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Formation of the United Farm Workers Movement
The United Farm Workers Movement was founded by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta in March of 1962 in California. It continues to be the largest farming union in the United States. The UFW used non-violent tactics such as boycotts, protests and strikes in an effort to highlight the issues that farmers struggle with. They fought for better pay and safer working conditions. -
Equal Pay Act of 1963
The Equal Pay Act is a labor law that prohibits gender-based wage discrimination and mandates equal pay for equal work. Employers are prohibited from paying men and women different wages for doing jobs that require the same skills and responsibilities under similar conditions. President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in 1963 as an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act. It was one of the first laws in US history that aimed to reduce gender discrimination in the workplace. -
California Grape Boycott
On September 8, 1965, Filipino grape workers part of the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee began striking in the Delano area in protest of the poor pay and bad conditions that they experienced. UFW was asked to join in the strike. Both groups vowed to keep their protests to be non-violent. Cesar led a 300 mile march from Delano to Sacramento in this protest. The boycott ended in 1970, with a successful ending as the grape growers higher pay better conditions and more. -
Formation of the Brown Berets
Founded by Dr. David Sanchez after a run-in with police in 1966, the Brown Berets were a group of LatinX that were politically involved and wanted to fight for social justice. The original name was the Young Chicanos for Community Action, founded in Monterey Park, California. They took up causes of better education, police brutality, and the discrimination against the LatinX community. The brown berets are the LatinX equivalent of the Black Panthers. -
Formation of N.O.W.
Founded in 1966, N.O.W., an activist organization and the largest feminist group in the US, promotes equal rights for women. Established by a small group of women, including Betty Frieden, the organization aimed to challenge sex discrimination and amend regulations on sex-segregated “Help Wanted” ads. The National Organization for Women now has over 500,000 members, who are both men and women. N.O.W. addresses issues such as child care, pregnancy leave, abortion rights, and pension rights. -
Formation of American Indian Movement
The American Indian Movement began in Minneapolis, MN during the summer of 1968. At the start, AIM consisted of 200 people from the Indian community, including George Mitchell, Dennis Banks, and Clyde Bellecour, who met to discuss issues that restrained Native Americans from taking control of their own life. AIM’s leaders denounced high unemployment, slum housing, and racism. Members of AIM fought for treaty rights and recovery of tribal land. AIM had many notable clashes with the FBI and CIA. -
Chicano "blowouts"
The Chicano “blowouts”, also known as the East Los Angeles Walkouts, were a series of protests by Chicano high school students in protest of unequal education opportunities. The first students to walk out were from Wilson High School. Among all the high schools, it is estimated that around 5,000 students walked out in East LA. The protestors had a list of demands for school facilities, administration and academics. Most of these were granted -
Stonewall "Riots"
The NYC Police raid of the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village, was as a catalyst for the Stonewall riots. Police hit customers and checked the gender of people who were cross-dressed, violating their privacy. Minutes after, a riot began outside the bar and lasted for 5 days. These riots didn’t start the gay activist movement but were a crucial point in the fight for queer rights. In 2016, Obama made the bar and surrounding area a national monument in recognition of gay rights. -
Occupation of Alcatraz
Activists cited the Treaty of Fort Laramie when the reclaimed the island of Alcatraz in 1969. The Treaty of Fort Laramie returns all retired, abandoned, and out-of-use federal land to the Native Americans. Despite a Coast Guard blockade, 79 Indians landed and proclaimed the island by right of discovery. Occupiers began leaving lack of electrical power, fresh water, and declining public sympathy and support. A large force of government officers removed the last 15 occupiers from Alcatraz. -
Formation of La Riza Unida
Translated as the National United People’s Party, La Raza Unida was a chicano nationalist organization. This was created when Mexican-Americans became upset with the democratic party. La Raza Unida was launched in Texas, but spread to Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and California. It was founded by José Ángel Gutiérrez and Mario Compean. José and Mario were before involved in MAYO. The La Raza Unida political party did poorly in Texas 1987 elections so the group subsequently fell apart. -
Trail of Broken Treaties
The Trail of Broken Treaties was a cross-country protest led by American Indian and First Nations organizations. It aimed to bring national attention to issues such as treaty rights, living standards, and inadequate housing and was the largest gathering of Native Americans ever. Beginning on the West Coast, protestors traveled by car, train, and bus to reach Washington, D.C, where their leaders would discuss their needs and negotiate a new relationship with the government, but Nixon refused. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was proposed to the US Constitution that states civil rights may not be denied on the basis on one’s sex, guaranteeing equal legal rights for all American citizens. It sought to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, and employment. First introduced but denied in 1921, the women’s movement prompted a reintroduction of the bill to Congress. The ERA was approved in 1972 by the House and sent to the Senate for ratification. -
Roe vs. Wade
Roe vs. Wade was a landmark Supreme Court case that established women’s legal right to an abortion. In a 7-2 decision, the Court ruled that a women’s right to chose was protected by the privacy right guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. Before this ruling, many states considered abortion not only immoral but a criminal offense. However, under this ruling, states were allowed to balance interests balance women’s health and protecting human life, which causes arguments and national debate. -
Siege at Wounded Knee
For a duration of 71 days, AIM led 200 Native Americans in occupying Wounded Knee, SD on the Pine Ridge Reservation, which was a site of an infamous massacre of 300 Sioux by the U.S. Army in 1890, to bring attention to the poverty in the community. When federal agents tried to stop the occupation, AIM members took 11 residents hostage. AIM members and US marshals exchanged gunfire. During negotiations, AIM demanded the Senate launch an investigation on treaties broken by the U.S. government. -
Murder of Harvey Milk
Harvey Milk was the first openly gay elected official in California history and was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He was involved with passing a bill banning discrimination in public accommodations, housing and employment based on sexual orientation. Mayor George Moscone signed the bill. Harvey Milk and Mayor Moscone were murdered by a fellow city supervisor Dan White. Harvey Milk became a key role in the gay community. He is looked up to in the gay community today. -
Phyllis Schlafly and the defeat of the ERA
The ERA had a ratification deadline of March 22, 1979, and seemed destined for ratification until Phyllis Schlafly mobilized conservative women in opposition. She argued that the bill would disadvantage housewives, causing them to be drafted, lose protections like alimony, and decrease the tendency for mothers to obtain custody in divorce cases. This resulted in five states revoking their ratification and nine more rescinding theirs before their deadline. This ultimately defeated the ERA. -
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act established framework for Indian gaming, for which there was previously none. Gambling and generates income in remote areas that lack opportunity. The law protected the operation and regulation of Indian gaming as a means of revenue for the tribes and encouragement for economic development. The Act also established the National Indian Gaming Commission for oversight and called for new authority in the US D.O.I. and creation of new federal offenses. -
Murder of Matthew Shepard
Matthew Shepard was a 21 year old openly gay student at University of Wyoming who was brutally murdered. He was murdered by Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson who met Matthew at a bar. The two men lured Shepard and struck his brain stem with a gun 21 times. He was tied to a clothesline and left there. He was found 18 hours later. Matthew Shepard struck lawmakers and played an important key in securing the federal LGBT-inclusive hate crime bill in 2009. He also has a foundation in his name. -
Repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was a discriminatory law that banned LGBT members from serving in the armed forces. For 17 years, openly gay people were not allowed to serve and were discharged if they were discovered as LGBT. Obama repealed this law on September 20, 2011. Discharged members are allowed to reenlist in the armed services. This gets rid of a major law that claimed that discrimination was okay. -
Obergefell vs. Hodges
Obergefell vs. Hodges questioned whether the 14th amendment required marriage licensing and recognition of same-sex couples. The states involved were Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee. The plaintiffs argued that the states violated the equal protection clause and the due process clause of the 14th amendment. The supreme court ruled 5-4 in favor of the plaintiffs. This ruling promises protection of same-sex couples applying to be married.
