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Executive Order 9981 signed by President Truman
On July 26, 1948, President Truman signed Executive Order 9981. This created the President's Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services. This order mandated the desegregation of the U.S. military. -
Jackie Robinson enters Major League Baseball
On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut in front of 26,623 fans at the Ebbets field. Robinson started at first base but went hitless. When it comes to breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier, people think of Jackie Robinson. Robinson became the first Black player in the MLB when Brooklyn Dodgers manager Branch Rickey signed him in 1947. -
Rosa Parks Arrest
On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for disorderly conduct. She refused to give up her bus seat to a white man. After her arrest Civil Rights leader E. D. Nixon bailed her out of jail, along with white friends Clifford Durr (an attorney) and his wife, (Virginia). -
what was Little Rock Nine Intervention
In 1957, The media made the name “Little Rock Nine" to identify the first African American students to desegregate Little Rock Central High School. These nine students were the first to challenge racial segregation in the public schools of Little Rock, Arkansas. -
Greensboro Sit-In Protest
On February 1, 1960 four people were African American, and they sat where African Americans weren't allowed to sit. They did this to take a stand against segregation. -
Integration of Ole Miss Riots
On September 30, 1962, there were riots on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford. Where the locals, students, and committed segregationists had gathered to protest the enrollment of James Meredith. -
The Birmingham Children’s March
On 2 May over 1,000 African American students attempted to march into downtown Birmingham protesting however, hundreds were arrested. -
George Wallace’s “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door”
George Wallace (the Governor of Alabama). Attempted to keep his inaugural promise of "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever." He wanted to stop the desegregation of schools, so he stood at the door of the auditorium to try and block the entry. -
16th Street Baptist Church Bombing
The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing was a terrorist bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963. -
Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer, also known as the Freedom Summer Project was a volunteer campaign launched in June 1964. It was made as an attempt to register as many African-American voters as possible in Mississippi. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964 is passed
This act was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964. It prohibited discrimination in public places, and facilities. It also made employment discrimination illegal. -
Malcolm X is murdered
Malcolm X, was an African American Muslim and human rights activist. He was a popular figure during the civil rights movement however he was unfortunately shot multiple times and died from his wounds in Manhattan, New York City on February 21, 1965, at age 39. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965 is passed
It act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement on August 6, 1965. It prohibited racial discrimination in voting -
Black Panther Party is formed
The Black Panther Party was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. It was an organization with an ideology of Black nationalism, socialism, and armed self-defense. It was also against police brutality. -
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated
At 6:05 P.M. on Thursday, 4 April 1968, Martin Luther King was shot and died, while standing on a balcony outside his second-floor room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. After the news of Dr. King's assassination prompted major outbreaks of racial violence, which resulted in more than 40 deaths nationwide.