-
Brown v. Board of edu
Black father, Oliver Brown, filed lawsuit against the Board of Education because he felt his daughter was getting a lesser education than a white student would. After segregation in universities was abolished, the NAACP got involved in public schooling and claimed it made black student inferior which violates the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court ruled "separate education facilities are inherently unequal". -
Emmett Till Murdered
In Mississippi, a 14 yo, black boy, Emmett Till was accused of whistling at a white woman. In response, the womans husband and his brother kidnapped him and proceeded to beat and shoot him. The men threw his body in the Tallahatchie River and were acquitted (found not guilty). This brought a lot of attention to the frequent abuse and lynching of African Americans. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was started by Rosa Parks after she refused to give her seat to a white passenger on a bus. She got arrested and was sentenced to jail, after she got out she found that many activists followed her example and started a boycott. this was now lead and organized by MLK jr.. The NAACP also helped by filing a lawsuit in support of the boycott, the district court stuck it down but the lawsuit was taken up the the Supreme Court where the boycotters won. -
Central High School Integration (LR9)
The Little Rock Nine was the group of nine very successful black students who were the first to integrate into a white high school. There were many very angry mobs at the school every day. It was so bad the federal troops were needed but they didn't do much to help. Eisenhower ordered the 101st airborne National Guardsmen to protect the black students. -
Freedom Rides
Many southern states continued to enforce segregated buses despite of the ruling against it. So, a group called Freedom Riders would travel by bus all over the south to test and protest their segregation policies, this was called the Freedom rides. They went to VA, NC, SC without much trouble but in AL they were met with an angry mob that attacked them with lead pipes, chains and clubs. The Freedom Riders were kicked, beat and fire bombed.The police were in contact with the KKK and did nothing. -
The Childrens Crusade
SCLC leader James Bevel proposed the idea that child protesters would be good because they had less to loose so they wouldn't hesitate as much as adults would. So a group of students decided to skip school to march downtown through Birmingham, AL in protest of segregation. Public safety commissioner Eugene "Bull" Connor ordered fire hoses to be used to get rid of marcher. -
March on Washington
The March on Washington was a march with over 200,000 people involved. This march was in efforts to end segregation and improve job opportunities for African Americans. They wanted fair job training and placement, school integration, and for legislation to prohibit racial discrimination in public and private hiring. It was during this march that MLK jr gave his famous "I Have a Dream" -
Baptist Church Bombing
At 16th Street, Birmingham, AL four girls were killed at a baptist church before service. The girls were Denise McNair-11, Cynthia Wesely, Carole Robertson and Addie Mae Collins- all 14. Also 20 people were injured. This church was known for holding civil rights meetings. 8,000 people attended the girls funeral. No one was arrested for the bombing which upset many people until 1977, a KKK leader Robert Chambliss is convicted of the bombing and 2 surviving accomplices in 2001 ans 2002. -
Freedom Summer
In Mississippi many civil rights movements were run by local organizations, they all had a lot of help from national organizations such as NAACP, CORE, and SNCC. Most of these efforts were for voting rights. 3 CORE volunteers went missing and over a month later the FBI was tipped off that they were dead and their bodies were under a bridge. Over a dozen KKK members were arrested, in 1999 and 2005 Edgar Allen Ray, a KKK member was convicted of manslaughter and was sentenced to 60 yrs in prison. -
Bloody Sunday
In Selma, AL,a group of peaceful protesters for voting rights. There were 600 people on a 50 mile march. Mayor John Cloud ordered police to disperse the marchers, when they didn't leave, the police used violent tactics to attack them. They were both on foot and on horse and they used nightclubs and teargas to brutally injure dozens of people. In response to this incident, Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson sends a bill to Congress to end "all restrictions used to deny people the right to vote". -
The Voting Rights Act of 1965
It is a law puts an end to any restrictions targeting black citizens voting process.Ex. literary tests, voting fees. Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson and Congress decided that after all the violence towards activists, they need more laws to support the 15th Amendment which promises voting rights to all. This banned all racial discrimination in voting in all local, state and federal governments.
