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13th amendment
The 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction -
Ku Klux Klan
The Ku Klux Klan, commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan in recent decades, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, -
14th Amendment
No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. -
15th admendment
The Fifteenth Amendment is passed guaranteeing the right to vote for all citizens regardless of race. -
Jim crow laws
Jim Crow laws become common in many southern states segregating blacks from whites. -
Founding of the NAACP
The NAACP is founded by African-American leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Ida B. Wells. -
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson becomes the first African-American to play major league baseball -
End of segeration
President Harry S. Truman ends segregation in the U.S. armed forces. -
Brown v. Board of Education case,
- The Supreme Court rules that segregation in the schools is unconstitutional in the Brown v. Board of Education case, overturning the earlier ruling in the Plessy v. Ferguson case.
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Rosa Parks arrest
- Rosa Parks is arrested for not giving up her seat on the bus. This sparks the Montgomery Bus Boycott which lasts for over a year. Eventually, segregation on the buses in Montgomery comes to an end.
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Arkansas Nine
- Nine African-American students in Arkansas (nicknamed the Arkansas Nine) attend a previously all-white high school. Army troops are brought in to protect them
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The march on washington
The March on Washington by over 200,000 protesters occurs. Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his "I Have a Dream" speech. -
The Birmingham Campaign
The Birmingham Campaign takes place in Birmingham, Alabama. Schoolchildren marching in non-violent protest are met with police dogs and fire hoses. Martin Luther King, Jr. is arrested and writes his famous "Letter from Birmingham Jail." -
Mather Luther King Wins Nobel Prize
- Martin Luther King, Jr. is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Voting rights act
The Voting Rights Act is signed into law making it illegal to prevent any citizen from voting regardless of race. -
Bloddy sunday
- Marchers in Selma, Alabama are met by police with tear gas. Several marchers are injured and the day is nicknamed "Bloody Sunday."
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Race riots
Race riots erupt in Watts, California. -
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. -
Martin luther kings death
Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. -
Barack obama
- Barack Obama is the first African-American elected President of the United States.