-
Nat Turner leads slave revolt
Nat Turner was a black American slave who led the only effective, sustained slave rebellion (August 1831) in U.S. history. -
the first Women’s Right’s Convention meeting in Seneca Falls, N.Y
It advertised itself as "a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman". -
Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation
It stipulated that if the Southern states did not cease their rebellion by January 1st, 1863, then Proclamation would go into effect. -
Lincoln gets assasinated
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. -
Congress passed the first Civil Rights Act
guaranteeing African Americans equal rights in transportation, restaurants/hotels, and on juries -
The 14th amendment is ratified; which requires equal protection under the law to all persons
The 14th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified on July 9, 1868, and granted citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States,” which included former slaves recently freed. -
The National Association for the advancement of Colored People is founded
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 by Moorfield Storey, Mary White Ovington and W. E. B. Du Bois. -
The Nineteenth Amendment is ratified
The Nineteenth Amendment (Amendment XIX) to the United States Constitution prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex. -
Jackie Robinson becomes the first African American to play major league baseball
On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson becomes the first African-American in the major leagues when he plays his first game with the Brooklyn Dodgers. -
President Truman signs Executive Order 9981
On July 26, 1948, President Truman issued Executive Order 9981 establishing equality of treatment and opportunity in the Armed Services. -
Brown v. BOE declares school segregation is unconstitutional
Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. -
Rosa Parks is arrested
Rosa Parks is arrested for refusing to move to the back of a Montgomery, Alabama, bus. A boycott follows and the bus segregation ordinance is declared as unconstitutional. -
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) is founded
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) is founded, providing young blacks with a place in the civil rights movement (April). -
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr delivers his “I Have a Dream” speech
"I Have a Dream" is a public speech delivered by American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, in which he calls for an end to racism in the United States and called for civil and economic rights. -
The 24th Amendment abolishes the poll tax
which originally had been instituted in 11 southern states after Reconstruction to make it difficult for poor blacks -
President Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act
President Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act, which made it illegal to impose restrictions to deny African Americans their voting rights. -
President Johnson issues the Executive Order 11246
which enforces affirmative action for the first time. -
The militant Black Panthers are founded by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale
The Party established patrols in Black communities to monitor police activities and protect the residents from police brutality. -
Dr Martin Luther King Jr, is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee.
Martin Luther King, Jr., was an American clergyman and civil rights leader who was fatally shot at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on Thursday, April 4, 1968, at the age of 39. -
President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968
prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing -
Congress passed the Civil Rights Restoration Act
which expands the reach of non-discrimination laws within private institutions receiving federal funds -
President Bush reverses himself and signs the Civil Rights Act of 1991
After two years of debates, vetoes, and threatened vetoes, President George H. W. Bush reverses himself and signs the Civil Rights Act of 1991, strengthening existing civil rights laws and providing for damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination. -
Rosa Parks dies at the age of 92
Rosa Parks, whose act of civil disobedience in 1955 inspired the modern civil rights movement, died Monday in Detroit, Michigan. -
Senator Edward Kennedy introduces the Civil Rights Act of 2008
says that people who are discriminated against in programs using federal funds can sue only for intentional discrimination, not for actions that have a discriminatory effect. -
In Shelby County v. Holder, the Supreme Court struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act
which established a formula for Congress to use when determining if a state or voting jurisdiction requires prior approval before changing its voting laws
