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Period: to
Civil Rights Progession
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Executive Order 9981
executive order issued by President Truman stating that "It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin." Led to: segregation in the services SOURCE: http://www.trumanlibrary.org/anniversaries/desegblurb.htm -
Sweatt v. Painter
the NAACP persuaded the Supreme Court to declare that separate schools for blacks were not equal to those of whites. Possibly led to: the ruling in the Brown v. Board of Education -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
The Warren Court unanimously ruled that segregation in public schools were not equal and therefore unconstitutional. It required that desegregation must occur with "all deliberate speed". It repealed the decision of the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson case. Led to: massive resistance in the South and pledges of resistance to desegregation. Some states even created "private" schools where desegregation was harder to enforce. -
Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man (as was the law) on a Montgomery Bus. She was arrested for violating the Jim Crow atatutes. Caused: the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Picture Source: http://www.whut.org/whut/?p=3298 -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a year long boycott of city buses. It sent a message out that blacks were not going to submitt to the injustices of segregation. Led to: Martin Luther King, Jr. first became known as a leader in the fight against sergregation.
Caused By: the arrest of Rosa Parks -
Little Rock Incident
Governor of Arkansas, Orval Faubus, refused to allow 9 black students from attending Little Rock's Central High School. He even brought in the National Guard to keep them away. A relucatant President Eisenhower was forced to send in troops to escort the kids to class. Caused By: This incident was a result of the ruling in the Brown v. Board of Education case.
Picture Source: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14563865 -
Civil Rights Act of 1957
The first Civil RIghts Act since the Reconstruction Days. Eisenhower, not known to be an enthusiastic supporter or critic of the Civil Rights Movement, said that the Act was "the mildest civil rights bill possible" (Kennedy 953). It set up the Civil Rights Commission to pursue violations of civil rights. -
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
The SCLC tried to use the power of black churches to help promote the Civil Rights Movement. This was a great idea because black churches were the biggest and most successful black organizations. Led to larger, more organized protests. -
"Sit-in" Movement
It began with 4 black college students in who asked to be served in the all white lunchroom. The waitress refused to serve them, and the boys refused to get up. The next day they arrived with 19 students and continued to bring more people everyday for the rest of the week. Led to a increase in sit-ins, wade-ins, lie-ins, and pray-ins across the South. -
Freedom Riders
Freedom Riders tried to promote integration by riding interstate buses. Met with much violence, and with little effort to help from local governaments, federal leaders were forced to send in federal marshals. Effect: This tied Kennedy to the civil rights movement more than before.
Picture Source: http://www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/freedom-rides-1961 -
James Meredith
James Meredith attempted to reister to the University of Mississippi, but met violent opposition. Kennedy was forced to send in troops and federal marshals to enroll Meredith at "Ole Miss".
Picture Source: http://www.npr.org/2012/10/01/161573289/integrating-ole-miss-a-transformative-deadly-riot -
Violence in Alabama
Martin Luther King, Jr. led a campaign in Birmingham, Alabama to protest discrimination. They were met with much resistance. The police came in and used attack dogs, electric cattle prods, and high-pressure water hoses to remove the protester. The entire incident was televised. Led to a speech given by President Kennedy during which he committed himself to finding a solution. -
March on Washington
MLK, Jr. wanted new legislation that protected black citizens. He led a march of more than 200,000 black and white protesters on Washington to support the legislation. This is where King made his famous "I have a dream" speech. -
Voter Education Project
instituted by several cicil rights groups, the Voter Education Project worked to register Southern blacks to vote. It was encouraged and financed by Kennedy. President Kennedy admitted to a group of black leaders that, due to his support of the civil rights movement, "I may lose the next election...I dont' care". Led to: This, and many other events, fostered generally good relations between MLK, Jr. and the Kennedy's. -
24th Amendment
Although this is amendment was not initially designed to increasing black voters, it is important to bring up. The 24th Amendment outlawed the poll tax in federal elections. Not only did this benefit the poorer whites, but it also allowed for many more black to register to vote. -
Freedom Summer
The summer of 1964. During this summer, the 24th Amendment was ratified and massive voter-registration drive occured. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act banned racial discrimination in private facilities open to the public. It also strengthened the power of the federal government to end segregation in public places. Title VII made it illegal for employers to discriminate based on race. It gave power to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to enfore these new laws. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action was an executice order issued by President Johnson requiring all federal contractors to take race into acount when hiring. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
President Johnson oversaw this bill passing throught Congress. It made literacy tests illegal and sent voter registrators to the Couthern states. -
Black Power
Stokely Carminchael gave a speech prolaiming his doctrine of "Black Power". In his speech, he stated that, "[we] will smash everything Western civilization has created". The supporters of Black Power were very interested in and dedicated to their ethnicity. Some felt them too harsh, others, not harsh enough. -
Integration
President Nixon left the task of desegregation to the courts and caused the progress of intergration to be slightly setback. However, up to this point, many blacks had already been enrolling in white schools nationwide. In 1964, 51% of black students attended a mainly black college; by 1971, only 34% did. Source: http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/integration-the-civil-rights-act-to-present.html
