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Brown V. Board of Education
The Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools based off of race was unconstitutional. This signaled the end of segregation although there was still some pushback after. This overruled the "separate but equal" idea established previously. -
Emmett Till Murder
Emmett Till's death had a big effect on Mississippi activists who were very upset. It also brought nationwide attention to racism in Mississippi. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
This was a boycott of the bus transportation system. The system allowed for segregation on buses, therefore blacks and some whites, supported not using the busses to travel. It ultimately led to eliminating barriers on transportation. -
Little Rock 9
9 black teenagers were the first to go to Little Rock Central High School to help lead to desegregation. It was the first true example of desegregation in schools that had a ripple affect on desegregation in other schools. These students made this decision to help spark action around desegregation. -
Lunch Counter Sit-Ins (Greensboro)
Sit ins were a nonviolent was of protesting where blacks sat at a segregated counter in a diner. Greensboro was the first leading others to participate in many more. It led to a wider movement throughout the south. -
Freedom Bus Rides
The Riders were Civil Rights activists who rode buses into segregate areas and challenged segregation at the bus stops in hopes of sparking conflict for the federal government to see the violence others would inflict. The Freedom Rides ended up getting the attention of the Kennedy Administration and issued banning of segregation in travel. -
Birmingham Protests
Birmingham protests were in Alabama and they started to re-energize the civil rights movement. There was also a large media impact. -
March on Washington
March on Washington was a march with 200,000 plus people and was promoting an end to segregation with Jobs and Freedom. There was a demand to end segregation through wages, voting rights, education, and more. This is also where MLK gave his "I have a dream" speech. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This was an Act signed to prohibit discrimination in public places and made employment discrimination illegal as well. The employment discrimination applied to race and gender. -
Freedom (Mississippi Summer)
Freedom Summer marked one of the last civil rights campaigns and was a campaign to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi. It involved many meetings, freedom housing, and freedom libraries as well. -
Selma Marches
Hundreds of people gathered to march to the capital of Montgomery to ensure African Americans could exercise their right to vote, even in a segregationist system. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This was an act signed to get rid of discriminatory voting practices in southern states. It also implemented literacy tests prior to voting. This was signed by President Lyndon Johnson.