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Plessy V. Ferguson
A supreme court case that made segregation legal. Homer Adolph Plessy was an eighth African American, but was made to sit in the back of a train car. He fought for his right to sit where ever he wanted, but the supreme court made that right moot by making segregation legal. The importance was the start of the proof with the lack of inequality in the United States.
https://www.oyez.org/cases/1850-1900/163us537 -
Brown V. Board of Education
Marshall Brown and the supreme court had five cases between them and the Board of Education to decide whether schools should be segregated or not. With science to back it up, the decision was made to make segregation in schools unconstitutional. The case was important because it led to schools being integrated together.
http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/history-brown-v-board-education-re-enactment -
Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks denied when a bus driver told her to move to the back of the bus resulting in her getting arrested. Also it was made known to not ride the Montgomery Bus as a boycott against it. The importance was contributing to the Civil Rights movement through civil disobedience which showed that passive protesting could be done.
http://www.ushistory.org/us/54b.asp -
Murder of Emmett Till
14 year old Emmett Till is murdered for flirting with a white girl on the 24th of August. The murderers were the girls brother and father. They beat him to death. This was important because it showed the extent white people would go to keep segregation and the discrimination of blacks alive.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-death-of-emmett-till -
Founding of Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) & Martin Luther King
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference was a group of sixty black ministers and civil rights leaders that gathered so they could try to plan and organize activities like the Montgomery Bus Boycott to support Civil Rights. This group was the start of a large group of civil rights activists which was important because it was not just individuals now.
http://www.blackpast.org/aah/southern-christian-leadership-conference-1957 -
Little Rock Nine and Central High School
The little rock nine were nine black students who would be coming into an all white school as a result of the Brown V. Board of Education court case. The governor of Arkansas sent troops to block the entry of the school, which Eisenhower responded with by sending his own troops to escort the students. Central High School was the start of integration for the lack of segregation.
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/central-high-school-integration -
Greensboro Sit in
A protest where Civil Rights supporters and activists sat at lunch counters in Greensboro. Most of them were black so it was seen as disrespect to white people. They were beaten because of the sit-ins, but the idea was to not give in, and be as passive with the sit in as possible. The importance was in the passive protest of the sit-ins and the how white people started to be seen as evil.
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/the-greensboro-sit-in -
Freedom Ride/Freedom Riders
The freedom riders got on multiple buses to contribute with the Morgan V. The commonwealth of Virginia. Buses were attacked by the KKK and other white people who saw the black people using their restrooms and in general being around. http://www.blackpast.org/aah/freedom-rides-1961 -
March on Washington
200,000 people marched to the Lincoln Memorial to demand equal rights and was led by Martin Luther King Jr. where he said his "I have a dream," speech. -
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) & Freedom Summer
A voter registration project that wanted to expand black voting.
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/freedom-summer -
Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 made it illegal to discriminate based on race, color, sex, or religion.
https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=97 -
Assassination of Malcolm X
Malcolm X was assassinated before he was going to give a speech with a gunshot. Members of the Nation of Islam were charged for the murder. Malcolm X and his death was important because it would start more support for his cause like with the Black Panthers.
https://www.cnn.com/2015/02/17/opinion/ali-malcolm-x-assassination-anniversary/index.html -
Voting Rights Act
The voting rights act enforced the 15th amendment and made it so that the Civil Rights Act would not go unnoticed. Discrimination and lack of black voters were the cause of the act.
https://www.justice.gov/crt/history-federal-voting-rights-laws -
Assassination of MLK
The murder of Martin Luther King Jr. happened in Memphis Tennessee. His death was through that of a gunshot. The assassination of MLK started riots and more contribution to his cause than when he was alive. The importance of the outburst was great.
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr-assassination
