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Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott, an African American slave, was taken to a free state by his owners where he sued them for his freedom. However, Scott lost to his owners in a Supreme Court decision, also known as the Dred Scott decision, of 7-2 on the basis that an African American couldn’t be a citizen, and therefore couldn’t sue for his freedom. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Although used as more of a war tactic, the Emancipation Proclamation, issued by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War, stated that the slaves in the ten rebelling states of the U.S. were free. In turn, this weakened the rebelling states because they effectively lost 3 million slaves for work. -
13th Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment, overall, abolished slavery throughout the U.S. unless it was issued as a punishment. Although this seemed like an effective way to end slavery, this amendment was abused by Southerners through the Black Codes and violence by whites against African Americans. -
14th Amendment
The Fourteenth Amendment ensured equal protection for citizens and their rights under the law to all. Since African Americans were now allowed to be citizens, they were now protected under the law. -
15th Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment gave all citizens the right to vote and prohibited the government of denying anyone that right based on color, race, or “previous condition of servitude”. This would eventually lead to more African American politicians being elected, thereby giving African Americans more of a voice in government. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson was a court case that debated whether or not African Americans and whites should have been segregated. On a vote of 7-1, the supreme court ruled that segregation was necessary and legal based on the idea that both races were “separate but equal”. -
Executive Order 9981
Executive Order 9981 was an order made by President Harry S. Truman that was meant to completely eliminate racial segregation in the U.S. Armed Forces. It was mostly successful, in fact it led to the desegregation of the army. -
Brown v. Board of Education Topeka, Kansas
Brown v. Board of Education was a key victory for the civil rights movement due to the fact it introduced integration to the public. The court case decision stated that de jure segregation of public schools was unconstitutional because the separate public schools were “inherently unequal”. -
Murder of Emmitt Till
Emmitt Till was a young African-American child of age 14 who was murdered in Mississippi for flirting with a white woman. This event was important in the civil rights movement as it was widely publicized and was heard by many which effectively spurred motivation into the movement. -
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Bus Boycott
Also known as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the boycott was a protest against segregation on the public transportation lines of Montgomery, Alabama. It was started initially when a woman named Rosa Parks refused to give her seat up on the bus to a white person and was promptly arrested. -
Civil Rights Act of 1957
The main goal of this act was to make sure that everyone had the right to vote. It removed literacy tests and poll taxes so African Americans could vote equally among whites. The act also supported the decision of Brown v. Board of Education. -
Integration of Little Central Rock High School
On September 24th, a group of nine African American high schoolers, also known as the "Little Rock Nine", were escorted by the U.S. army to school. They had been newly enrolled in the school with the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and were faced with discrimination from whites, so they needed protection just in case of any "incidents". -
Greensboro, North Carolina Sit-Ins
The Greensboro Sit-Ins was a series of sit-ins that resulted in store chains removing their policy of racial segregation. This flared the movement of civil rights mainly because it gave them hope and inspiration. -
Freedom Riders
Freedom Riders were Civil Rights supporters who rode busses down to the South and tried to enforce integration on busses. Segregation had been declared unconstitutional on busses yet the federal government did nothing to enforce it. -
James Meredith attends University of Mississippi
James Meredith originally had the right to attend the University of Mississippi but was blocked by the governor, Ross Barnett. Barnett said that Meredith could not attend the school because he was convicted for a crime, or "false voter registration". U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, after 3 days, finally forced Barnett to let Meredith attend the university. -
Civil Rights Protests in Birmingham
These protests were protests headed by the SCLC to attract attention to integration in Birmingham. The protesters were faced with violence such as being sprayed with a fire hose and attacked by dogs. These events were televised and opened the eyes of the public to discrimination. -
Letters from Birmingham Jail
The letters from the Birmingham Jail were letters written by Martin Luther King Jr. while in jail. In the letters, MLK Jr. reinforces the idea of non-violent protest and discusses the fact that people should have the right to break unjust laws. -
Murder of Medgar Evers
Medgar Evers was an African-American civil rights supporter who wanted to end segregation at the University of Mississippi. He was also a war veteran. However, after coming home from an NAACP meeting, he was shot and killed by a man named Byron De La Beckwith, a member of the White Citizens' Council. -
"I have a Dream"
"I have a Dream" was a speech given by Martin Luther King Jr. that talked about integrating and becoming one large nation, or "family". It was one of the most inspirational and influential speeches in American history and greatly uplifted the Civil Rights Movement. -
Bombing at 16th Street Baptist Church
This church bombing was an act of white supremesist terrorism that killed four young African American girls. This fired up the civil rights activists to keep pushing for integration without discrimination. -
24th Amendment
The Twentieth Amendment stated that the government could not stop anyone from voting even if they could not pay the poll tax. This basically allowed all people to vote, even those who were extremely poor. This helped move civil rights along because it reached out to the poorer minorities of the U.S. -
Murder of Civil Rights workers in Neshoba County, Mississippi
Three civil rights activists were shot and killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan, the Neshoba County Sheriff Office, and the police department of Philadelphia. The shooting was so significant and enfurating to the Civil Rights Movement and even the U.S. that the F.B.I. conducted a federal investigatoin. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act outlawed discrimination based on race, color, or national origin. It also desegregated all public facilities and accomodations. The goverment started to side more and more with the civil rights activists at this time. -
Malcolm X is assassinated
Malcolm X, a civil rights activist, was preparing to make a speech to the Organization of Afro-American Unity. White men were watching and slandering him as he prepared his speech. A man then walked up to him and shot him in the chest with a sawed-off shotgun. -
"Bloody Sunday" Selma, Alabama
"Bloody Sunday" was, at first, a peaceful march from Selma to Montgomery. However, marchers were attacked by state police. As the number of marchers grew, the level of violence the authorities used to silence them grew as well. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act outlawed discrimination in the voting process. It also made it so that the federal government would be able to heavily keep guard over the voting process so no one broke this act. Again, the minorities nd civil rights supporters gain more and more representation. -
Watts Riots
These were riots that occurred in Los Angeles in a part called Watts. These race riots broke out for many various reasons; however, the one that pushed it to the limit was a case where an African American underwent police brutality after they had shoved his mother and tried to forcfully arrest him for a D.U.I. with no evidence. -
Executive Order 11246
This executive order gave minorities the opportunity to obtain jobs. This was done by establishing non-discriminatory practices when hiring people who apply for a job. -
Black Panther Party Founded
The Black PAnther Party, founded by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, was a civil rights activist party that initiated the use of violence to rebel against whites. They believed in a saying called "Black Power" which stated that the African Americans were done being treated badly and had the power to stop it. -
Loving v. Virginia
In this court case, the laws that prohibited interracial marriage were nullified. The woman of the case, Mildred Loving, was arrested for marrying a white man while she was African American. The supreme court overturned the decision. -
Martin Luther King Jr. Assassination
Martin Luther King Jr. was in Memphis, Tennessee speaking about civil rights to the public. At his motel, where he stayed during the trip, he was shot while standing on the second floor balcony. This sparked the rebelliousness of the Civil Rights Movement. -
Civil Rights Act of 1968
The Civil Rights Act of 1968 stated that everyone no matter who it was, got equal housing opportunities. It also made injuring, intimidating, or interfering with anyone "by reason of their race, color, religion, or national origin" a federal crime.