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Brown v. Board of Education
The Supreme Court made a ruling that declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional. This overturned the "separate but equal" doctrine from Plessy v. Ferguson. This decision energized the civil rights movement. -
Emmitt Till murder
Emmit Till, a 14-year-old boy from Chicago, Illinois, was visiting relatives when he was murdered for allegedly flirting with a white woman. The trial in which his killers were convicted attracted vast attention and sympathy for the victim's family and the civil rights movement. -
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Montgomery Bus Boycotts
In May 1954, Robinson wrote a letter to the mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, asking that bus drivers no longer be allowed to force riders in the colored section to yield their seats to whites . The mayor refused. So, blacks did not use the bus route for the duration of the protest. -
Little Rock 9
In 1957, the Little Rock Nine, a group of nine African American students, attempted to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. On their first day, Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas National Guard to prevent their entry, defying federal law. President Eisenhower responded by sending federal troops to escort the students into the school, marking a significant moment in the enforcement of desegregation. -
Lunch Counter sit-ins (Greensboro start date)
Throughout the 1960s, African American students gathered in public places to perform "sit-ins". Sit-ins were nonviolent events where African Americans would, for example, sit at a lunch counter for hours without receiving service. Even when mistreated and abused, they had to remain peaceful. -
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Freedom Bus Rides
Nonviolent protesters rode public buses from Washington D.C. to New Orleans in order to nonviolently protest segregation in the Deep South. Although these protests were peaceful, they still managed to anger the Southerners, who responded with violence. President Kennedy, in response, ordered local and state police to help protect and defend the riders, showing Kennedy's support for the Civil Rights Movement. -
March on Washington
200,000 peaceful protesters joined together in Washington D.C. to begin a protest in front of the Lincoln Memorial. This was the day when Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his internationally-famous speech, now known as the "I Have A Dream" speech. The day was incredibly influential to both the Federal Government and civil rights orginazitions all over the nation. -
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Birmingham protests
The protesters boycotted against the unequal and horrible treatment of blacks in Birmingham, Alabama. In response, some demonstrators attacked police officers and were hit by highly pressurized water hoses. As a final result, the campaign shut down Birmingham, took down Jim Crow laws in the city, and forced attention onto the issue of segregation. -
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Freedom (Mississippi) Summer
One thousand black and white students gathered in Mississippi to register black voters. They established the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, whose goal was to register African Americans to vote. The party declined the offer they were given by Missisisppi state government, and three students were killed. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended the majority of discrimination against blacks and even women in the US. Racial segregation and unequal treatment of voters was also ended. Segregation in schools, workplaces, and public facilities was also outlawed. -
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Selma Marches
The March to Selma was organized for the SCLC's campaign to get all African Americans registered to vote. During their march, however, police forces beat people on television, and this became known as "Bloody Sunday" because it left 70 African Americans hospitalized. The march was, however, a success in the end because days later, Johnson proposed a new voting rights law. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act banned literacy tests and allowed the government oversee voting and registration in states that had discriminated against minorities in the past. This led to a significant increase in African American voter participation.