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Plessy VS. Ferguson
A U.S Supreme Court case that upheld the rights of states to pass laws allowing or even requiring racial segregation in public and private institutions such as schools, public transportation, restrooms, and restaruants. Plessy v. Ferguson -
James Meredith
First African-American student to enroll at the University of Mississippi. He was a civil rights leader and followed MLK Jr. in his mrch and later became an advisor to southern conservative Senator Jesse Helms. http://goo.gl/XT1y4y -
The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
A U.S. civil rights organization that played a pivotal role for African Americans in the Civil Rights Movement. CORE was one of the "Big Four" civil rights organizations, the other three were the SCLC, the SNCC, and the NAACP. Core -
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson became the first African American to join the major leagues (baseball) in 1947, signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Jackie -
Sweatt vs. Painter
Court case in which an African-American student (Sweatt) applied at the University of Texas and was rejected and then sued the school and the president (Painter). http://goo.gl/J2P96o -
Medgar Evers
Born in MIssissippi, he served in WWII before working for the NAACP. After attmepting to segregate the University of Mississippi Law School in 1954, he became the NAACP field secretary in Mississippi. Evers was subjected to threats as the most visible civil rights leader in the state and was shot to death in June 1963. Medgar -
Brown vs. Board of Education
Infamous court case that argued that racial segregation of African-American children in public schools. It put racial equality on top of a hill and let the snowball of revolution roll. http://goo.gl/szkg0M -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks sparked the infamous bus boycotts because of refusing to give up her seat to a white man, the boycott included African Americans refusing to ride the bus in cities and led to many bus charters and companies going bankrupt. http://goo.gl/yA4CRd -
The Southern Manifesto
77 members of the House of Reps. signed this document to condemn the result of the Brown vs. Board of Education court case. http://goo.gl/24061w -
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
60 Black ministers and civil rights leaders met in Atlanta to try and replicate the bus boycotts that previously took place in Montgomery. MLK Jr. was elected as the first leader of this organization. http://goo.gl/W7wcJF -
Little Rock - Central High School
A key event in the civil rights movement when 9 African-American students enrolled at the preivously all-white Central Highschool. http://goo.gl/B2yiQ8 -
Greensboro Sit-In
A non-violent protest by young black students at a white only Woolworth lunch counter, which later led to establishments and policies changing the segregation laws in the region. http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/the-greensboro-sit-in -
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
Formed to give young African-Americans a voice in the civil rights movement, which ended up being one of the most powerful clauses. http://goo.gl/JFow3p -
Freedom Riders
White civil rights activists & 13 African-Americans started a series of bus trips through the south to protest segregation. http://goo.gl/PZsb9Z -
Letter from Birmingham Jail
Written by MLK while in the Birmingham Jail, it responded to the criticism demonstrated by eight prominent white clergy man and expressed the King's feelings toward the unjust events during the time. Letter from Birmingham Jail -
March On Washington
March On Washington More than 200,000 Americans gathered in Washington, D.C. for a political rally known as the March of Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Also where MLK's "I Have A Dream" speech took place. -
Bombing of Birmingham Church
Bombing of Birmingham Church On September 15, a bomb exploaded at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama and killed four young girls and injured many others. This lead to outrage and a violent clash between protesters and police that helped draw national attention to the struggle for civil rights for African Americans. -
Twenty-fourth Amendment
Twenty-fourth Amendment This amendment prohibited the federal and state governments from imppsing poll taxes before a citizen can participate in a federal election. -
Civil Rights Act Passed
Civil Rights Act Ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. This was considered one of the crowning legislative achievements of the civil rights movement. -
Mississippi Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer In 1964 several civil rights organizations including CORE and SNCC organized a voter registration drive aimed at dramatically increasing voter registration in Mississippi. -
Malcolm X Assassination
Malcolm X Assassinated Malcolm X was killed in New York CIty by rival Black Muslims while addressing his Organization of Afro-American Unity at the Aubudon Ballroom in Washington Heights -
Selma to Montgomery March
Selma to Montgomery March MLK lead thousands of nonviolent demonstrators to the steps of the capitol building in Montgomery, Alabama on a 5-day, 54-mile march in efforts to register black voters in the south. -
Voting Rights Act
Voting Rights Act Signed by President Lyndon Johnson, the Voting Rights Act aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote. -
Black Panthers
Black Panthers The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded in Oakland California. The Panthers practiced militant self-defense of minority communities against the U.S. government and they were one of the first organizations to do so. -
MLK Assassination
MLK Assassination MLK's assassination sent shockwaves around the world and lead to outpouring anger among many black Americans and a mourning period that helped speed the way for an equal housing bill, which was the last major legislative achievement of the civil rights era. -
Primary Sources
pbs.org
history.com
blogs.edu
uscourts.gov
