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Dien Bien Phu
A French commander ordered his troops to occupy the mountian town of Dien Bien Phu to mess with the Vietminh's supply lins and make them fight an open battle. The Vietminh surrounded the town and bombarded it untill the french surrenderd and withdrew from Indochina. -
Brown V Board of education
Supreme court heard the case of Linda brown being denied entrance to her neighborhood school on the basis she was African American. With the help of NAACP and Thurgood Marshall, a brilliant African American Attorny, the supreme court ruled that it was unconstitutional to have segragation in public schools -
Rosa Parks
Rosa parks took a seat on a bus behind the whire section in the middle of the on December 1, 1955. She had worked a long day and wanted to sit down, but when there was a white who wanted her seat she refused. The bus driver then had her arrested. Rosa then challenged this in court and won, after many African Americans boycotted the bus system and hurt its funds. This marked the first episode of real change in which African Americans would start to challenge segragation laws. -
Martin Luther King, jr
During a meeting at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, where he was the pastor, He powerfully encouraged African Americans to continue their protests. He told them that the only way to win would be through nonviolent passive resistance. This set the tone for the rest of the civil rights movement and put Dr. King in one of the leading positions. -
The 1956 Elections
There was no election in 1956 due to Ngo Dinh Diem fear that Ho Chi Minh would win and turn south vietnam into a communist country. This sparked a communist group called the vietcong to start fighting the south vietnamese -
Crisis in Little Rock
In Little Rock, Arkansas, the govenor blocked the desegragation of Little Rock High School by sending state troops to block off the school from nine African American students who were trying to get in. Riots erupted and Eiesnhower had to send troops down to the school. -
Freedom Riders
In early May of 1961, groups of African Americans and whites who volunteered where sent to Alabama in non-segragted busses to protest the disreggaurd for a non-segragated interstate bus service law. They arrived and were surrounded by mobs of white people who beat them severly, and in one case threw a firebomb at one of the busses. This demonsrtation caught JFK's eye and made him realize he had to stop the violence. -
James Meredith
James Meredith was a African American war veteran for the Air Force. He applied for tranfer to the University of Mississippi, a school that was not following the law that stated it was illegal to segragate a public school. When he tried to register he was blocked from entering the school, so Kennedy ordered 500 troops to escort him in. When they got there a riot erupted on campas injuring many people. Kennedy ordered thosands of troops to the campas and Mereidith graduated under national protect -
King is arrested
Dr. King got tother peacefull protests in Birmingham, Alabama to provoke a voilent response. He did this because he needed President Kennedy to actively support civil rights and he knew this was the only way to get him to do it. During the march many were severly beaten ans Dr. King was arrested. -
Buddhists Protests
In 1963 Deim decided that since he was catholic he was going to ban Buddhism. this was a big problem because most of the country was Buddhist. When the Buddhists took to the streets in protest nine people were killed. Buddhists monks burned themselves alive to get the attention of other nations, and it worked. -
Diem is overthrown
American ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge learned of how unpopular Diem really was in his own country. He learned that military generals had been planning to overthrow him, so he said that Americans showed sympathy for them. The generals immediately launched a military coup and sized power. Diem was excecuted soon after. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
President Johmson took a leadership role on ending rascim and supporting the civil rights movement. In 1964 he urgured and pursuaded congress to finally pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This act made segragation illegal and gave federal government the broad power to prevent racial discrimination. -
Johnson takes a stance on North Vietnam
He announces tht American ships have been attacked by North Vietnamese bombs. He immideatly orders American air craft to bomb North Vietnamese ships and naval facilities. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
This resolution said authorized the president to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack agaisnt the United States and to prevent further aggression. This in turn gave congress's war powers over to the president. -
Selma March
Dr. King leads another march, but this time to Selma, Alabama to build support for the new African American voting rights laws. Once again, the peaceful protests are met with extreme violence by whites. Soon afte the march they won the right to vote. -
Troops enter into North Vietnam
In march of 1965 president Johnson orders a sustained bombing campaign of North Vietnam. He also sends the first combt troops into Vietnam to fight alongside South Vietnamese troops agaisnt the Vietcong. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
On August 3, 1965 congress passed the votiong rights act of 1965. This was an important act because it gave African Americans the right to vote. -
Tet Offensive
During the Vietnamese new year,Tet, The Vietcong and North Vietnamese launched a massive suprise attack. After about a month of fighting the Americans and South Vietnamese fought off the attacks inflicting heavy losses. However, the public in America wondered how they could get such a big attack in the midst of defeat. This turned many peoples opimnion of the war around. -
"Christmas Bombings"
This is when Nixon ordered air raids on Noth Vietnam that went on non-stop for 11 straight days only stopping on christmas. This is what would finally force North Vietnam into negotiations again with the United States. That led to the end of the war and peace agreements on January 27, 1973. -
War Powers Act
Congress passed this act in order to reestablish some limits on the executive power that was given to Johnson in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.The president would now have to warm congress of any war plans or troop movment before it happened.