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Double Victory Campaign
The Double V campaign was a slogan created by the Pittsburgh Courier, the largest black paper in the United States at this time. The name “Double V” sprouted from the slogan “Victory Abroad and Victory at Home” championing for victory in WW2 and against facism overseas as well as victory in the fight for equal rights. This campaign was the stepping stone for the fight for equal
rights. It enabled African Americans to build alliances and garner public support for the Civil Rights Movement. -
Brown V Board of Education
Plessy v Furgenson in 1896 had determined that “separate but equal” facilities were indeed constitutional, Brown v Board of Education in 1954 refuted this statement. The US supreme court in this monumental case ruled that racial segregation in schools violated the 14th amendment. This case came along after
Linda Brown was denied admission into a white elementary school. Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP took up the case along with similar cases in NC, VA, and DE. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
This event was what catalyzed the Civil Rights Movement. It called for active involvement by all members of the community. In Dec of 1955 Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the segregated public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama. She was arrested, and this planned event led to the boycott of the buses. African-Americans began boycotting the buses, protesting segregation on buses. Lasting 381 days, the boycott caused the Supreme Court to rule segregated public buses unconstitutional. -
Little Rock Nine
The governor of Arkansas mobilized the national guard to prevent nine black students from enrolling in Little Rock’s Central Highschool. After Brown v Board of Education, this move was an attack on the federal authority. Eisenhower was forced to act on the situation and sent troops to escort the nine children to their classes. The Little Rock Nine were only 9 teenagers ranging in ages from 15 to 17, but they were among the bravest present in Arkansas at that time. -
University of Mississippi
Integrating southern universities was a massive challenge. Some did desegregate peacefully, but the University of Mississippi was not one of them. This university became an erupting volcano that had to be put out. James Meredith, a former air force veteran, attempted to register himself at the University of Mississippi, but encountered violent opposition. In the end, President Kennedy was had to send 400 federal Marshalls and 3000 troops to enroll Meredith into his first class: American History. -
March on Washington
Jolted by the violence from the Birmingham Campaign, Kennedy called for new civil rights legislation to protect Black citizens. In August, King led more than 200,000 black and white demonstrators on a peaceful March on Washington in support of such legislation. This is where Dr. King delivered his famous "I have a dream" speech. Violence ensued even after this proposed legislation, but the wheels of progress were on motion. -
Civil Rights Act
This act banned racial discrimination in most private facilities open to the public. Title VII of the act barred employers from discriminating based on race or national origin in hiring and empowered the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to enforce the law. This act was a powerful instrument of federally enforced gender equality, as well as racial equality. Johnson took this a step further when he required all federal contractors to take affirmative action against discrimination. -
Freedom Summer
In the beginning of 1964, voting issues became the forefront of the equal rights campaign. Civil rights workers joined hands in a massive voter registration drive as they set out. This came after the 24th amendment had been ratified, abolishing the poll tax in federal elections. It ended badly as 3 civil workers disappeared and were found beaten and buried underground. White jurors refused to convict the murders. Very few Mississippians had successfully registered to vote that year. -
Watts Riots
The immediate cause of this uprising was the arrest of an African American man, Marquette Frye, by a white California Highway Patrol officer, but long term causes could be attributed to high unemployment rates, substandard housing, and inadequate schooling that plagued the Watts community. The riots eventually led to 34 people dead and many more injured. Its overall result was greater tensions across the country as many turned to violence as the only answer to solve the problem of inequality. -
Selma March & Voting Rights Act
On March 7, 1965 thousands of people took to the streets to peacefully march for voting rights in Selma, Alabama. In fact, Martin Luther King himself led this march. However, these protesters were brutally beaten and attacked by state troops, and the event became known as “Bloody Sunday”. News of this event spread across the nation, and this prompted Congress to pass the 1965 Voting Rights Act which outlawed literacy tests and sent federal voter registrars into several southern states. -
Black Power Movement & The Black Panther Party
Stokely Carmichael, a leader of the SNCC, began to preach the doctrine of Black Power, which, he said, “will smash every thing Western civilization has created.” This alongside Malcom X’s violent preaching began to split the fight for African-American equality into two main denominations. The Black Panther Party gave weapons to it members and was known for the violence they incited. Both ideas led to a black nationalist movement, and this idea that African-Americans had to reclaim their roots. -
Assassination of MLK & Riots
A sniper’s bullet silenced MLK’s voice on April 4, 1968. This brutal killing resulted in the death of one of the most inspirational leaders that any movement had ever seen, and could not have come at a worst time. Just when the Civil Rights Movement was reaching the pinnacle of success in their reforms, MLK was assassinated. This assassination led to riots and violence across the nation ending in 40 people killed. King left behind a legacy of racial progress that is remembered to this day.