1963 march on washington

Modern Civil Rights

By jodih

  • Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, KS

    Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, KS
    Supreme Court declares school segregation unconstitutional.

  • Rosa Parks jailed

    Rosa Parks jailed
    Rosa Parks is jailed for refusing to move to the back of the bus. A boycott follows.

  • Little Rock Nine

    Little Rock Nine
    Federal troops are sent to Little Rock, Arkansas where nine black students are the first to integrate the school district.

  • Woolworth Sit-In

    Woolworth Sit-In
    Four black college students begin sit-ins at the lunch counter of a Greensboro, North Carolina, restaurant where blacks are not served.

  • Freedom Rides begin

    Freedom Rides begin
    Freedom rides begin -- student volunteers are bused in to test new laws prohibiting segregation.

  • I Have a Dream speech

    I Have a Dream speech
    Martin Luther King, Jr. delivers his "I Have a Dream" speech, which calls for an end to racism.

  • Civil Rights Act

    Civil Rights Act
    Congress passes the Civil Rights Act, declaring discrimination based on race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, or religion, illegal.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1968

    Civil Rights Act of 1968
    President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968 into law; it prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing.

  • Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

    Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
    President Ronald Reagan signs a bill creating a federal holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr.

  • First Black President

    First Black President
    Barack Obama, the United States' first black president, is inaugurated.