The Civil Rights Movement

Brown vs. BOE

May 17, 1954

In this Supreme court case, a girl named Linda Brown was denied access to attend her neighborhood school due to the color of her skin. The school told her to get attend an all black school, which was across town. With the assistance of the NAACP her parents sued the school board. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Brown because segregation in public schools was considered unconstitutional and violated the equal protection of the 14th Amendment.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Nov 13, 1956

4 days before the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Rosa Parks was arrested and fined for not letting a white man take her seat. This was the first big act of the Civil Rights Movement. African Americans continued their boycott for a year, in which they did not take the bus but instead, they organized car pools or walked to work. While this occurred, Park's challenge worked its way through the courts. When it came time, it was ruled that Alabama's laws required segregation on the bus was unconstitutional.

Little Rock 9 and the Desegregation of Schools

Sep 4, 1957

In September 1957, the school board in Little Rock, Arkansas won a court order requirement that allowed for 9 African American students to attend their school. Orval Faubus, the governor of Arkansas ordered troops to prevent the students from entering. After Eisenhower and Faubus's meeting didn't go so well, Faubus left the school to an angry mob. When the students entered the school, reporters were attacked. Eisenhower ordered the army to send troops and soon the students were able to enter.

The Sit-Movement

Feb 1, 1960

The movement was lead by four young men who were called the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. The were students from the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College. The first sit-in took place at Greensboro. They were protesting at the white's only lunch counter but did it peacefully.

Freedom Riders

May 4, 1961

The Freedom Riders were trying to outlaw segregation in buses. They were going to travel to the South to gain attention to its refusal to integrate bus terminals. But unfortunately, not everyone approved of this idea and many Freedom Riders were attacked and killed.

James Meredith and the Desegregation of Southern Universities

Oct 2, 1962

James Meredith was the 1st African American student to be admitted to the racially segregated University of Mississippi. He was a writer, political advisor, an Air Force veteran and an American Civil Rights Movement. He wished to attend the university of Mississippi but was faced with a mob of 2,000 white people. John F. Kennedy dispatched 500 marshals to escort Meredith to the school.

The March on Washington

Aug 28, 1963

Dr. King knew that waiting for Kennedy to push the Civil Rights bill would take a while. He searched for ways to make his message more aware to the public to gain their support. Philip Randolph had suggested a march on Washington to which King agreed to. On August 28, 1963 about 200,000 protestors of mixed race came to the nation’s capital. Dr. King delivered a powerful speech (I have a dream, freedom, equality) that got to the people which set forth a faster pace for the Bill of Civil Rights.

Malcolm X and the Civil Rights Movement

Feb 21, 1965

Malcolm X joined the Nation of Islam and there they preached black nationalism. Black Muslims believed that they should be discreet from whites and form their own self-governing communities. The people viewed themselves as their own nation and attempted to make themselves as self sufficient as possible. By 1964, Malcolm had left Black Islam after discovering the scandals involving the leader. He had continued to criticize the society and in February of 1965, he was assassinated.

Voter Registration Among Minorities

Mar 7, 1965

The government tried to prevent minorities from voting at all cost. They put such things as the literacy test in place to show that they don’t have the knowledge needed to vote. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which states that all requirements that stopped voting were deemed unconstitutional. Now minorities could vote too.

Urban Problems and the Black Panthers

1966

In urban areas AA faced a lot of hate. Even in cities, they faced poverty. Some who did better than others found jobs as blue-collar factory workers, but did not go far after that. Most AA were only able to get low-paying jobs to suffice for their entire family. In 1965, only 15% of AA held high paying jobs compared to the 44% of Whites. The average income for an AA family was only 55% of whites. More than ½ of the AA were jobless. The Black Panthers were AA’s who preached black power.