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Desegregating the U.S. Military
President Harry Truman signed Executive Order 9981, ending segregation in the U.S. military and ensuring equal treatment for all service members. video -
Brown v. Board of Education
he Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson and declaring “separate but equal” unlawful. video -
Emmett Till is Murdered
14-year-old Emmett Till was brutally murdered in Mississippi for allegedly whistling at a white woman. His open-casket funeral brought national attention to racial violence. video -
Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama, sparking a year-long bus boycott and launching Martin Luther King Jr. as a civil rights leader. video -
Little Rock Nine
Nine Black students attempted to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, facing violent opposition. President Eisenhower sent federal troops to enforce desegregation. video -
Greensboro Sit-ins
Four Black college students staged a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth’s lunch counter in North Carolina, inspiring similar protests nationwide.
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Freedom Rides
Interracial groups rode buses across the South to challenge segregation laws, facing violence but bringing attention to the need for federal intervention. video -
Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta Form the NFWA
Chavez and Huerta co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) to advocate for labor rights, especially for Latino agricultural workers. video -
MLK’s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"
Martin Luther King Jr. wrote this letter while imprisoned, defending nonviolent protest and condemning racial injustice. video -
March on Washington & "I Have a Dream" Speech
Over 250,000 people gathered in Washington, D.C., where MLK delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech advocating racial equality. video -
Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique
Friedan’s book challenged traditional gender roles and ignited the second wave of feminism in the U.S.
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Civil Rights Act Passed
The Civil Rights Act outlawed segregation and discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. video -
Voting Rights Act Passed
This law banned literacy tests and other barriers that prevented African Americans from voting.
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Malcolm X Assassinated
Malcolm X, a former Nation of Islam leader and Black empowerment advocate, was assassinated in New York.
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The Death of MLK
Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, sparking nationwide riots. video