The Civil Rights Movements have been around as long as America itself.  From the moment Thomas Jefferson penned his famous words "...all men are created equal...", the citizens of the United States have been engaged in defining what that means.  Even though the idea of equality is a continous theme in American History, it is generally considerd that the Civil Rights period was primarily an issue of the 1950's and 1960's.

     There is an important point to be made about civil rights; it is a battle for equal rights and protections that knows no racial or gender boundaries.  While many Americans consider it strictly an African-American issue, it more accurately includes the fight of: women, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans, the elderly, gays, etc. in an effort to gain their share of the American Dream.