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Plessy v. Ferguson
A famous case brought into Supreme Court about a man who was biracial and tried to sit on the white car of a train after a new transportation racial segregation law was put into effect in Louisiana. This was the beginning of many new segregation laws. -
Founding of NAACP
One of the original civil rights organizations in the United States. The NAACP, or National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, focused on anti-lynching laws, an end to segregation in public schools and worked alongside the SCLC in the March on Washington campaign. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Linda Brown believed that the racial segregation of black and white public schools was unconstitutional. She brought the case to the Supreme Court were it was officially ruled unconstitutional and decided on on May 17, 1954. -
Montogomery Bus Boycott
One of the famous events of the Civil Rights movements that involved many rights leaders was this very Montogomery Bus Boycott. It was started after the arrestings of both Cauldette Colvin and Rosa Parks, two women who refused to move seats for white people on a bus. The boycott didn't end until more than a year later when a court ruling named Browder v. Gayle was put into effect. -
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
Led on by it's first president, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. the SCLC played a huge role in African-American civil rights. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, this organization planned many civil rights movements, like the March on Washington and the St. Augustine protests. -
“Little Rock Nine” and Central High School integration
The first of many African Americans to attend a formerly all-white school after the Brown v. Board of Education case was put into effect. But on the first day, Governor Orval Faubus of Arkansas called the National Guard to keep the black students out of the school. On September 25, 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower dealt with this by sending federal troops to escort the "Little Rock Nine" into the school to officially start their first day. -
Woolworth’s Sit In
On this date, 4 African American college students took a seat at the counter at Woolworth's in Greensboro, North Carolina. They were denied service because of the buildings strict segregation rules. When asked to leave, the students continued to sit peacefully and wait until they were served. This lasted 6 months with the help of other people in the community. -
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
One of the most important organizations of the Civil Rights Movement. Ella Baker began the commitee at her university, soon growing it into a large organization. Volunteers in this commitee were paid or not paid, but worked in projects like the freedom rides and sit-ins and also the March on Washington. -
March on Washington
On this day, more than 200,000 Americans gathered up in Washington D.C. for a political march for Jobs and Freedom. It was organized by civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and various other groups to shed light on challenges that African Americans were still facing in America. -
“I Have a Dream” speech
“I Have a Dream” speech was Martin Luther King, Jr.'s most famous speech. He brought to light the racism that the white people still had in them to date, and made people realize how shameful it was to still act the same way others did a hundred years ago. He begged that there be freedom all across the states of America and that someday all of the American people would actually be equal regardless of their race and looks. He explained why people used civil disobedience and massive resistance. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 while Martin Luther King, Jr. stood right behind him. It inacted the outlaw of discrimination beased on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, something we see on work applications today. It brought an end to unequal votings, racial segregation in schools and at public places. -
Civil Rights Act of 1965
President Lyndon Johnson signed this act as well. Also known as the Voting Rights Act, it aimed to overcome illegal barriers at the state and local levels that once before prevented African Americans from their right to vote under the Fifteenth Amendment.
