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A large steel relief of Martin Luther King Jr., a leader of the nonviolent civil rights movement, stands near the house where he was born in Atlanta.
"Change" is a word you've been hearing a lot recently. During the 2008 presidential campaign, president-elect Barack Obama built his message around the "ability to bring about real change in Washington." You might even hear the word change when people talk about the environment. With concerns over the potential dangers of global warming, many people are worried about food shortages, rising gas prices and the possibility of reaching peak oil. Citizens are informed by video clips and photographs illustrating examples of climate change and its effects on humanity.
Much of our awareness about various issues wouldn't be possible without technology such as telephones, television, newspapers and, especially now, the Web. We're able to pass information back and forth quickly, and more and more people around the world can take that information in and act on it. These highly connected networks have led to things like smart mobs, groups of protestors that use current technology like camcorders, BlackBerry devices and Twitter to take part in civil disobedience.
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Fifty years ago, U.S. citizens managed to achieve remarkable change through a tremendous network of communication and support. Despite hundreds of years of oppressive laws and violence against blacks, a single generation was able to influence important legislation and adjust entire attitudes of a prejudiced culture -- and they didn't have the Internet. During the 1950s and '60s, people of all races took part in the civil rights movement, an era that changed the course of American history.
How did they do it? Who were some of the people involved? To learn about the civil rights movement and how it got started, see the next page.
