Civil Rights Timeline

  • Brown vs. Board of Education

    Brown vs. Board of Education
    The Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools on the basis of their race was unconstitutional.
  • Emmett Till Murder

    Emmett Till Murder
    Racial violence and injustice prevalent in Mississippi.
  • Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott

    Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
    Parks' arrest sparked a year long boycott of Montgomery buses, led by Martin Luther king Jr, in which African Americans refused to ride the bus until the system was desegregated.
  • The Little Rock NIne and Integration

    The Little Rock NIne and Integration
    A group of 9 black students attempted to integrate Little Rock Central High School in 1957 after the Supreme Court ruled segregation in schools is unconstitutional.
  • Greensboro Woolworth's Sit ins

    Greensboro Woolworth's Sit ins
    Four black students from North Carolina A and T state University refused to leave a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro after being denied service.
  • Freedom Rides

    Freedom Rides
    A series of integrated bus trips through the segregated south in 1961, organized by the Congress of Racial Equality to challenge racial discrimination in interstate travel.
  • MLK's Letter From Birmingham Jail

    MLK's Letter From Birmingham Jail
    Martin Luther King defends his nonviolent protests and the need for direct action in fighting segregation, responding to criticisms from white clergymen who urged patience.
  • March on Washington

    March on Washington
    A massive protest in Washington D.C