The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s fought for equal rights and desegregation of African Americans in the United States. Major events included the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling declaring segregation unconstitutional, the Montgomery Bus Boycott protesting segregated buses led by Martin Luther King Jr., and the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibiting discrimination. Despite these gains, radicals advocated more militant tactics. The assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. sparked riots. Other social movements of the time included feminism advocating women's rights, the environmental movement addressing pollution, and groups like the United Farm Workers and American Indian Movement fighting for Latino and Native American rights.

1. Trace major events of the Civil Rights Movement and
evaluate its impact.
What are Civil Rights?
• Your right to be treated the same as anyone else
in a similar situation
• In the US the Civil Rights Movement is the term
used to describe African Americans fight for
equal rights during the 1960s
• Segregation and disenfranchisement kept
African Americans from exercising their rights
NAACP challenges segregation in schools
Brown v. Board of Education(1954)
• Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Earl
Warren overturned Plessey v. Ferguson
• Segregation IS a violation of the 14th
Amendment
• Case was argued by Thurgood Marshall who
later became the first African American Supreme
Court Justice
• Schools must be integrated “with all deliberate
speed.”
o Southern states tried to ignore decision
• After this decision James Meredith became the
first black student at Ole Miss (University of
Mississippi)

2. Little Rock
Nine
• Nine
African
America
n
students
voluntee
red to
integrate
Little Rock Central High School
• Governor of Arkansas used the National Guard
to stop them
• Eisenhower sent federal troops to allow the
students to attend school
Montgomery
Bus Boycott
• Began after
Rosa Parks
refused to
give up her
seat
• Led by
Martin
Luther
King, Jr.
• Used civil
disobedien

3. ce to make their point
o Peaceful protests and boycott of the buses
for over 1 year
o Supreme Court outlawed segregation on
buses
Civil
Right
s
Lead
ers
Orga
nize
Sout
hern
Chri
stian
Lead
ershi
p
Conf
eren
ce (SCLC)
• Founded by MLK, Jr.
• civil disobedience

4. Student Nonviolent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
• College students
• Organized sit-ins to integrate lunch counters

5. This was the most violently attacked sit-in during
the 1960s and is the most publicized. A huge mob
gathered, with open police support while the three of
us sat there for three hours. I was attacked with
fists, brass knuckles and the broken portions of
glass sugar containers, and was burned with
cigarettes. I'm covered with blood and we were all
covered by salt, sugar, mustard, and various other
things.
Seated, left to right, are myself, Joan Trumpauer
(now Mulholland), and Anne Moody (Coming of Age
in Mississippi).
Freedom Summer
• Groups of students
attempted to register

6. black voters in the South
• 3 workers for CORE were murdered by the Klan
Freedom Riders
• Wanted to end segregation on bus lines
• Rode buses through the South and were
attacked
• Kennedy integrated all buses and transportation
Civil Rights Act of
1964
• Prohibited
discrimination
based on race,
religion,
nationality, sex
• MLK, Jr. gave his
“I Have a Dream”
speech to convince
Congress to pass the act
• March on Washington
24th
Amendment
• Banned poll taxes
Voting Rights Act of 1965
• Eliminated literacy tests
• Percentage of African-American voters rose from
10% to 60%

7. The Civil
Rights
Movement
becomes
Radical
• Frustrated
with laws
not being
followed/e
nforced
• Equality
did not
happen overnight
Malcolm X
• Urged blacks not to cooperate with whites
• Changed his views after a trip to Mecca
• His former supporters killed him
Black Power Movement
• Radicalized, no cooperation with whites
• Violent methods
• Conflicted with the Civil Rights Movement
• Led by Stokely Carmichael, formerly of SNCC
Martin Luther
King, Jr. is
assassinated
• Sparked riots
in over 100
cities across
the country

8. Identify major social movements including, but not
limited to, those involving women, young people,
and the environment, and evaluate the impact of
these movements on the United States' society.
Feminist
Movement
• Equal
rights
for
wome
n
• Betty
Frieda
n,
The
Femi
nine
Mystique
• Wanted women to have more opportunities
• Should be able to work instead of being
housewives
• Gloria Steinem, Ms. Magazine
• National Organization for Women (NOW)

9. o Fought to get women equal rights at work
• Roe v. Wade
o Women DO have the right to an abortion
during the first three months of pregnancy
• Equal Rights Amendment
o Men and women would be given the same
protection by law
o Conservatives such as Phyllis Schlafly
argued that the amendment would hurt
women and families
o Women could be drafted, lose custody of
kids, etc.
o Amendment did not pass
Environ
mental
Movem
ent
Enviro
nment
al
Protec
tion
Agenc
y
• Cr
eat
ed
to
ad
dre
ss

10. the problem of pollution
• Cuyahoga River Fire
• Love Canal
• Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring informed people
about the effects of pesticides on the
environment
• Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act were passed
• Regulate industry, prevent illegal dumping
Latino
s
• U
nit
ed
Fa
r
m
W
or
ke
rs
Or
ga

11. nizing Committee (UFWOC)
o Led by Cesar Chavez
o Fought for better working conditions for
farm workers
American Indian
Movement (AIM)
• Campaigned for
Indian Rights
• Native Americans
brought treaties
to Washington DC
that the US
government had
broken
• Were successful
in getting some
of their lands
back (40 million acres)