Civil Rights Movement

Plessy vs. Ferguson

May 18, 1896

Case where it was ruled that it was okay for black and white students to be separate because they were "separated but equal".

Rosa Parks

Dec 1, 1955

Rosa Parks was arrested because she refused to give up her seat for a white passenger.

Segregation Was Ruled Unconstitutional

Nov 13, 1956

The US Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional for buses to be segregated.

Little Rock Nine

1957

Nine African-American teenagers enrolled in a formerly all white high school in Little Rock, Arkansas to test Brown vs. Board of Education. One the first day of school the entrances were blocked and they weren't allowed in. Later that month, federal troops were sent to escort the kids into the school.

John F. Kennedy

Nov 8, 1960

John F. Kennedy was elected President of the United States.

Medgar Evers Assassination

Jun 12, 1963

Medgar Evers was assassinated because of his act in the Civil Rights Movement. Evers was an activist for black people and the first field secretary for the NAACP

"I Have a Dream" Speech

Aug 28, 1963

At Lincoln Memorial Dr. Martin Luther King gave his infamous "I have a dream" speech about equality for all races.

Murder of Malcolm X

Feb 21, 1965

Malcolm X was murdered because he was an active advocate for civil rights and he was an activist.

Loving vs. Virginia

1967

Before, is was previously illegal for people of different races to be married. This was punishable by jail time for each partner. This case started the domino effect of states making it legal of different races being allowed to marry.

Evers Killer Was Sentenced

1994

Nearly 31 years after Medgar Evers was murdered, his killer, Byron de la Beckwith was finally convicted and sentenced life in prison