Civil Rights

  • The Supreme Court Decision of Plessy v. Ferguson

    the 1896 Supreme Court decision established the "separate but equal" doctrine, which legitimized racial segregation and became the basis for Jim Crow laws for decades, ultimately relegating African Americans to second-class citizenship.
    provided the legal basis for racial segregation and Jim Crow laws, denying African Americans equal rights and opportunities.
  • The Tuskegee Airmen

    European Theater of World War 2
    their exceptional service and combat record in a segregated military challenged racial stereotypes and paved the way for the desegregation of the armed forces, setting a precedent for broader civil rights advancements.
  • The Integration of Major League Baseball

    Jackie Robinson
    it challenged racial segregation and paved the way for broader civil rights advancements, serving as a symbol of equality and inspiring other movements.
  • The Integration of the Armed Forces

    President Truman
    Executive Order 9981
    mandating equality of treatment and opportunity in the armed forces, regardless of race, color, religion, or national origin, thereby dismantling decades of segregation and discrimination
  • The Supreme Court Decision of Sweatt v. Painter

    separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.
  • The Supreme Court Decision of Brown v. Board of Education

    overturning the "separate but equal" doctrine established in Plessy v. Ferguson, declaring state-sponsored segregation in public education unconstitutional, thereby signaling the end of legalized racial segregation in schools.
  • The Death of Emmitt Till

    Mississippi
    Emmett Till's brutal murder and the subsequent acquittal of his killers in 1955 brought national and international attention to the racial injustice and violence faced by African Americans in the United States, galvanizing the Civil Rights Movement.
  • The Montgomery Bus Boycott

    Rosa Parks
    Montgomery, Alabama
    refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man in 1955
  • The Integration of Little Rock High School

    The Little Rock Nine Students
    Little Rock, Arkansas
    nine African American students face immense resistance and harassment

    it demonstrated the federal government's commitment to enforcing desegregation and challenged the deeply entrenched segregationist attitudes of the time, ultimately paving the way for further advancements in civil rights.
  • The Civil Rights Act of 1957

    President Eisenhower
    it established the first federal civil rights legislation since 1875, creating a Civil Rights Commission to investigate voting problems and giving the Justice Department jurisdiction to address irregularities in federal elections.
  • The Greensboro Four Lunch Counter Sit-In

    The Greensboro Four
    Greensboro, North Carolina
    their sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in 1960 sparked a nationwide movement of nonviolent protests against segregation.
  • The Freedom Rides by Freedom Riders of 1961

    From Northern Cities to Southern Cities
    they highlighted the continued segregation in interstate travel despite Supreme Court rulings, drawing national attention to the violence and injustice faced by activists, and ultimately leading to the federal government enforcing desegregation of interstate travel.
  • The Twenty-Fourth Amendment

    President Johnson
    it abolished poll taxes as a requirement for voting in federal elections
  • The Integration of the University of Mississippi

    James Meredith
    a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement, demonstrating the power of legal action and federal intervention in challenging segregation and advancing equality.
  • The Integration of the University of Alabama

    Vivian Malone and James A. Hood
    it highlighted the struggle for desegregation and led to a national focus on civil rights, culminating in the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  • The March on Washington and "I Have a Dream" Speech by MLK

    Martin Luther King Jr and 250,000 Americans
    they galvanized the Civil Rights Movement, pressured the government to enact landmark legislation, and inspired a nation to strive for racial equality and justice.
  • The Assassination of John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas

    Lee Harvey Oswald
    Dallas, Texas
    it galvanized the Civil Rights movement, leading to the passage of landmark legislation like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and also marked a shift in how Americans viewed the presidency and the nation's future.
  • The Civil Rights Act of 1964 signed by President Johnson

    it outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in voting, public accommodations, public facilities, public education, federally funded programs, and employment, marking a major step toward equality and ending legal segregation.
  • The Assassination of Malcolm X

    Thomas Hagan
    New York City
    was his bold articulation of Black Nationalism and self-defense, which challenged the prevailing nonviolent approach and laid the groundwork for the Black Power movement.
  • The Selma to Montgomery March: "Bloody Sunday"

    Martin Luther King Jr. and 600 Civil Rights Marchers
    Selma, Alabama
    galvanizing public opinion and ultimately leading to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
  • The Voting Rights Act of 1965

    President Johnson
    The Voting Rights Act is a landmark federal law enacted in 1965 to remove race-based restrictions on voting. It is perhaps the country's most important voting rights law, with a history that dates to the Civil War.
  • The Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee

    James Earl Ray
    Memphis, Tennessee
    ultimately spurred increased political activism, fueled the Black Power movement, and led to the passage of the Fair Housing Act, the final piece of civil rights legislation of that era.
  • The Voting Rights Act of 1968

    President Johnson
    It outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to voting.