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Segregation ended in public schools
In 1954 the Supreme court made segregation illegal in public schools. This event happened because of Oliver Brown who's daughter was banned from attending the all white school that was just around the corner from her house. So Mr. Brown took his case to court. This event was one of the biggest cornerstones of the civil rights movement. -
Rosa Parks bus boycott
On December 1,1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger who was standing.When the bus driver saw this white man standing he stopped the bus and came back and told Rosa and three other blacks to move to the back of the bus. Rosa told the bus driver no and he had her arrested. This lead to the Montgomery bus boycott which ended up lasting for 381 days. This made whites mad so they started bombing black churches and houses of black leaders. -
Martin Luther King Jr. bus boycott leader
On December 5, 1955, black leaders came together to form the Montgomery improvement association (MIA). The MIA chose King to be the leader of the bus boycott.They chose King because they knew he would be a good spokesman for the bus boycott because he was a pastor. King took his skills from being a pastor and applied them to his role of being a spokesman. -
Little Rock Nine
On September 4,1957, nine black students went to Little Rock School to attend their first day of class at and all white school. On there way the school called the Arkansas National Guard to block the nine black students from getting in. Later on in the month the President called in the Federal troops to escort the nine black students into the school. -
Greensboro Sit-in
Four young black men staged a sit-in at the Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina when they were denied to be served and did not leave. This spread to college towns throughout the South. During the protest many protesters were arrested for multiple things such as trespassing, disorderly conduct, and disturbing the peace. This event had a long lasting and immediate impact which then forced Woolworth's and other establishments to change their segregation policies. -
Letter King wrote in Jail
While King was in jail one of his friends smuggled in a copy of the newspaper which had an open letter, which was written by eight Christian and Jewish leaders. The letter criticized King himself and his demonstrations. While King was in jail he wrote a response back that talked about his use of nonviolent, but direct, actions. The letter was twenty one pages long and had 7,000 words on it. In his letter he through the criticism back on the nation's leaders and white Americans. -
March On Washington
In 1963, 250,000 people gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C to march for freedom and jobs. This event was made to draw attention to on going challenges and inequalities that African-Americans faced everyday. This was always the same day and event where Martin Luther gave his "I Have A Dream" speech. -
President Johnson signs the voting rights act
President Johnson signed the voting rights act into law on August 6,1965, this law legalized all discriminatory voting requirements, this law also made it illegal to put restrictions on federal, state and local elections that were made to deny the voting of blacks. -
King assassinated
On April 4,1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated by James Earl Ray. This event hit America as a shock because King had lead the Civil Rights movement since the mid-1950's. Kings death lead to much anger among the black community and a period of mourning that speed the way for and equal housing Bill which was he last significant legislative achievement of the civil rights era. -
Selma to Montgomery March.
The Selma to Montgomery March was a 54 mile route from Selma to Montgomery. The protesters were lead by the national guard and received many deadly violence from local authorities and white vigilante groups. After walking three straight days the protesters finally achieved their goal of passing a voting rights law. Kings participation in the march and it being historic raised awareness for difficulties that blacks faced.
