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The Tulsa Race Massacre occurred from May 31 to June 1, 1921, in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma. A white mob attacked the prosperous Black community after a young Black man, Dick Rowland was falsely accused of assaulting a white woman. They looted and burned down over 35 blocks of homes and businesses, killing at least 300 Black residents and leaving thousands homeless. The event was largely ignored for decades but efforts for acknowledgment and reparations have grown in recent years. -
Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark 1954 Supreme Court case in which the Court declared that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. The decision overturned the earlier Plessy v. Ferguson ruling that upheld "separate but equal" segregation. The Court ruled that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal, marking a major victory in the Civil Rights Movement and paving the way for desegregation across the United States. -
Emmett Till was a 14-year-old Black boy from Chicago who was lynched in 1955. He was accused of offending a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, in a store. Till was brutally beaten mutilated and then murdered. His open-casket funeral, held by his mother to show the world the horrors of racial violence, brought national attention to racial injustice. The trial of the white men accused of his murder ended in acquittal. -
Rosa Parks was a Black woman whose refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955 became a symbol of resistance to racial segregation. Her act of defiance led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a pivotal event in the Civil Rights Movement. Parks' bravery inspired others to fight for racial equality and helped catalyze a nationwide movement for civil rights and social justice. -
The SCLC was an organization linked to the black churches. 60 black ministers were pivotal in organizing civil right activism. Martin Luther King Jr was elected President. They focused its non violent strategy on citizenship, schools and efforts to desegregate individual cities. It played key roles in the March on Washington in 1963 and the Voting Rights Campaign and March to Montgomery in 1965. -
The Little Rock Nine were a group of nine Black students who integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957, following the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision. Despite facing violent protests and opposition, they were escorted by federal troops sent by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to ensure their safety. Their courage in the face of extreme racism became a key moment in the fight for desegregation in schools and civil rights in the U.S. -
In 1960, Greensboro, North Carolina, became a key site in the Civil Rights Movement due to the Greensboro Sit-ins. On February 1, 1960, four Black students staged a peaceful protest at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter, challenging racial segregation. Their actions sparked similar protests across the country and led to the eventual desegregation of lunch counters in the city, marking a significant moment in the fight for racial equality. -
Ruby Bridges was a 6-year-old African American girl who became the first Black student to desegregate an all-white elementary school in the South. In 1960 she attended William Frantz Elementary in New Orleans, Louisiana, amid violent protests. Ruby's bravery escorted by federal marshals for protection made her an iconic figure in the Civil Rights Movement and symbolized the struggle for racial equality in education. -
Group of civil rights activists who rode interstate buses into the segregated South to challenge Jim Crow laws and segregation in public transportation. Despite violent opposition including beatings and arrests they aimed to test a Supreme Court ruling that declared segregated bus terminals unconstitutional. They brought national attention to the South's racial segregation and played a crucial role in the Civil Rights Movement leading to the eventual enforcement of desegregation in bus stations. -
The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, held on August 28, 1963 was a major event in the Civil Rights Movement. The march is most famous for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech which called for an end to racism and for a future of racial harmony and justice. The event helped push the government to pass key civil rights legislation, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. -
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark law that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It ended segregation in public places, banned employment discrimination, and empowered the federal government to enforce desegregation, marking a major victory in the Civil Rights Movement. -
Malcolm X was an African American leader in the 1960s. Initially a member of the Nation of Islam, he later embraced a more inclusive approach to civil rights before his assassination in 1965. -
In 1965 the Selma to Montgomery marches took place to demand voting rights for African Americans. After violent repression of peaceful protesters, the marches gained national attention, leading to the passage of the Voting Rights Act later that year and aimed to eliminate racial discrimination in voting. -
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a key law that aimed to eliminate racial discrimination in voting, particularly in the Southern states. It banned literacy tests and other discriminatory practices, and provided federal oversight in areas with a history of voter suppression. The Act significantly increased voter registration and participation among African Americans. -
He was shot while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel where he was staying during a visit to support striking sanitation workers. James Earl Ray was arrested for the murder and later pled guilty to the crime.