-
1968 BCE
1968
Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. -
1967 BCE
1967
Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African-American Supreme Court Justice -
1965 BCE
1965
Marchers in Selma, Alabama are met with tear gas. Several marchers are injured and the day is by police nicknamed "Bloody Sunday". -
1965 BCE
1965
The Voting Rights Act is signed into law making it illegal to prevent any citizen from voting regardless of race. -
1965 BCE
1965
Race riots erupt in Watts, California. -
1964 BCE
1964
The Civil Rights Act is signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson. It outlaws discrimination based on race, national origin, and gender. It also outlaws segregation and the Jim Crow laws. -
1964 BCE
1964
Martin Luther King, Jr. is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. -
1963 BCE
1963
The Birmingham Campaign takes place in Birmingham, Alabama. Schoolchildren marching in non- violent protest are met with police dogs and fire hoses. Martin Luther King, Jr. is arrested and writes his famous "Letter from Birmingham Jail" -
1963 BCE
1963
The March on Washington by over 200,000 protesters occurs. Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his "I Have a Dream" speech. -
1961 BCE
1961
The freedom Riders protest by riding buses into the segregated southern states challenging their Jim Crow laws -
1965
President Lyndon Johnson issues an order requiring "Affirmative Action" in hiring minorities for federal government work.
