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Civil Rights Movement
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Billie Holiday records Strange Fruit
Billie Holiday version Strange Fruit In 1939 Billie Holiday records the song Strange Fruit, originally a poem by Abel Meeropol. The song paints a clear picture of what is going on at that time: African-Americans are treated as second rate citizens, to the point that for minor crimes black people would get lynched by mobs. -
Emmitt Till lynched
Documentary on Emmett Till's lynching
Wikipedia info Emmitt Till Reportedly, for flirting with a white woman, young kid Emmett Till (14) is lynched by a mob. His mother insisted on an open casket, so the whole world could see what the mob had done to her son. -
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on the bus
In buses at that time, white people could sit in the front of the bus, and African-Americans had to take a seat at the back of the bus. If the bus would be full, and a white person would come in, black people would have to give up their seat. On this day, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a white man. According to many, this was the thing that really started the Civil Rights Movement. -
John F. Kennedy becomes President
John F. Kennedy speaks on Civil RightsOn this day, John F. Kennedy became President after having won the 1960 Elections against Nixon. Both he and his brother Robert both spoke out in favor of the idea of racial equality, even though in his early days in office he concentrated on foreign affairs. However, later in his Presidency he would kick start a political movement which would in 1964 be known as the Civil Rights Act. Kennedy himself never saw it, he was killed on the 22nd of Nov, 1963. -
Freedom Riders
PBS Documentary The Freedom Riders were a group of Civil Rights Activists who were planning to ride the buses deep into the South whilst ignoring the segregation laws. They would sit criss-cross in the bus, would mingle in whites only waiting rooms, etc. The deeper they went into the South, the more problems arose. A bus was set on fire, they were beaten up, etc. -
March on Washington
I Have a Dream Speech by MLK On the 28th of August, the Civil Rights Movement headed to Washington for a series of speeches. Between 200.000 and 300.000 people were present when Martin Luther King gave his I Have a Dream speech, generally seen as one of the most important speeches in the history of mankind. It was a speech that concentrated on MLK's hope that one day, people of all races would sit at the table of brotherhood together. -
Malcolm X delivers his Message to the Grass Roots
Audio for Message to the Grass Roots Malcolm X delivers his Message to the Grass Roots. Where Martin Luther King spread a message of peaceful protest, Malcolm X and many more were so fed up with how they were treated they thought that the only thing that would get them out from under it was through violence. That would be the only way, they thought, to make them listen and to force equality. -
Nina Simone performs Mississippi Goddam
Performance on YouTube In 1964 Nina Simone performs the protest song Mississippi Goddam for the first time. In the song, Nina Simone calls for action as she feels it is time for equality for "her brothers her sisters her people" herself. It shows the atmosphere of that time, with many eager to right the inequality and take (peaceful) action. -
MLK shot
Civil Rights activist Martin Luther King is shot outside of his Motel in Memphis. The day before he had delivered the speech I've Been to the Mountaintop. MLK is just one of many activists and notables that got killed/were assassinated during the Civil Rights Movement. However, an idea can never be killed, and the idea of racial equality had already firmly taken root in American society and would eventually prevail despite the violence. -
Sylvester releases disco hit You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)
YouTube version of the song Disco became major in the 70s. The music is often connoted to African-American culture, gay culture, and feminism, with lots of strong black women and gay men scoring hits. Sylvester is one of many African-American gay men to become a fixture in the scene, ultimately dying of AIDS. Disco is about being proud of who you are, of having fun, and of pure love. -
Frankie Knuckles releases Your Love
YouTube clip for Your Love Frankie Knuckles releases the vinyl for his single 'Your Love', one of the seminal House tunes in the 80s. In the 70s/80s/, House became one of the major underground music movements, especially in the African-American and gay scenes.
