Civil Rights Timeline Separate drinking fountains for whites and blacks. "Colored balconies" in movie theaters. Seats in the back of the bus. Soldiers called out to protect little children who were trying to go to school. It may be difficult to believe these were examples of conditions in America less than 40 years ago. The struggle to change these conditions, and to win equal protection under the law for citizens of all races, formed the backdrop of Martin Luther King's short life.

Plessy v. Ferguson PPlessy v. Ferguson was a Supreme Court case which, in 1896, legalized segregation HHomer Plessy was a black man who was arrested in Louisiana for sitting in the “white” car of a train TThe case reached the U.S. Supreme Court which declared that segregation was legal as long the facilities were “separate but equal”

“ Our constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens. In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law…If evils will result from the commingling of the two races upon public highways established for the benefit of all, they will be infinitely less than those that will surely come from state legislation regulating the enjoyment of civil rights upon the basis of race. The thin disguise of 'equal' accommodations for passengers in railroad coaches will not mislead any one, nor atone for the wrong this day done” – Justice John Harlan

1954 Brown vs. Board of Education: U.S. Supreme Court bans segregation in public schools.

Implementing Brown  Little Rock, Arkansas – September 24, African American students were set to attend Little Rock Central High School at the beginning of the 1957 school year. The students were prevented entry by a group of anti-integration protestors. Finally, on September 24 th, President Eisenhower ordered the 101 st Airborne Division to escort the students into school.

1955 – Alabama – Rosa Parks protests the segregation laws in Montgomery by refusing to move from her seat when asked by a white man.

 After more than a year of boycotting the buses and a legal fight, the buses are finally desegregated

 Lunch Counters were another place where African Americans were not allowed.  In the 1960s, people protested this by staging sit-ins: They would sit at the counter and refuse to move all day long.

 These protests were not easy. Many people in America did not want to give equal rights to African Americans.

 Freedom rides begin from Washington, D.C: Groups of black and white people ride buses through the South to challenge segregation.

 Led by Reverend Martin Luther King, protesters would march through Southern cities, protesting to try to change racist laws. Just like the lunch counters, these protesters were not treated kindly.

 Dogs and high powered hoses were used on the marchers.

Bull Connor  Watch the following video:  yO4MGg yO4MGg  What affect did Bull Connor have on the Civil Rights movement?

1963 – March On Washington

24 th Amendment On January 23, 1964, the 24 th Amendment was ratified. This amendment abolished the poll tax which Had been instituted by 11 southern states after Reconstruction.

Civil Rights Act of President Lyndon Johnson asked for and received the most comprehensive civil rights act in American history. - Civil Rights Act of 1964 specifically prohibited discrimination in voting, education, and the use of public facilities. For the first time since the Supreme Court ruled on segregation in public schools in 1954, the federal government had a means of enforcing desegregation because Title VI of the act barred the use of federal funds for segregated programs and schools

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission  An independent federal agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination.  The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability.

Voting Rights Act of The National Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed the requirement that voters in the United States take literacy tests to register to vote. This act is considered a landmark in Civil Rights legislation

Affirmative Action  Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, sex or national origin“ into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group.  The focus of such policies ranges from employment and education to public contracting and health programs.  “Affirmative action” is action taken to increase the representation of women and minorities in areas of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded

Affirmative Action

 The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tenn.

 In response to King's death, many residents of U.S. inner cities hurled firebombs, broke windows, looted stores, burned down communities, and pelted motorists with rocks. Although there were disturbances in N.Y. City, compared to Detroit and Watts County, N.Y. was relatively calm.