-
Brown vs Board of Education
Civil rights case that found racial segregation in schools to be unconstitutional. Brown vs Board II decreed that desegregation had occur “at all deliberate speed” to prevent resistance. -
Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. She was arrested for it. Her bravery sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycotts and made her a symbol of the civil rights movement. -
Ruby Bridges
At the young age of 6, Ruby Bridges became the first African American student to integrate into an elementary school in the South. -
March in Washington
Martin Luther King delivers his “I Have a Dream” speech to roughly 250,000 people. In his speech stressing the necessity of equality, he states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." -
President Johnson Delivers Speech
Lyndon Baines Johnson, the 36th president of the United States, gave a speech in 1963 his speech about American equality and how the main focus was to make sure all people were treated with the same amount of respect. He stated that “The purpose of this law is simple; it does not restrict the freedom of any American, so long as he respects the rights of others." -
The Impact of Voting Rights Act
The Act outlawed discriminatory voting practices in many Southern American States. After being enacted, a more disperse voting population arose. -
Black Panther Party
After the assassination of Malcolm X, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the party in Oakland. The party’s goal was to protect African American neighborhoods from police brutality. The party launched many community programs to help these neighborhoods. The Black Panther Party had a socialist viewpoint which made them a target of the FBI. -
Establishment of Congressional Black Caucus
Rep. Charles Diggs created the caucus as a way to unite the Black members of Congress. It was highly contested, and Pres. Nixon even refused to meet with them. -
First Black Woman in Cabinet
First black women appointed to Cabinet by President Jimmy Carter to oversee Housing and Urban Development. -
25 Year Extension to Voting Rights Act
Congress reauthorized Section 203, which was to provide language assistance to those who were a part of a single language group in 1982 to allow them to participate in the electoral process as well as extend voting rights to African Americans for another 25 years -
Walter E. Massey becomes NSF Leader
Massey was the first black person to lead the National Science Foundation. He set up a commission for the future and created the Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences. -
Barack Obama Elected President
Barak Obama was elected to be the 44th president of the United States and became the first African American President. He was reelected in 2012. -
Colin Kaepernick Kneels
Kaepernick, the quarterback for the 49ers, knelt during the national anthem and pledged to help stop police brutality and the oppression of African Americans. -
George Floyd's Murder
The murder of George Floyd by a white police officer sparked riots and protests against police brutality towards people of color. -
First Black Woman on Supreme Court
Judge Ketani Brown Jackson becomes first black woman to sit on supreme court after being appointed by President Biden.