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Plessey v. Ferguson
Was a landmark Supreme Court case requiring "seperate but equal" facilities for African-Americans. "Seperate but equal" remained the standard doctrine until 1954. Today, a plaque stands near where Plessey had tried to board a "whites only" train car. -
Thurgood Marshall
He was the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. He served on the Supreme Court from 1967-1991. He died of heart failure at the ripe old age of 84. -
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Thurgood Marshall
He was the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. He served on the Surpreme Court from 1967-1991. He died of heart failure at the ripe old age of 84. -
NAACP
Their job was to promote equality of rights and to eradicate race prejudice among the citizens of the United States. Their first court case was the 1910 Pink Franklin case. Following the resignation of Kweisi Mfume in 2005, Bruce Gordon was choosen as their president. -
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Rosa Parks
She started the Montgomery Bus Boycott when she refused to give up her seat in the colored section. In her autobiography she recounts a time when her grandfather guarded their door from KKK members. She started her civil rights movement to find out "her rights as a human being and US citizen." -
Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer was born on October 6, 1917 in Mississippi. After a life changing meeting in 1962, she dedicated her life to fighting for civil rights. She died of cancer on March 14, 1977. -
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Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer was born on October 6, 1917 in Mississippi. After a life changing meeting in 1962, she dedicated her life to fighting for civil rights. She died of cancer on March 14, 1977. -
Malcolm X
Malcolm X was born on May 19, 1935 in Omaha, Nebraska. Malcolm was credited with increasing membership in the NOI from 500 in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963. On February 21, 1965 Malcolm was shot 15 times and killed onstage in New York. -
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Malcolm X
Malcolm X was born on May 19, 1935 in Omaha, Nebraska. Malcolm was credited with increasing membership in the NOI from 500 in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963. On February 21, 1965 Malcolm was shot 15 times and killed onstage in New York. -
Medgar Evers
Medgar Evers was born on July 2, 1925. He was invovled in efforts to overturn segregation in The University of Mississippi. On June 2, 1963 he was shot outside his home and killed by an assassins bullet. -
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Medgar Evers
Medgar Evers was born on July 2, 1925. He was invovled in efforts to overturn segregation in The University of Mississippi. On June 2, 1963 he was shot outside his home and killed by an assassins bullet. -
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
He became a national icon for using nonviolent tactics to promote civil rights. King was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. He was assassinated on April 4, 1968. -
James Meredith
Meredith fought to be the first African-American to be accepted to The University of Mississippi. During his "March Against Fear" in 1966 he was shot by a sniper. He survived the attempt and tried unsuccessfully to be a Congress member. -
Sit-ins
A sit-in is when a group of people nonviolently place themselves in strategic locations. In the early 1940's the Congress for Racial Equality conducted a sit-in. On June 23, 1957 the "Royal Seven" conducted a sit-in to protest segregation. -
Brown v. The Board of Education
The decision overturned the ruling of the Plessey v. Ferguson case of 1896. The Warren Court declared unanimously that the "seperate but equal" were not equal. Eventually there would be three clauses to the case all the way up until 1978. -
Mongomery Bus Boycott
Started when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white person. The boycott ended on December 20, 1956 when Browder v. Gayle took effect. Many important civil rights activists took part including MLK Jr. and Ralph Abernathy. -
SCLC
MLK Jr. invited over 60 black minsters to Atlanta to meet and discuss civil rights. On the 37th anniversary of MLK's "I Have A Dream" speech the SCLC elected Martin Luther King III its president. To this day there are over 50 seperate chapters of the SCLC. -
The Little Rock Nine
They were a group of African-Americans who tried to go to an "all white" school in Little Rock, Arkansas. President Eisenhower sent the army to escort the kids to school, they failed the first time. In 2007 the US Mint made a silver dollar to recognize the efforts and struggles of the Little Rock Nine. -
SNCC
Their first focus was on black power, then on the Vietnam War. The SNCC disinigrated during the 1970's. The actions of the SNCC forced Kennedy to station FBI officials around their building. -
Freedom Riders
Civil Rights activists who rode interstate buses to challenge nonenforcement of US Supreme Court Decisions. The police commissioner in Birmingham, Alabama let the KKK have 15min of violence against them without arrests. They were constantly attacked by KKK members while on their routes. -
March on Washington
One of the largest political rallies for human rights in
US history. During the rally Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. There were around 300,000 people, with around fifthteen percent were non-minority. -
Freedom Summer
It was a campaign to register blacks to vote in the deep South during the summer of 1964. During that summer 37 black churches and 30 black homes were firebombed, The 1965 Voting Rights Act ended Freedom Summer on a high note for the supporters. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
It was signed into law by LBJ on July 2, 1964. It outlawed major forms of discrimination to racial minorities. It also guarentees equal protection under the 14th amendment to all citizens. -
Voting Acts Right of 1965
It was passed to break the grip of state disfranchisement. LBJ signed it into law on August 6, 1965. Closely resembles South Carolina v. Katzenbach (1966). -
Black Panthers
In October of 1966, in Oakland, California, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. They practiced militant self-defense against the US government. By the beginning of the 1980's the remaining Panthers were killed or arrested. -
Martin Luther King Jr. Assassination
At 6:01pm on April 4, 1968 MLK Jr. was shot by a .30-caliber sniper bullet. The FBI investigated but some believe them to be partially or fully responsible. An escaped convict, James Earl Ray, was arrested but many believe he is innocent.
