Radicalism played a significant role in the Civil Rights movement. In terms of setbacks, the views of some individuals in society made it difficult for the goals of the civil rights movement to be accomplished. For example, citizens who were in favor of segregated schools made it difficult for African-Americans to get access to an equal education. Even after the Brown vs. Board case stated that separate but equal was not legal, schools still fought to keep African-Americans out of schools that were all white.
Even though radicalism played a negative part, the views of these individuals also helped progress the Civil Rights movement in other cases. The radicals who used violence against African-American citizens who were practicing nonviolent protests received negative attention from the media. After seeing several stories where African-Americans were physically abused by individuals with radical views, American citizens started to turn against these people hurting others who were trying to be peaceful.