15 Important events in black history

By enjielhoss
  • First African American slave ship arrives in American colonies

    First African American slave ship arrives in American colonies

    By 1690 every colony has slaves.
  • Congress bans further importation of slaves

    Congress bans further importation of slaves

  • Slaves escape to the North

    Slaves escape to the North

    Approx 75,000 slaves escape to the North using the Underground Railroad 1831-1861
  • Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery

    Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery

    Harriet Tubman (1820 – 1913) escapes from slavery and becomes an instrumental leader of the Underground Railroad.
  • Fugitive Slave Act passed

    Fugitive Slave Act passed

    Congress passes another Fugitive Slave Act, which mandates government participation in the capture of escaped slaves.
  • Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation

    Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation

    Proclaims that all slaves in rebellious territories are forever free
  • 13th Amendment ratified

    13th Amendment ratified

    Prohibits slavery
  • The "Black Codes"

    The "Black Codes"

    The “Black Codes” are passed by all white legislators of the former Confederate States. Congress passes the Civil Rights Act, conferring citizenship on African Americans and granting them equal rights to whites. The Ku Klux Klan is formed in Tennessee.
  • The KKK is formed

    The KKK is formed

  • 14th Amendment ratified

    14th Amendment ratified

    Defining citizenship, overturning the Dred Scot decision.
  • 15th Amendment Ratified

    15th Amendment Ratified

    Gives African Americans the right to vote
  • Jim Crow segregation laws passed

    Jim Crow segregation laws passed

    Tennessee passes the first of the “Jim Crow” segregation laws, segregating state railroads. Similar laws are passed over the next 15 years throughout the Southern states.
  • Civil Rights Act signed

    Civil Rights Act signed

    The Civil Rights Act is signed, prohibiting discrimination of all kinds.
  • Voting Rights Act passed

    Voting Rights Act passed

    Outlawing the practices used in the South to disenfranchise African American voters
  • Barack Obama wins presidential race

    Barack Obama wins presidential race

    First African American to win the US presidential race