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Assassination of Robert “Bobby” Kennedy
The assassination of Robert “Bobby” Kennedy June 6, 1968. After just winning the California presidential primary and campaigning to run for president, Robert Kennedy was shot at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Sirhan Sirhan, a 22-year-old Palestinian shot him and Kennedy died the next day. -
Brown v. Board of Education On May 17, 1954
Ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional. This case helped set an example that education and other services that are “separate but equal” was not equal at all. This court decision affected other rulings immediately. In addition, Brown V. Board of Education is the critical point that further advanced the civil rights movement to shatter the color barrier and make it a federal priority. Moreover, this case was a trigger for the end of Jim Crow. -
White Citizens Council July 11, 1954
The White Citizens Council was formed to fight racial integration of public schools after the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to have segregated public schools. In addition, this council was against increasing voter registration of African Americans in the South. The White Citizens Council was comprised of white supremacists in the South that opposed the advancement of the civil rights movement. -
White mob attacks federal marshals in Montgomery July 11, 1954
The White Citizens Council was formed to fight racial integration of public schools after the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to have segregated public schools. In addition, this council was against increasing voter registration of African Americans in the South. The White Citizens Council was comprised of white supremacists in the South that opposed the advancement of the civil rights movement. -
Rosa Parks Arrested
Rosa Parks Arrested on December 1, 1955. Rosa Parks helped advance the civil rights movement by refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery, Alabama. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was created by the local black community and was inspired by Rosa Park’s actions. Martin Luther King Jr. led the bus boycott which lasted over a year and ended when the Supreme Court found bus segregation to be unconstitutional. Parks was a symbol of strength and courage to end racial segregation. -
Lynching of Emmett Till August 28, 1955
Friends and cousins of Emmett (14- year old) dared him to ask a white woman on a date at a local store. While there were no witnesses, the store clerk claimed that Emmett grabbed her and made lewd advances. Emmett was beaten, his eye was gouged out, shot in the head and his body was thrown into the river. Emmett’s mother insisted on an open casket for Emmett’s funeral because she wanted everyone to see what the racist murderers had done to her son -
Brown v. Board of Education II May 31, 1955
There was a second ruling by the Supreme Court (referred to as Brown II) that mandated school desegregation be implemented immediately. This ruling also established rules outlining what schools were required to do in order to de-segregate. Further, Brown v. Board of Education II made sure that schools did in fact de-segregate. Cooper v. Aaron held that school districts had to follow desegregation laws and could no longer delay taking action to integrate. -
Montgomery bus boycott December 5, 1955-December 20, 1956
The Montgomery bus boycott was inspired after Rosa Parks refused to give her bus seat to a white man. The Montgomery bus boycott was considered the first large-scale demonstration fighting segregation. A civil rights protest involving African Americans refusing to ride city buses in Montgomery, Alabama, the Montgomery bus boycott significantly affected the number of bus riders during this time period. Eventually, the Supreme Court required Montgomery to integrate its bus system. -
Bombing of Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth December 25, 1956
Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth’s home was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan. The bomb caused damage to his home but no one inside was seriously injured. Shuttlesworth was the pastor at Bethel Baptist Church and was a target of white supremacists after becoming a leader of the civil rights movement. -
Martin Luther King House Bombing September 30, 1956
In response to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, segregationists bombed MArtin Luther King Jr.’s home. Even though no one was hurt from the bombing, this was a major test of King’s commitment to non-violence. Immediately after the bombing, King preached non-violence instead of encouraging a riot. -
SCLC Founded January 10, 1957
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was organized by Martin Luther King Jr. and other ministers to create nonviolent fights for civil rights. The SCLC organized protests and demonstrations throughout the South. The goal was to get ordinary African Americans of all ages involved. The SCLC was organized by Ella Baker and she assisted with organizing a national protest group at Shaw University called Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC or Snick). -
Eisenhower sends in Federal Troops on September 24, 1957
In opposition to the ruling of Brown v. Board of Education, white people prevented nine African American students from entering a public high school in Little Rock. Southerners, including politicians, tried to stop or hasten desegregation in schools. Accordingly, the mayor of Little Rock asked President Eisenhower to provide federal troops to mandate integration and protect the nine students. The African American students were escorted to school by the national guard. -
Greensboro sit-ins February 1-July 25, 1960
Ezell Blair, Jr., Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David Richmond bought small items, showed their receipt of purchase, entered Woolworth’s dining area, and politely requested service at the counter. Their service was rejected by the waiters because the area was designated for white people only. The media caught the start of the sit-in and posted a photo in the newspaper. This sit-in activity paved the way for nonviolent resistance and a stepping stone for the civil rights movement. -
SNCC Formed April 1960
In order to give younger blacks a voice in the civil rights movement, the Student Non-violent Coordinated Committee (SNCC) was formed. SNCC played an integral part in Freedom Rides and in the Martin Luther King marches. -
White mob attacks federal marshals in Montgomery May 20, 1961
Violence in Montgomery was out of control. Robert Kennedy sent 500 US marshalls headed by US Attorney General Byron White in order to help restore order in the city. Eventually, the violent attacks subsided and the city was under control with the help of the marshalls and the national guard. -
Albany Georgia “failure” November 1961
Founded by local black leaders, members of SNCC, and NAACP, the Albany Movement focused on desegregation and voters’ rights. The Albany Movement was considered by some to be a failure because of the failed attempt at desegregating public spaces in Southwest Georgia. However, some argue it was an advantageous lesson in the plan of action for the leaders of the civil rights movement and a critical element to the movement's future successes in desegregation in other areas of the South. -
Freedom Rides May 4, 1961-December 10, 1961
Prior to the mid-1960s, bus terminals and public transportation were segregated. By the 1960s, the civil rights movement was gaining strength. In 1961, a group of civil rights activists, both African American and white, took bus trips throughout the South protesting segregation of bus terminals. These freedom riders were confronted with violence from white protestors. However, the freedom riders captured international attention to the civil rights movement. -
Bailey v Patterson
Bailey v Patterson February 26, 1962. Bailey v. Patterson ruled that it is unconstitutional to segregate in intrastate and interstate facilities. For black people that were riding buses, particularly in the South, this law was supposed to help end segregation on public transportation but it would take activities like the bus boycott and the freedom riders to help end segregation on the buses for good. -
Kennedy sends in Federal Troops June 10, 1963
President John F. Kennedy sent federal troops to the University of Alabama to mandate its desegregation. Governor Wallace felt tremendous pressure to comply with desegregation. As a result, two African American students—Vivian Malone and James A. Hood were enrolled as students. -
Assassination of John F Kennedy
The assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. President Kennedy was shot and killed while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is the person that killed President Kennedy. Lyndon B. Johnson, the vice president at the time, was sworn in as the president after Kennedy was pronounced dead. Oswald was shot and killed two days later by Jack Ruby. Assassinating a president was not a federal crime when Oswald shot Kennedy and only became a federal crime in 1965. -
Assassination of Medgar Evers
The assassination of Medgar Evers June 12, 1963. Medgar Evers was a civil rights leader who was shot to death by Byron De La Beckwith. Beckwith was a member of the White Citizens Council which opposed the integration of schools and the advancement of civil rights. Ever’s murder sparked civil rights protests. -
Equal Pay Act
Equal Pay Act June 10, 1963. The Equal Pay Act was an attempt to rectify the gender-based discrimination issue that existed for hundreds of years. This law was a turning point that authorizes equal pay for equal work in an effort to cease gender-based imbalance. Men and women are paid the same for doing jobs that have the same skills and responsibilities. The Equal Pay Act is an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act. -
March on Washington “I have a Dream”, August 28, 1963
Martin Luther King Jr. led a rally and delivered his famous speech in Washington which started with the phrase, ”I Have a Dream.” In this inspiring speech, King talks about how he has a dream that there will be equality for everyone someday and that his children will not be judged because of the color of their skin. King hoped to promote peace and racial harmony. -
MLK goes to a Birmingham jail April 16, 1963
Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and sent to jail with other protesters in Birmingham for protesting segregation. While in jail, King wrote a letter explaining nonviolent resistance to racism. His letter was in response to local religious leaders that criticized King’s campaign. In addition, this letter was an important part of the American Civil Rights Movement. -
Bombing of a church in Birmingham September 15, 1963
On a Sunday morning, bombs exploded in a Baptist church resulting in 14 injured and the death of four younger girls. The Ku Klux Klan was responsible for this terrorist attack. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of July 2, 1964. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a milestone United States civil rights and labor law that prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. -
Freedom Summer June 1964
With so few African Americans voting, a campaign called Freedom Summer was created to help increase the number of black voters in Mississippi. With the support of over 700 volunteers that were predominantly white, these volunteers helped African Americans to combat voter discrimination and intimidation at the polls. The Ku Klux Klan and the state police were violent toward the Freedom Summer volunteers and this drew international attention. -
Killing of Goodman, Chaney, Schwerner June 21, 1964
Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner were murdered in Neshoba County by the Ku Klux Klan. These men were investigating the incident where the Mt. Zion United Methodist Church was burned and parishioners were beaten. Prior to their killing, they were apprehended by the authorities briefly. After they were released, they were pulled from their vehicle by a gang of white men which included law enforcement employees. This group of men drove them to a quiet road where they were killed. -
Assassination of Malcolm X
The assassination of Malcolm X February 21, 1965. Religious leader and nationalist, Malcolm X, was assassinated by black Muslims while speaking to the members of Afro-American Unity at the Audobon Ballroom in Washington Heights. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965 August 6, 1965
Historically, African Americans were oppressed, discouraged from voting, were forced to take literacy tests and asked to recite the Constitution. This made it difficult for African Americans to vote. The goal was to conquer legal hurdles at state and local levels that kept African Americans from voting. This act allowed the attorney general to investigate the use of poll taxes in state elections, and it banned literacy tests. -
Selma to Montgomery March, March 21, 1965
There were a number of civil rights protests in Alabama in 1965, including the Selma to Montgomery March. While the protestors marched 54 miles from Selma to Montgomery, they were met with deadly violence from white vigilante groups and local authorities. This march was a milestone in the American civil rights movement and contributed to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. -
Black Panthers Formed October 15, 1966
The black Panthers, dressed in black berets and black leather jackets, were formed to combat police brutality against African Americans. At one point the Black Panthers had 2000 members. -
Minneapolis Riots July 19,1967
African-Americans were tired of a system they saw as racist and began destroying shops on the north side of town. Historically there was tension in the area between African Americans and the Jews. Jewish people owned those shops that were destroyed. These Jews, who previously lived in this area moved elsewhere after the loosening of anti-Semitic housing practices. African Americans who lived on the north lived in insufficient housing and jobs that did not pay enough money to survive. -
Detroit Riots July 23, 1967-July 27, 1967
The Detroit Riots were one of the most destructive and deadly riots in American history, resulting in 43 deaths, 342 injured, and almost 1400 burned buildings. The riots resulted because of unemployment, poverty and racial segregation caused frustration, resentment, and anger among the African American population. -
Loving v Virginia
Loving v. Virginia June 12, 1967. Loving v. Virginia was a Supreme Court case ruled prohibiting interracial marriage in the United States as it broke the Equal Protection and Due Process clauses. This case was a turning point for destroying Jim Crow laws demonstrating that black people should not be separated from white people. In addition, the case overturned the convictions issued for their interracial marriage that was issued in 1958. -
Assassination of MLK on April 4, 1968
MLK was shot and killed by James Earl Ray while standing on his hotel balcony. This was a critical event in the fight for civil rights because the assassination angered millions of black Americans and the nation mourned his death that helped expedite the path for an equal housing bill that was the final major legislative accomplishment of the civil rights period. In some respects, King’s assassination caused a bigger division between black and white people.
