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Herman Talmadge
In January 1947 during the "Three Governer's Controversy" Talmadge took office, but two months later the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that the legislature had acted uncostitutional. Served as senator in 1956-1981. Career ended mainly because the Senate denounced him because of financial misconduct. -
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Maritn Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister and president of the Southern Christian Leadershiop Conference (SCLC). He was one of the most important African American leaders in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He also helped in many nonviolent protests. Segregationists even bombed his home because he participated in the bus boycott after Rosa Parks was arrested. The bus boycott made King a national symbol of black protest. He is very well-known for his "I Have a Dream" speech. -
Andrew Young
Andrew Young was a politician and a human rights activist who contributed to the developement of Atlanta. He was chosen for mayor in 1981 and participated in several civil rights organizations including the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). -
Benjamin Mays
In 1940 Mays became the president of Morehouse College (he retired in 1967). He was a teacher and an important mentor to Martin Luther King Jr. and was a significant leader in organizations including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Mays was among the most outspoken critics of segregation before the modern civil rights movement. -
Election of 1946 "Three Governor Controversy"
Herman Takes OfficeIn 1946 Eugene Talmadge was elected as governor, but he died before he could fulfill the role. Talmadge's supporters decided to secretly write in his son, Herman Talmadge, as a candidate. Ellis Arnall (outgoing governor), Melvin Thompson (newly elected lieutenant governor), and Herman Talmadge all claimed office as governor. Arnall stepped down, however Thompson would not. In March 1847 the Georgia Supreme Court ruled Thompson as governor. Herman peacefully walked away and won the 1948 election. -
White Primary Abolished in Georgia
White primary was where blacks were not able to vote in the primary election. They were guranteed to vote in the general election, but the constitution said nothing about the primary elections and white people took advantage of that. The Supreme Court ruled White Primary unconstitutional after the King v. Chapman case. -
Herman Talmadge's 1950 term
During his administration the state enacted its first sales tax, which helped fun a major improvement in the state's public education system. Also attracted new industry to the state and was an early advocate for the burgeon timber industry. He was a progressive governor at that time. However, he was a segregationist and when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down segregation he was one of the loudest critics. -
Brown v Board of Education and Sibley Commission
The NAACP helped Linda Brown's father sue the Topeka Board of Educatino for denying his daughter entry to the school; this case reached the supreme court and in 1954 it ruled that separate-but-equal schools were unconstitutional and ordered racial integration. The Georgia General Assembly voted in 1955 to cut off funds to any integrated school system. The Sibley Commission gathered responses to integration and two-thirds of Georgians said they would rather close schools than integrate them. -
1956 Flag
In 1956 Georgia's legislation changed the flag because under the state consitution the legislature had sole authority to choose the flag. The new flag had the confederate flag on it to honor the anniversary of the Civil War. Black people became very mad because they saw it as a taunt as if the whites were saying they are better and as a symbol of slavery. Although the white people said it was to show their history and remember their fighitng and "unity" in the Civil War. -
Founding of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
SNNC Leader Speaks to a CrowdStudents at a sit-in movement in Raleigh, North Carolina, met with Ella Bake, executive secretary of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and they established SNCC. SNCC sought to coordinate youth-led nonviolent and action campaigns agasint segregation and other forms of racism. SNCC members participated in sit-ins, Freedom Rides, the 196 March on Washington, and voter education projects such as the MIssissippi Freedom Summer. -
Albany Movement
The Albany Movement began in fall of 1961 and ended in summer 1962. Its goal was the desegregation of an entire community. Resulted in more than 1,000 blacks jailed. King's involvement helped him to learn from Albany's failure to apply in Birmingham's success. -
Judge Bootle orders admission of Holmes and Hunter into UGA
Students Argue Over UGA IntegrationHamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter were repeatedly refused admission to UGA due to "limited facilities." The two brought the case to federal district court and three weeks later Judge Bootle ordered the university to admit them, ending 160 years of segregration at UGA. Holmes and Hunter were suspended for safety after a riot occured where students, the Ku Klux Klan, and locals started fires and threw bricks at Hunter's dormitory. Order only restored when police used tear gas and water hoses. -
March on Washington
March on Washington Video
In August 1963 the civil rights movement had its largest gathering with as many as 250,000 participants at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, in Washington, D.C. The event featured speeches from important leaders and musical performances. This included Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. -
Civil Rights Act
HIstorians believe Matrtin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and marches were an important catalyst in passing the Civili Rights Act of 1964. Congress passed the 1964 Civil RIghts Act, outlawing segregation in public facilities. -
Maynard Jackson Elected
In 1973 Maynard Jackson was elected as the first African American to serve as mayor of a major southern city (Atlanta). He helped place programs to help city business go to minority firms and worked closely with Andrew Young and Billy Payne to bring the 1996 olympics to Atlanta. -
Lester Maddox Elected
In 1967 segregationist Lester Maddox became governor. He suprised many Georgians by appointing more African Americans to state boards and commissions than all prior governors combined. He named the first black member of the Board of Pardons and Paroles and in the Georgia State Patrol. He also reformed state prisons and established "People's Days" where twice a month anyone could visit the governor to talk.
