-
Period: to
Civil Rights
-
Brown vs. Board of Education
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, and required the desegregation of schools across America.The Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision did not abolish segregation in other public areas, nor did it require desegregation of public schools by a specific time. It did, however, declare the permissive or mandatory segregation that existed in 21 states unconstitutional. -
Montgomery bus-boycott
Rosa Louise Parks was recognized as the "mother of the modern day civil rights movement" in America. She refused to give up her seat to a white man on the Montgomery Alabama bus December 1, 1955. Protesting began on December 5, 1955, but her strong quiet act changed America and the way people look at black people. After sh refused to give up her seat she was boycotted from the bus for 381 days -
Woolworth's sit-in
On February 1, 1960, four African American college students sat down at a lunch counter at Woolworth’s in Greensboro, North Carolina, and politely asked for service. Their request was refused. When asked to leave, they remained in their seats. Their passive resistance and peaceful sit-down demand helped ignite a youth-led movement to challenge racial inequality throughout the South. -
Freedom Rides
The Freedom Riders left Washington on May 4, 1961 and traveled without incident across Virginia and North Carolina. The Freedom Riders continued and crossed Georgia without incident. When the activists reached Alabama on May 14 the attacks intensified.The Greyhound riders were met in Anniston by a mob whose members threw rocks and slashed the bus’s tires.The driver managed to drive the bus a few miles out of town. When he stopped to repair the tires, white supremacists firebombed the vehicle. -
Birmingham Children's March and boycott
The children of Birmingham felt oppressed at every turn. In the spring of 1963 they played a vital role in restoring humanity and changed lives everywhere. "You could see that first blast of water dispersed the crowds, but when the water subsided, there were ten kids still standing, and they were singing one word: Freedom." -
March on Washington
The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom took place in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. Attended by some 250,000 people, it was the largest demonstration ever seen in the nation's capital, and one of the first to have extensive television coverage. -
Selma to Montgomery March
Then SNCC leader, now Congressman John Lewis led the first Selma-to-Montgomery march for voting rights on March 7, 1965, when 600 marchers were attacked by police in riot gear, who fractured Lewis’ skull on a day remembered as Bloody Sunday. Before going to the hospital, Lewis appeared before television cameras demanding intervention by President Johnson, who, eight days later, appeared before a joint session of Congress to demand passage of the Voting Rights Act. It was passed Aug. 3, 1965