Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Movement was a series of efforts to achieve equal recognition and standing for African-American people in the United States. Before this movement, there were many activists and laws that began the process of recognizing people of color in America, but the greatest strides forward were made during this era. Along with great triumphs for Black people, there were many tragedies that accompanied the events of these years.http://www.crmvet.org/tim/timhome.htm

After 1968, the Civil Rights Movement continued with milestones, such as the election of Maynard Jackson, the first Black mayor of a city in the American South, the establishment of a federal holiday recognizing Martin Luther King, Jr and the successful trial and conviction of Byron De La Beckwith for the murder of Medgar Evers. These events served to give evidence that the work and sacrifices made during the turbulent years of the movement were worthwhile.http://www.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/links.html

There were many notable events and even more notable people during the Civil Rights era. Below is a partial list of these milestones.http://www.infoplease.com/spot/civilrightstimeline1.html http://www.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/links.html

• 1954 - The Supreme Court rules in the case of Brown V. Board of Education that segregation in public schools is unconstitutional.

• 1955 - Emmett Till, a fourteen year old boy visiting family in Mississippi, is tortured and murdered by two White men because of supposedly whistling at a White woman. Both men were acquitted by an all-White jury.

• 1955 - Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on a city bus for a White man. She is arrested and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. leads a boycott of the Montgomery, Alabama bus system.

• 1963 - NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers is shot in the back by KKK member, Byron De La Beckwith. Evers had been instrumental in integrating the University of Mississippi a year earlier.

• 1963 - Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his "I Have a Dream" speech at the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.. The March on Washington, where King gave his speech, is attended by 200,000 people.

• 1963 - Four young Black girls are killed when a bomb is detonated at their church in Birmingham, Alabama.

• 1964 - President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964, outlawing racial, religious and ethnic discrimination.

• 1965 - Malcolm X is murdered in New York City, most likely by extremists from the Nation of Islam. Malcolm had recently founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity and agreed to work with White supporters.

• 1968 - Martin Luther King, Jr is assassinated while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray confesses to the crime and is convicted.