Civil Rights Protests

How did African-Americans achieve equality?

Civil Rights Protests

» What event started the protests in the South?

» Rosa Parks and her refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama

Civil Rights Protests» 1955 Alabama: Rosa Parks was arrested

for violating the segregation law (Jim Crow)

» This incident inspired the:

» Montgomery Bus Boycott: African Americans refused to ride the city buses for 381 days

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Civil Rights Protests

» 1960: Greensboro, North Carolina

» Four African-American students start the Lunch Counter Sit-Ins

» Sitting in the white section, they refused to leave until served

Civil Rights Protests

Civil Rights Protests

» 1961: African Americans begin “Freedom Rides” from the North to the deep South

» They were protesting the segregation law on buses traveling across state lines

» They were beaten, buses set on fire, and some evacuated for safety. In the end it proved successful as an act of civil disobedience

Civil Rights Protests» 1963 Alabama: MLK tries to integrate

Birmingham, considered to be the most segregated city in America

» Police used dogs and fire hoses to break up the protest march. Over 2,000 African Americans were arrested

» This finally got President Kennedy’s attention

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Civil Rights Protests

» 1963 Washington D.C: MLK leads 200,000 people on a march to the Lincoln Memorial to show support for a new civil rights law

» “I have a dream” speech given

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Civil Rights Protests» 1954: The Brown v. Board of Education decision

comes out, integrating public schools

» By 1957 states had not integrated and were hesitant to do so. Little Rock, Arkansas would be the first place to integrate

» The Governor of Arkansas was opposed to this and called the National Guard to stop 9 black children from attending school in the capital city of Little Rock

Civil Rights Protests

» President Eisenhower will not let that happen and orders those same National Guard soldiers to protect the “Little Rock 9”

» Schools in the south slowly begin to integrate

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Civil Rights Protests» Some groups encouraged violent riots to

achieve change

» Black Panthers: Group of African-Americans who followed Malcolm X and used violence in their protests. “Black Power”

» Protests continue until the gov’t steps in

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