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Civil Rights Court Cases
October 15 1883: The United States Court ruled in Civil Rights Cases of 1883 that the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was unconstitutional. The Court ruled that the 14th Amendment prohibited states but not citizens, from discriminating. This civil right reversal was devastating for African Americans. -
1890-1908
Southern states adopted new constitutions and voting laws designed to disenfranchise black voters. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson, the United States Supreme Court established the "Separate but Equal Doctrine," holding that legal racial segregation does not violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. -
TNNC
TNNC (The National Negro Conference) met in New York City and founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). -
1914
Every southern state and many northern cities had Jim Crow laws that Discriminated against black Americans. -
The Great Migration
In the Great Migration, rural southern blacks moved to northern cities, to the West, and to southern cities Between 1915 and 1920, 500,000 to 1 million moved to the North and West in 1920s. -
The Silent March
At least forty blacks were attacked and killed during a race riot in East St. Louis Illinois. Three weeks later, 10,000 blacks participated in a silent march down Fifth Avenue in New York City to pro test racial oppression, especially riots directed against black communities. -
WWl
1917 The United States entered World War I. Approximately 370,000 blacks saw service during the conflict, including about 1,400 officers. Three black regiments received the Croix de Guerre for valor. -
Red Summer
Many whites, resentful of black demands for equality, attacked blacks. Chicago, Houston, Little Rock, Harlem, Washington D.C., New York, Baltimore, New Orleans, and many other cities had outbreaks of rioting as whites attacked blacks throughout the United States. This period is called the Red Summer. -
The Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a major artistic awakening among African-Americans. Key figures included Claude McKay, Jean Toomer, Jacob Lawrence,Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurtson. 1920-35 -
Oscar DePriest
Oscar DePriest, a Chicago Republican, was the first African American elected to congress from a district north of the Mason-Dixon Line. -
Executive Order 8802
President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, which eliminated hiring discrimination in the defense industry and established the Fair Employment Practices Commission. In response, black leaders, including A. Philip Randolph, canceled a planned march on Washington. -
1942
The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was founded in Chicago -
World War ll
World War ll ended Approximately 1,150,000 blacks were inducted into the military, with most serving in support units. -
New Law
The Maryland legislature passed a law that imprisoned any white woman who birthed a mixed-race child. The white woman would be incarcerated up to five years. The law was renewed in 1957. -
Alabama law
An Alabama law barred blacks and whites from playing cards, dominoes, checkers, pool, football, baseball, basketball, or golf together. A North Carolina law required factories and plants to maintain separate bathrooms for black employees. A Louisiana law mandated that movie theaters and all places of public entertainment separate white and black patrons.