Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-56

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Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-56
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Rosa Parks
Not long ago it was legal to discriminate against
black people in the United States. Thats when
Rosa McCauley was growing up in Montgomery,
Alabama. When Rosa was 11, she went into a store
with her cousin, Annie Mae, who asked for a soda.
The answer We dont serve sodas to colored
people. This was legal, but Rosa knew it was
wrong. Years later, in 1955, Rosa Parks (her
married name) had a chance to act courageously on
her convictions. By law, black people had to sit
in the back of city buses and stand if a white
person needed a seat. Parks refused to give up
her seat to a white man. She was arrested. This
led blacks to boycott, or not use, Montgomery
buses until the unjust law was changed. Rosa
Parks has been called the mother of the civil
rights movement. National Geographic
http//www.nationalgeographic.com/ngkids/9802/rosa
parks/
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Lunch Counter Sitin, Jackson Mississippi, 1963
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The Sit-In Movement
In addition to Martin Luther King Jr., many
individuals, including students, helped lead the
struggle for African American civil rights.
Black youth began to peacefully demonstrate by
sitting at whites only lunch counters to
protest segregated facilities. Black and white
students joined in the sit ins and as a
peaceful way to demonstrate against unfair
policies.
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March on Washington, 1963
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The 1963 March on Washington
Over a quarter of a million people from across
the nation gathered in front of the Lincoln
Memorial in August 1963. The march was
successful and received great publicity.
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Martin Luther King, Jr. and the March on
Washington, 1963
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Martin Luther King Jr.s Dream
The most positive and memorable speech of the day
came from King. I have a dream that one day
this nation will rise up and live out the true
meaning of its creed We hold these truths to be
self-evident that all mean are created equal he
said. I have a dream that my four children. .
.will not be judged by the color of their skin
but by the content of their character. In the
spring of 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson
signed the civil rights bill into law. The Civil
Rights Act of 1964 banned the separation of
people based on race, called segregation, in
public places. It made it illegal to discriminate
against a person when hiring based on his or her
skin color, race, religion and national origin.
The act also banned discrimination against women
seeking jobs
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Freedom Summer, 1964
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Freedom Summer
Over 1,000 volunteers traveled to Southern cities
and towns in the summer of 1964. They went
door-to-door to meet residents and held classes
on how to fill out voter registration forms and
answer questions. Workers tried to build
confidence and motivation toward becoming active
citizens in their communities.
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Selma-to-Montgomery march, 1965
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Voting Rights
On March 7, 1965, hundreds of civil rights
supporters attempted a historic 54-mile march
from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. They were
protesting laws that prevented African Americans
from voting in Alabama, but they were stopped and
attacked by police shortly after starting. On
Sunday, March 21, about 3,200 marchers set out
again. When they arrived in Montgomery on March
25, there were about 25,000 protesters from
around the country who completed the march. Their
efforts helped pass the 1965 Voting Rights Act,
which guaranteed voting rights for everyone