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End of White Primary
In 1900, the GA Democratic Party decided only white voters could vote in the primary election. In 1944, US Supreme Court ruled all-white primaries were illegal & violated the 15th amendment. Governor Arnall supported the court’s decision and said black voters should be allowed to vote in primaries. While running for governor, Eugene Talmadge promised to bring back all-white primary & protect Jim Crow laws. -
Benjamin Mays
Benjamin Mays is an African American minister and social activist. He worked as the president of Morehouse College in Atlanta and mentored Martin Luther King Jr. during his tenure. He helped leadership positions with NAACP, YMCA, the World Council of Churches, and the United Negro College Fund. He advocated against segregation during the early stages of the Civil Rights Movement. He believed that all humans should be treated with dignity and that segregation was not consistent with the USA. -
Herman Talmadge
Herman Talmadge was governor from 1948-1955. He brought stability back to the governorship after the Three Governor’s Controversy. Governor Ellis Arnall had lost the election to Eugene Talmadge, but he died before being able to take the position. Melvin Thompson, the Lieutenant Governor took the position until a special election could be held. Herman Talmadge won the special election. Upon entering office, he focused on wanting to improve Georgia’s education system. -
Integration of The Armed Forces
On July 26, 1948, Harry Truman announced: "that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin." Integrating the armed forces was good for the army and inspired cooperation across the country. -
Brown Vs Board of Education
Linda Brown, a resident of Topeka, Kansas, passed a white school every day on her way to her black school. In a series of court cases, the Supreme Court (and chief justice Earl Warren) ruled the segregation of public schools to be unconstitutional. Public schools were segregated no more. This could be classified as a victory for the Civil Rights Movement; however, the Klu Klux Klan was angered by this and soon began to stir up more trouble than before with their riots and various activities. -
MLK
MLK Jr. was a phenomenal speaker and leader during the civil rights. Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister. He served as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and was the most recognizable African American leader in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He worked to help with non-violent protests and delivered many inspiring speeches before his assassination in 1968. He strived to achieve legal equality for all people. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks, an African American woman, sat down in the "black section" of a Montgomery bus. When asked to move by a white man, she refused and was arrested. This event inspired the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to enact a one-year bus boycott for Montgomery buses. The boycott was a success, and a law was soon passed which banned segregation on public buses. This was one of the first major victories in the Civil Rights Movement. -
Georgia Flag Change
In 1956, the Georgia General Assembly was called together in a time of an African-American rights movement wanting to preserve white supremacy. They decided to change the flag to feature the Confederate Flag and symbolize white supremacy in the time when it was disappearing.
