The Civil Rights Movement

Brown v. Board of Education

May 17, 1954

Segregation in public schools was unconstitutional and violated the equal protection cause of the fourteenth amendment. This was a case involving school segregation, decided by the Supreme court. The decision ruled out “separate but equal” educational systems for blacks and whites. This court case marked a turning point in the history of race relations in the United states.The court made equal opportunity in education the law of land.
https://americanhistory.si.edu/brown/history/index.html

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Dec 5, 1955

The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a civil rights protest during which African Americans refused to ride city buses in Montgomery, Alabama. They were protesting segregating seating on transportation. Martin Luther King was the leader of this boycott. The Montgomery Bus Boycott resulted in the Supreme Court ruling segregation on public buses unconstitutional. This helped eliminate early barriers to transportation access.

Little Rock 9 and the Desegregation of Schools

Sep 4, 1957

The school board in Little rock Arkansas won a court order requiring that nine African American students be admitted to central high school with 2,000 white students. The governor began to campaign as a defender of white supremacy. He ordered troops from Arkansas national guard to prevent the nine students from entering the school. The Supreme court declared segregation in public schools unconstitutional.

The Sit-In Movement

Feb 1, 1960

These young African American students staged a sit in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. They refused to leave after being denied service. Many of the protesters were arrested for trespassing, disorderly conduct or disturbing the peace, their actions made a huge impact, forcing Woolworth's and other establishments to change their segregationist policies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zd3hih00AwE

Freedom Riders

May 4, 1961

Groups of white and African American civil rights activists participated in Freedom Rides, bus trips through the American South in 1961 to protest segregated bus terminals. The Riders were successful in convincing the Federal Government to enforce federal law for the integration of interstate travel.

James Meredith and the Desegregation of Southern Universities

Sep 30, 1962

James Meredith was the first black student at the University of Mississippi. Chaos broke out with riots. Two ended up dead, hundreds wounded and many others arrested. President Kennedy dispatched 500 federal marshals to escort Meredith to the campus. This event was a flashpoint in the civil rights movement/.
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/ole-miss-integration

The March on Washington

Aug 28, 1963

King realized that Kennedy would have a very hard time pushing his civil rights bill through Congress. A protest march with 250,000 people gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. This march was for Jobs and freedom. Civil rights leaders like Phillip Randolph protested racial discrimination to show support for major civil rights legislation that was pending in Congress. Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed
https://www.naacp.org/nmaahc-film-march-washington-history/

Malcolm X and the Civil Rights Movement

1965

Malcolm X is forever a symbol of the black power movement. Malcom X joined the Black muslims. Malcolm X’s criticisms of white society and the mainstream civil rights movement gained national attention for the Nation of Islam. When Malcom X broke the Nation of Islam he was shot and killed but his speeches and ideas will forever be impactful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_uYWDyYNUg

Urban Problems and the Black Panthers

1965

Poor neighborhoods in the nation’s major cities were overcrowded and dirty, leading to higher rates of illness and infant mortality. At the same time, the crime rate increased. Juvenile delinquency rates rose, as did the rate of young people dropping out of school. The Black Panthers believed that a revolution was necessary in the United States, and they urged African Americans to arm them-selves and prepare to force whites to grant them equal rights.

Voting Registration Among Minorities

Aug 6, 1965

African Americans still faced hurdles when they tried to vote. As the SCLC stepped up their voter registration efforts in the South, their members were often attacked and beaten, and several were murdered. Dr. King selected Selma, Alabama, as the focal point for their campaign for voting rights. The nation viewed the shocking footage of law enforcement officers beating peaceful demonstrators. President Johnson proposed a new voting rights law.