although through freedom rides and peaceful sit-ins, black people gained their equality and while the world is getting better, anti-black racism still exists in a world like today today. In 2003, in a southern rural town of Jena, 6 black students were imprisoned and convicted for a minor assault. They were tried by an all-white jury, which deemed a 10-year prison sentence necessary. Even if the government tries to change the idea that black people are not inferior, it is difficult to change the image that has been burned into people's minds, there will always be a glass ceiling and all men are not equal..