Civil Rights

De Jure Segregation

Racial segregation enforced by law, exemplified by Jim Crow laws.

De Facto Segregation

Racial segregation that occurs by custom or tradition, not enforced by law.

Brown v. Board of Education

1954 Supreme Court case that declared school segregation unconstitutional.

Civil Rights Act of 1957

First federal civil rights law aimed at increasing Black voter registration; had weak enforcement.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Protest sparked by Rosa Parks’ arrest, leading to a Supreme Court ruling against bus segregation.

Sit-In Movement

Nonviolent protests at segregated lunch counters that led to wider desegregation efforts.

SNCC

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, a youth-led civil rights group focusing on direct action.

Freedom Rides

Interracial bus rides to test desegregation in interstate travel, often met with violence.

Filibuster

Tactic used by segregationist senators to block civil rights legislation.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Legislation that banned segregation in public places and employment discrimination.

Voting Rights Act

1965 law that outlawed literacy tests and ensured Black Americans’ voting rights.

Twenty-Fourth Amendment

Abolished poll taxes in federal elections to help remove barriers for Black voters.

Freedom Summer

Campaign in 1964 to register Black voters in Mississippi, facing extreme violence.

Black Power

Movement emphasizing racial pride and economic empowerment, led by figures like Stokely Carmichael.

Black Panthers

Militant group advocating for self-defense and community programs against police brutality.

Kerner Commission

1968 government report identifying systemic racism as a cause of urban riots.

Thurgood Marshall

NAACP lawyer who won Brown v. Board; later became the first Black Supreme Court Justice.

Earl Warren

Chief Justice known for expanding civil rights through key rulings like Brown v. Board.

Rosa Parks

Civil rights activist whose refusal to yield her bus seat sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Leader of the civil rights movement known for his promotion of nonviolent protest.

James Meredith

First Black student to integrate the University of Mississippi, facing violent resistance.

Ross Barnett

Segregationist governor of Mississippi who blocked James Meredith’s enrollment at Ole Miss.

Medgar Evers

NAACP field secretary who led voter registration efforts and was assassinated in 1963.

Malcolm X

Leader in the Nation of Islam who later advocated for racial unity before his assassination.

Stokely Carmichael

Civil rights activist known for popularizing the term 'Black Power' and leading SNCC.

March on Washington

1963 demonstration where MLK delivered the 'I Have a Dream' speech advocating for civil rights.

Freedom Summer Murders

1964 murders of civil rights workers by the KKK while helping register Black voters in Mississippi.

Bleeding Birmingham

Refers to the violent police response against civil rights protests in Birmingham, led by Bull Connor.

March on Selma

Series of marches demanding voting rights, with the first march known as 'Bloody Sunday'.

Little Rock Nine

Group of nine Black students who integrated Central High School in Little Rock, facing opposition.