Early Foundations (Pre-1940s)
1865 |
The Thirteenth Amendment is ratified, abolishing slavery in the United States. |
1868 |
The Fourteenth Amendment is ratified, granting citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States and guaranteeing equal protection under the law. |
1870 |
The Fifteenth Amendment is ratified, prohibiting states from denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. |
1896 |
Plessy v. Ferguson: The Supreme Court upholds "separate but equal" segregation laws in public facilities. |
1940s: Early Activism and Legal Challenges
1941 |
A. Philip Randolph organizes a March on Washington to protest racial discrimination in defense industries, leading President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue Executive Order 8802, banning discrimination in defense jobs. |
1942 |
The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) is founded in Chicago to challenge segregation through nonviolent direct action. |
1948 |
President Harry S. Truman issues Executive Order 9981, desegregating the armed forces. |
1950s: Legal Victories & Mass Mobilisation
1954 |
Brown v. Board of Education: The Supreme Court rules that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson. |
1955 |
Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African American, is brutally murdered in Mississippi, galvanizing national attention to racial violence. |
1 December 1955 |
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat to a white passenger on a Montgomery, Alabama bus, leading to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. |
1955-1956 |
Montgomery Bus Boycott: Led by Martin Luther King Jr. and the Montgomery Improvement Association, the boycott successfully ends with the Supreme Court ruling that bus segregation is unconstitutional. |
1957 |
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) is founded by Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders to coordinate nonviolent protests. |
1957 |
The Little Rock Nine integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, under federal troop protection following resistance from the state governor. |
1957 |
The Civil Rights Act of 1957 is signed into law, establishing the Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice and the Commission on Civil Rights. |
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1960s: Height of the Movement
1960 |
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) is founded in Raleigh, North Carolina, emphasizing youth-led, grassroots activism. |
1 February 1960 |
Greensboro sit-ins begin as four African American college students sit at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter, sparking similar protests across the South. |
1961 |
Freedom Rides: CORE and SNCC activists ride interstate buses into the segregated South to challenge non-enforcement of Supreme Court rulings against segregation. |
1962 |
James Meredith enrolls at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), facing violent resistance; federal marshals are deployed to ensure his admission. |
1963 |
Birmingham Campaign: Led by the SCLC, protests in Birmingham, Alabama, confront segregation, resulting in police violence and mass arrests; media coverage shocks the nation. |
28 August 1963 |
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom: Over 250,000 people gather at the Lincoln Memorial, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech. |
1964 |
Freedom Summer: A campaign to register African American voters in Mississippi, marked by the murders of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner. |
2 July 1964 |
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, banning discrimination in public accommodations, employment, and education. |
1965 |
Selma to Montgomery Marches: Highlighting voting rights issues, the marches lead to "Bloody Sunday" when state troopers attack marchers; widespread outrage follows. |
6 August 1965 |
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is signed into law, prohibiting racial discrimination in voting practices and enforcing the Fifteenth Amendment. |
1966 |
The Black Panther Party is founded in Oakland, California, by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, advocating for armed self-defense and community programs. |
1967 |
Loving v. Virginia: The Supreme Court rules that state bans on interracial marriage are unconstitutional. |
Late 1960s: Continuing Struggle
1967 |
Thurgood Marshall is appointed as the first African American Supreme Court Justice. |
1968 |
Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike: African American sanitation workers strike for better wages and working conditions; Martin Luther King Jr. supports the strike. |
4 April 1968 |
Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, sparking riots in cities across the country. |
11 April 1968 |
The Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act) is signed into law, prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing. |
1970s: Continuing Activism & Changes
1971 |
Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education: The Supreme Court upholds the use of busing to achieve school desegregation. |
1972 |
The Equal Employment Opportunity Act strengthens the enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. |
1978 |
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke: The Supreme Court rules that racial quotas in college admissions are unconstitutional but affirms the use of race as one factor in admissions decisions. |
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1980s-2000s: Ongoing Struggles & Progress
1982 |
The Voting Rights Act is extended for 25 years. |
1983 |
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is established as a federal holiday. |
1991 |
The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is passed, strengthening existing civil rights laws and providing for damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination. |
2003 |
Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger: The Supreme Court upholds affirmative action in college admissions at the University of Michigan, allowing race to be considered as one factor. |
2010s-Present: Renewed Movements
2010 |
The Affordable Care Act is signed into law, expanding healthcare access and including provisions addressing health disparities. |
2013 |
Shelby County v. Holder: The Supreme Court invalidates key provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, leading to new voting restrictions in several states. |
2014 |
The Black Lives Matter movement gains national prominence following the police killings of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in New York City. |
2020 |
Nationwide protests occur following the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota, leading to renewed calls for police reform and racial justice. |
2021 |
Juneteenth is established as a federal holiday, commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. |
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