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
Civil Rights Protests
» Picture
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
Civil Rights Protests
» Picture
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
Civil Rights Protests
» Picture
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
Civil Rights Protests
» picture
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
Civil Rights Protests
» Picture