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Widespread Segregation and Discrimination
With racial segregation of public places deemed legal, whites and blacks were separated into facilities that were deemed "equal". However, the facilities available to African Americans were usually of lower quality, and African Americans were subject to major discrimination. This would spark the formation of key groups in the civil rights movement in response to segregation and mistreatment, a main one being the National Association for Advancement of Colored People. -
Plessy v Ferguson
The core issue of this case was the constitutionality Separate Car Act of Louisiana, which required separate railway cars for blacks and whites. The Louisiana Supreme Court would rule that the law was constitutional, and that separate treatment did not imply that African Americans were inferior to whites. Instead, segregation into "separate but equal" facilities did not qualify as unlawful discrimination. -
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The Push For Integration
The NAACP would be a cornerstone in the civil rights movement that would make a major push for integration through victories in court cases. A prime case would be Brown v Board of Education, in which the Supreme Court would rule that racial segregation of public schools was unlawful. Using this momentum, the movement for desegregation would only grow, culminating in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. -
Formation of the NAACP
On this date, the National Association for Advancement of Colored People was founded. The organization would form as a response to widespread discrimination and violence to African Americans, especially through its anti-lynching campaign.The NAACP was America's oldest and largest civil rights organization, and it would become a focal point for the movement towards racial equality. Through this organization, white and black activists would advance their cause through victories in legal cases. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The passage of Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a true crowning legal achievement of the civil rights movement. Proposed by John F. Kennedy and passed during Lyndon B. Johnson's presidency, this law outlawed segregation of public places on the basis of race, religion, or national origin. It would also prohibit workplace discrimination. This law would finally trump "separate but equal" legislation, and it would be expanded up with legislation like the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
