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Civil Rights Timeline
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13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment was passed by the Senate and formally abolished slavery in the United Staes. During the end of the Civil War before Southern states restored to the Union. Although the amendment was to end slavery there were still involuntary labor for African Americans. -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment had four principles which were state and fedral citizenship for all persons of race both born or unaturalized in the US, no state allowed to deprived of life, liberty, or property or privilege and immunities, and no person could be denied equal protection laws. It was ratified during the Reconstruction Era so it is known as the Reconstruction amendment. This amendment was passed to ensure that the Civil Rights Act would remain valid. -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment gave the African American men the right to vote by declaring the "right of citizens of the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Although they had the right to vote they made it hard for the African American men to vote by making them pay poll taxes or take literacy test. KKK also made it difficult for them to vote becaue they would threaten their lives if they voted for the opposing side. -
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Jim Crow Era
The Jim Crow era was a time period marked by racial segregation. Many times the segragation was by law but also some seperation was from social constructs. Often the structues for black people were inferior to the white structures. -
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Literacty Test
Literacy tests were used by southern states after freed slaves gained voting rights. These tests were used in coodination of a few other things in order to disenfranchise African Americans. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Homer Plessy is a thirty year old light complexion male, who was sent to jail on June 7, 1892 for sitting in the "White" car of the East Louisiana Railroad. Although he could've passed for white but under Louisiana's law he was considered black therefore he was supposed to be sitting in a "Colored" car. Louisiana passed a Seperate Car Act in 1892 so a black civil rights organizationd decided to challenge the law. Plessy's lawyer also argued that the Act violated the 13th and 14th Amendemnet. -
19th Amendment
The 19th amendment ended the fight for women sufferage and all American women were finally able to vote. There was a difficult struggle and took years of protest and agitation. The beginnings of the 1800s women organized, petitioned and picketed to win the right to vote. -
Korematsu v. United States
On Feburary 19, 1942 early in World War II President Roosevelt ordered the US military the power to ban tens of thousands of American citizens of Japenese ancestry from Washington State to southern Arizona. Then placed them into interment camps until the war was over but a man by the man of Fred Korematsu refused to live his home in San Leandro, California. He then was sentence to jail and the case made it to the Supreme Court. -
Sweatt v. Painter
A thirty three year old African American mail carrier from Houston, Texas named Herman Sweatt wanted to be a lawyer an attend the law school at the University of Texas. He appeared there with a copy of his undergraduate transcript from Wiley College and presented it to the President of the University, Theophilus Painter. Painter wrote a letter to the Attorney General saying that he is duly qualified but he is a negro and denies his application for admission -
Birth of Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges grew up on a farm in Tylertown, Mississippi with her mother Lucille Bridges and father Abon Bridges. When Ruby turned four the Bridges moved to New Orleans where they started a bigger family. The following year Ruby had began school at an all black school several miles away although they lived five blocks away from an all white school which her mother wanted her to attend. As for her father he rather her stay at the all back school where she was safe. -
Brown v. Board of Education
This created the law that schools must be desegregated or shut down. Alot of schols shut down because they did not want african americans in their schools. This court case had a psychologist come and give students a doll test to see the level of self-esteem and beliefs between white and black people. -
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Montgomery Bus Boycott
After Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white male the boycott began. African Americans in Montgomery Alabama protested public buses for not allowing blacks to sit in the front of the bus. The boycott lasted 381 days. It got a lot of attention from the media and the U.S. Supreme Court ordered Montgomery to integrate its bus system. -
The Test
In the spring time Lucille took Ruby to take a test which black students would take to see if they qualified to enter an all white school. During the summer befoore school started they got a letter informing them that Ruby was one out of six african americans to pass the test and attend at William Frantz Public School. During the whole summer and the beginning of fall they were fighting to slow the integration proccess. -
William Frantz Public School
Out of the six kids that passed the test two stayed at the same school and the other three went to McDonough, so Ruby went to William Frantz alone. This was her first day of school and although it was walking distance the Marshals arrived early morning to pick up Ruby and her mother and escort them inside. When they arrived there it was a crowd surrounding them as they were walking in the school. They shouted mean things at her and even threw stuff. Some parents even withdrew their kids . -
Meeting Mrs. Henry
On the first day of school Ruby had too sit in the office because they were affraid for her safety. At the end of the day she went home and when she woke up the same routine had to happen again because the mob was still outside the school. So when Ruby and her mother entered the school they met her new teacher Barbara Henry, She took to the classroom and Ruby was the only student, because she went to an all white school her family suffered. -
Loving v. Virginia
In 1958 the interaccial couple 17 year old Mildred Jeter who was black and 23 year old Ricard Loving who was white lived in Virginia, but went and got married in Washington, D.C. and returned back home. The couple was arrested and charged with unlawful cohabitation. The judge Leon M. Bazile suspended there 1 year sentence if they agreed to leave the state for 25 years. They left for 5 years but returned to visit family and was arrested for traveling together. -
Poll Taxes
This was a fee that every adult had to pay in order to vote during election. This fee was a burden upon poor blacks but also some whites, it also kept the blacks from voting. Then the 24th amendment was passed and ended the poll taxes. -
24th Amendment
The 24th Amendment ended poll taxes which were fees that all american citizens would have to pay if the wanted to vote in a national election. They were making the poll tax knowing that African American men didnt have money so that meant they were incapable of voting. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act outlawed many differnt forms of discrimination. Specifically the act mentions: race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It also ended inequality in voter registration. While it was a step in the right direction, there are still instances of discrimination that still exist. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This is another act signed by Johnson. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibits racial discrimination in voting. The 14th and 15th amendments were reinforced by this. -
Affirmative Action
Effective tool for creating oppportunities and security for all americans. This is favoring those who suffer from discrimination in realtion to education or employment. -
Robert Kennedy Speech in Indianapolis
John F. Kennedy's younger brother Robert Kennedy came to Indianapolis to break the tragic news that Martin Luther King Jr. passed to a large gathering of African Americans. It was a planned trip to get the bid of his Democratic nomination for president but ended up eing a campaign stop. -
Reed v. Reed
This case looks at equal protection in estates. The ruling found that it is illegal to discriminate by sex for estate edminastrators. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment is also known as the ERA. This amendment was designed to provide equal rights for women. It only recieved 35 of the 38 states needed to ratify it. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
This case also involves the issue of discrimination in schools. Despite affirmative action being taken, many were upset that schools had specific quotas for minory races. The supreme court ruled that these quotas were not legal. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
This case questioned the legality of discrimination against homosexuals. The ruling upheld a law that made sex between homosexuals illegal. It was overturned in 2003. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Also known as the ADA. The act made discrimination against disabled people illegal. The disabilities protected are both mental and physical. -
Lawerence v. Texas
This case overturned the ruling of Bowers V. Hardwick. The Supreme Court found that laws outlawing homosexual activity were illegal. The ruling allows sex between two consenting adults regardless of gender. -
Fisher v. University of Texas
This case looked at Affirmative Action at the University of Texas. Specifically it sought to see if the admissions policy at the Austin school. The court voided a lower courts ruling and remanded the case for further ruling. -
Baskin v. Bogan
Judge in Indiana strikes down gay marriage ban. Later a three panel committee of judges upheld the striking down of gay marriage. It is expected that the supreme court will see this case within the year.
