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The Murder of Emmet Till
14 Year old Emmet Till was visiting family in Mississippi when he supposedly whistled at a white storeowner’s wife. He was later kidnapped, beaten, and thrown in the Tallahatchie River by the storeowner and his half-brother. The men who murdered him were not charged with murder. For more information, click here. -
The Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks was arrested after refusing to give up her seat to a white man. Angered by this, the black community of Montgomery began a boycott of the buses until they finally desegregated the buses in Dec 21, 1956. For more information, click here. -
Integration of Central High School
In Little Rock, Arkansas, nine black students attempted to go to Central High School when they begin integration. President Eisenhower must intervene by sending the National Guard to help the students get into the school. For more information, click here. -
James Meredith
James Meredith was the first black student to enroll in the University of Mississippi. Due to violence and riots, President Kennedy had to send 5000 federal troops to the scene. For more information, click here. -
“I have a dream…”
At the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I have a dream” speech to a large audience. For more information, click here. -
The Bomb at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church
Four girls, Denise McNair, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Addie Mae Collins, were killed when a bomb exploded at their church as they were changing into their robes. For more information, click here. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, making discrimination of all kinds against any race, color, religion, or national origin illegal. For more information, click here. -
Malcolm X's Murder
On Feb 21, 1965, Malcolm X, the founder of the Organization of Afro-American Unity, was shot and murdered. It is unsure who did it, though it is believed members of the Black Muslim faith killed him. For more information, click here. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which made it easier for black people to vote. It also outlawed restrictions that kept blacks from voting. For more information, click here. -
Loving v. Virginia
The Supreme Court ruled that prohibiting interracial marriage is unconstutional, and sixteen states must change their laws to allow interracial marriage. For more information, click here.
