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Creation of the NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was founded on February 12, 1909, in New York City by an interracial group of activists. This group, including W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells, and others, came together in response to the 1908 Springfield race riot and the ongoing lynching epidemic to combat racial discrimination and fight for the civil rights of African Americans. -
Scottsboro Boys
The Scottsboro Boys case began on March 25, 1931 when nine African American teenagers were arrested in Scottsboro, Alabama, after being falsely accused of raping two white women on a train. The arrest occurred in Paint Rock, Alabama, after a posse stopped the train. The boys were taken to Scottsboro, Alabama, where they faced an all-white jury and a lynch mob. -
Jackie Robinson Breaks the Color Barrier
On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier, becoming the first African American player to play in the major leagues. This landmark event occurred when he took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers against the Boston Braves. Robinson's courageous decision and performance faced immense racial hostility, but he persevered, earning the Rookie of the Year award and solidifying his place as a civil rights icon. -
Brown vs. Board of Education
In the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in 1954 that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. This decision effectively overturned the "separate but equal" doctrine established in Plessy v. Ferguson. The ruling had a profound impact on the Civil Rights Movement and the fight for desegregation in the United States. -
The Murder of Emmitt Till
In August 1955, Emmett Till, a 14 year old boy visiting Mississippi, was brutally murdered by two white men, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam, after Bryant's wife accused Till of making advances toward her. The murder, and the subsequent acquittal of Bryant and Milam by an all-white jury, shocked the nation and became a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement. The case highlighted the racial tensions and injustices prevalent in the South during the Jim Crow era and galvanized activists into action. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a 13-month protest (December 5, 1955 - December 20, 1956) against segregated seating on city buses in Montgomery, Alabama. African Americans refused to ride the buses to protest the discriminatory practice, marking one of the first large-scale U.S. demonstrations against segregation. The boycott was initiated by the arrest of Rosa Parks and organized by the MIA, with Martin Luther King Jr. as its president. -
The Little Rock 9
The Little Rock Nine were nine African American teenagers who enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957, becoming the first Black students to attend the previously all-white school. They were chosen for their academic excellence and courage to face the resistance they would encounter. Their enrollment sparked the "Little Rock Crisis," a pivotal event in the Civil Rights Movement. -
Ruby Bridges desegregate elementary school in New Orleans
In 1960, Ruby Bridges, a six-year-old African American girl, desegregated William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, Louisiana. She was the first Black student to attend the previously all-white school, facing significant resistance from white parents and protesters. Federal marshals escorted her to school to ensure her safety. -
Letter from a Birmingham Jail
The main point of "Martin Luther King Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham Jail" is that nonviolent direct action is crucial for achieving social justice and that individuals have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws. King argues that waiting for gradual change is insufficient and that immediate action is necessary to combat racial discrimination and injustice. He further emphasizes the importance of actively challenging unjust laws and systems, even if it means facing arrest or imprisonment. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964, signed into law on July 2, 1964, is a landmark piece of legislation that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. This act prohibited discrimination in employment, voting, and access to public accommodations. It also ended segregation in public places and schools. -
Assassination of Malcolm X
Malcolm X was an African American revolutionary, Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement until his assassination in 1965 -
Creation of the Black Panthers
The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded in Oakland, California in October 1966 by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. It was a revolutionary organization that initially focused on armed self-defense against police brutality and later developed a broader ideology of Black nationalism and socialism. The party's name was inspired by the Lowndes County Freedom Organization, which had used the black panther as a symbol. -
Thurgood Marshall Named Supreme Court Justice
Justice Thurgood Marshall: First African American Supreme Court Justice. On June 13, 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson nominated distinguished civil rights lawyer Thurgood Marshall to be the first African American justice to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. -
Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist minister, activist, and political philosopher who was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. -
Election of Barack Obama
Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator from Delaware, defeated the Republican ticket of John McCain, the senior senator from Arizona, and Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska.