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In 1857, Dred Scott and his wife sued for their freedom, and their case went all the way to the Supreme Court. The court ruled that he didn’t have freedom in a free state because he was still someone’s slave. This caused many African Americans to be unhappy, and was one of the early triggers of the Civil Rights Movement.
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The Emancipation Proclamation was a speech that Abraham Lincoln gave in 1863, stating that all slaves are now and forever free. This was a huge step in African American lives, and a big moment leading to the Civil Rights Movement.
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Jim Crow Laws began in 1865, and were a collection of state and local ordinances that made segregation legal. These laws were another reason why the Civil Rights Movement began.
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On January 31, 1865, Congress passed the 13th amendment to the Constitution, and this officially marked the end of slavery in America. This not only led to the freedom of slaves, but was a building block to African Americans gaining more rights in the U.S.
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In 1866, the 14th amendment to the Constitution was passed, stating that anyone born in the United States was a citizen. It also stated that all citizens were equally protected by law. This was a massive event in the Civil Rights Movement, as African Americans were seen as people instead of property.
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Passed in 1869, the 15th amendment to the Constitution stated that all U.S. citizens have the right to vote, and they cannot be denied the right to vote based on race or color. (This was before women could vote). This was a big step in the Civil Rights Movement as it was another example of African Americans gaining more rights in America.
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On May 18, 1896, the Supreme Court ruled that although blacks and whites were equal, they could still be segregated. This was one of the founding reasons why the Civil Rights Movement began.
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Established in 1909, the NAACP is America's oldest and largest civil rights organization. It was formed in response to the violence against African Americans throughout the country. It had a huge impact on the Civil Rights Movement, as it was one of the founding civil rights groups.
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On June 4, 1919, the 19th amendment to the Constitution was passed, stating that all women had the right to vote. This was a massive step in women gaining equal rights.
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In 1923, the ERA was drafted by leaders of the women’s suffrage movement, and were turning to face the broad issue of women’s equality. While it fell apart, it still led to many women fighting for their rights in the U.S.
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On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson made his debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking the MLB color barrier. He was the first African American to play in the MLB. This is just another example of African Americans advancing in America.
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In 1954, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that segregation in schools was a violation of the 14th amendment. This led to the desegregation of schools, which was a massive step in Civil Rights as African Americans were seen as equal to Whites in schools.
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After Rosa Parks was arrested in 1955, African Americans began boycotting the buses in Alabama, and throughout the rest of the U.S. This led to the Supreme Court ending segregated busing in 1956. This was a huge step in the Civil Rights Movement, as it led to African Americans gaining more rights.
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On September 4, 1957, nine African American students arrived at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, where they pushed their way through the angry crowd in an attempt to get into school. They were stopped at the door by the National Guard, and told to go home. This shows that even though schools had begun desegregation, the idea of blacks and whites mixing was not okay with a lot of people.
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On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I have a dream” speech, and in this speech he called for an end to racism and civil rights for all. This speech caused the Federal government to take more direct steps in ending racial inequality in America.
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On August 28, 1963, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Washington D.C. to demand the end of segregation and other unequal rights. Many Civil Rights leaders took the stage to issue calls to action. The march was important in the Civil Rights Movement because it pressured the Kennedy administration into initiating a civil rights bill into Congress.
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Freedom Summer was a variety of protests, meetings, and other measures in order to bring awareness to the lack of voting rights that African Americans had in Mississippi. This happened in 1964. There were many out of state volunteers that came in support of the cause. This shows the support that the Civil Rights Movement had throughout the country.
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The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination of a person based on race, gender, religion, etc. This was big for the Civil Rights Movement as it strengthened the enforcement of desegregation in schools.
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The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed the voting practices that discriminate based on race or color. This was mainly an issue in southern states, as they had adopted many of these practices after the Civil War. This is another example of the Civil Rights Movement leading to change in America.
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On March 7, 1965, hundreds of people met in Selma, Alabama to walk to the capital city of Montgomery in order to make sure that African Americans could exercise their right to vote. This was another way that the Civil Rights Movement moved forward, as African Americans kept fighting for their rights.
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The Black Panther Party was founded in 1966, and its purpose was to patrol black communities to keep people safe from police brutality. This shows how tense the Civil Rights Movement made things in America.
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On June 30, 1966, the National Organization for Women was founded. They were a group of activists who wanted to end discrimination by sex. They were influential in leading the fights towards women's Civil Rights.
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On April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee by an anti-civil rights activist. While this was at first a setback, it led to more and more people joining the fight for civil rights.
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Title IX was a law passed in 1972 that ensured male and female students were treated equally in schools. It protects against discrimination based on sex, including sexual harassment. This is just another way that the Civil Rights Movement led to women being treated more equally.
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In 1973, Jane Roe filed a lawsuit against the government and her local district attorney, Henry Wade, saying that the abortion laws were unconstitutional. She argued that it was her body, so she had the choice of whether not to have an abortion. The ruling was in favor of Roe, stating that abortion fell within the rights of the 14th amendment. This was a big step for women, as they were gaining more rights and choices.