-
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson becomes the first African American to play in the MLB. -
Armed Services
Harry Truman issues executive order 9981 to end segregation in the armed services. -
Brown v. Board of Education
The US Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. -
Emmett Till
A 14-year-old boy from Chicago is brutally murdered in Mississippi for allegedly flirting with a white woman. This brought in international attention. -
Rosa Parks
African American activist Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a public bus to a white passenger. -
The Little Rock Central High School Integration
9 African American students attended their first day at Little Rock Central High School. They were met by a large white mob and soldiers from the Arkansas National Guard. This caused violence toward the kids. -
The Greensboro Four Sit-In Movement
Four freshmen from the college of North Carolina began a sit-in movement in downtown Greensboro. They bought things at a department store and sat at a white-only lunch counter. They refused to leave and more people joined them, this caused many places to begin to desegregate. -
Ruby Bridges and the New Orleans School Integration
Six-year-old Ruby Bridges was escorted to her first day at the previously all-white school. She was escorted by four armed guards and they were met with angry mobs shouting hate, and parents of other kids would take their kids out of this school. -
Freedom Rides
Seven African Americans and six whites boarded two buses for New Orleans, testing the ban of segregated travel. They used the opposite race facilities when the bus would stop. The group faced violence, in one instance they stopped to change a flat tire and the vehicle was firebombed and they were beaten. -
Birmingham Demonstrations
Martin Luther King Jr. and the SLC launched a campaign in Birmingham, Alabama. This included sit-ins, economic boycotts, mass protests, and marches on City Hall. -
Governor George C. Wallace
Governor George C. Wallace stands in a doorway at the University of Alabama to block two African Americans from entering. It took the National guard to end this. -
I have a dream speech
Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his famous I have a dream speech before 250,000 people in Washington DC. This inspired many and was a key point in the Movement -
Civil Rights Act
President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law. The act authorized the federal government to prevent racial discrimination in employment, voting, and the use of public facilities. -
Assassination of Malcolm X
The prominent African American leader Malcolm X was assassinated while lecturing at the Audubon ballroom in Harlem, New York -
Selma-Montgomery March
Martin Luther King Jr organized a march from Selma Alabama to Montgomery, to call for federal voting rights that would provide legal support for disenfranchised African Americans in the south. This was met with violence from state troopers. -
Watts Riots
A series of violent confrontations between the city police and residents of Watts and other African American neighborhoods broke out after a white officer had arrested an African American man, Marquette Frye. -
Black Panther Party Founded
The Black Panther Party was formed to protect African American neighborhoods from police brutality, as well as launching numerous community programs. -
Loving v Virginia
This court case declared the Virginia statutes prohibiting interracial marriage was unconstitutional. -
Detroit Riot
A series of violent confrontations between African Americans and city police in Detroit began after a raid at an illegal drinking club where police arrested everyone inside including 82 African Americans. This resulted in 43 death, hundreds of injuries, more than 7000 arrests, and 1,000 burned buildings. -
Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr
Martin Luther King Jr was killed by a sniper while standing on the second-floor balcony at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. His murder set off riots all over the country.
