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Its mission is to ensure political, educational, social, and economic equality for minorities by removing barriers to discrimination through legal, legislative, and peaceful means. -
Worst incident of racial violence in American history, the bloody 1921 outbreak in Tulsa has continued to haunt Oklahomans. -
Nine African American male teenagers accused of raping a young white woman and a 17-year-old white girl -
Debuting with the Brooklyn Dodgers as the first African American player in the modern era, a pivotal moment in both sports and the Civil Rights Movement, overcoming intense racist abuse to excel on the field and later become a prominent civil rights activist, leading to annual MLB celebrations of his legacy on "Jackie Robinson Day". -
Supreme Court case that declared state-sponsored segregation in public schools unconstitutional. -
Brutal lynching of a 14-year-old African American boy from Chicago, accused of offending a white woman in Mississippi, which became a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement after his mutilated body was found, his killers were acquitted by an all-white jury, and his mother insisted on an open-casket funeral to show the world the horror of racial violence. -
Was a pivotal, 381-day protest against segregated buses in Montgomery, Alabama. -
Were nine Black students who integrated Little Rock Central High School. -
Ruby Bridges became the first Black child to desegregate William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans. -
A classic civil rights document written in 1963 from a jail cell, defending nonviolent protest against segregation in Birmingham, Alabama, and criticizing white moderate clergy for urging patience over direct action, becoming a cornerstone text for understanding civil disobedience and justice. -
A massive, peaceful demonstration by over 250,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial, advocating for Black Americans. -
Was landmark legislation outlawing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, ending segregation in public places, schools, and employment. -
He was assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan while preparing to give a speech, shot by gunmen believed to be linked to the Nation of Islam (NOI) after his split from the group. -
A landmark civil rights bill that banned discriminatory voting practices like literacy tests, outlawed poll taxes in federal elections. -
Was formed in Oakland, California, in October 1966 by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, evolving from frustration with police brutality and civil rights failures; it started as armed patrols for community self-defense but grew into a revolutionary organization focused on Black Power, socialism, and community programs like free breakfast, becoming a major force against systemic inequality despite intense FBI suppression. -
Thurgood Marshall was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Lyndon B. Johnson. -
Martin Luther King Jr., an American civil rights activist, was fatally shot at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.