The Civil Rights Movement is one of the most beautiful and most painful events in the history of the United States. On the one hand, the ugliness of human nature in terms of violence and hatred was exposed, but you also have the opposite as well. Thousands of people came together under leaders like Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, and even the president John F. Kennedy to fight for the rights of people they had never even met. Ordinary people like James Meredith and James E. Chaney put their lives on the line to fight for rights for everyone. Here are some of the most important events in the Civil Rights movement.
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1896: The Supreme Court ruled “separate but equal” laws are legal in the Plessy v Ferguson decision.
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1915: The Grandfather Clause, which restricted black voting registration, is repealed.
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1919: A series of race riots occurs in Chicago that left 38 dead.
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August 1955: Emmett Till, a 14-year-old black boy, is murdered for whistling at a white woman.
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September 1957: The Little Rock Central High school board votes on school integration.
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April 16, 1963: Martin Luther King writes his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”.
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June 11, 1963: The head of the Mississippi NAACP is murdered outside his house.
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September 15, 1963: A Birmingham black church is bombed, resulting in the deaths of 4 black girls.
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January 23, 1964: A poll tax used to prevent blacks from voting is outlawed with the 24th Amendment.
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July 1, 1964: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is passed, which forbid racial discrimination.
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October 1966: The Black Panthers are founded by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton in Oakland, California.
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June 12, 1967: Interracial marriage is ruled unconstitutional by Supreme Court.
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1878: The Bakke v Regents of University of California decision outlaws fixed racial quotas.
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March 22, 1988: Civil Rights Restoration Act passed by Congress.
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November 22, 1991: Civil Rights Act of 1991 signed by President Bush.
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April 29, 1992: Race riots occur after police who beat Rodney King are acquitted.
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January 2008: Senator Edward Kennedy introduces the Civil Rights Act of 2008.
Looking at the progression of civil rights in the US, it’s very clear that small steps can make a huge difference. Equality wasn’t established by one big event. It took hundreds of small events. The United States cannot truly become great until every person is truly treated equally.
("Legal information found on this page does not constitute legal advice.")
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