Trying to make sense of the civil rights movement timeline? It ran from the late 1940s to the late 1960s, moving from military desegregation in 1948 to the Civil Rights Act of 1968 on housing.
This timeline is part of our wider coverage of us history.
| Milestone | Date or figure |
|---|---|
| Brown v. Board of Education decided | May 17, 1954 |
| Rosa Parks arrested in Montgomery | December 1, 1955 |
| March on Washington attendance (August 28, 1963) | Approximately 250,000 people |
| Civil Rights Act of 1964 signed | July 2, 1964 |
| Voting Rights Act of 1965 signed | August 6, 1965 |
| Civil Rights Act of 1968 signed | April 11, 1968 |
These dates and figures come from HISTORY’s civil rights movement timeline and CBS News’s timeline of the modern civil rights struggle. Figures can change as sources are updated, so check the source before you rely on them.
Civil rights groundwork before the movement
The civil rights movement was an organized effort by Black Americans to end racial discrimination and gain equal rights under the law, according to HISTORY. It began in the late 1940s and ended in the late 1960s, and it was mostly nonviolent.
Earlier steps set the legal groundwork, as KTVU’s timeline lays out:
- 1863: Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation proclaims that all slaves are free.
- 1865: The 13th Amendment prohibits slavery.
- 1868: The 14th Amendment grants citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans.
- 1870: The 15th Amendment gives African Americans the right to vote.
Early milestones from 1948 to 1957
On July 26, 1948, President Harry Truman issued Executive Order 9981 to end segregation in the Armed Services, according to HISTORY.
On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education, ruling unanimously that separated educational facilities are inherently unequal and therefore unconstitutional. CBS News notes that the ruling overthrew the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision, which had set the “separate but equal” precedent. Many schools, however, remained segregated.
Emmett Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago, was murdered in Mississippi on August 28, 1955. His killers were acquitted, but Jet magazine published a photo of his body at his open-casket funeral, and the case drew international attention to the movement, per HISTORY.
On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a 43-year-old seamstress, was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man. The Montgomery Bus Boycott that followed continued for more than a year. On December 21, 1956, the Supreme Court said the bus segregation rule violated the constitution, as CBS News reports.
Three events in 1957 widened the fight, according to HISTORY:
- January 10-11: Sixty Black pastors and civil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., met in Atlanta to coordinate nonviolent protests.
- September 4: The Little Rock Nine were blocked from entering Little Rock Central High School, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower eventually sent federal troops to escort them.
- September 9: Eisenhower signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 to help protect voter rights.
Sit-ins, freedom rides and school integration: 1960 to 1962
On February 1, 1960, four college students in Greensboro, North Carolina, refused to leave a Woolworth’s “whites only” lunch counter without being served. The Greensboro Four were Ezell Blair Jr., David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil, and they were inspired by the nonviolent protest of Gandhi, per HISTORY. Similar sit-ins spread through the city and into other states.
On November 14, 1960, six-year-old Ruby Bridges was escorted by four armed federal marshals as she became the first student to integrate William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, according to HISTORY.
Throughout 1961, Black and white activists known as freedom riders took bus trips through the American South to protest segregated bus terminals. The rides were marked by horrific violence from white protesters and drew international attention.
In 1962, the Voter Education Project began, per KTVU. That same year, President John Kennedy ordered federal marshals to escort James Meredith to the University of Mississippi campus so he could enroll, as CBS News reports.
1963: Birmingham, Washington and tragedy
On May 2, 1963, more than 1,000 Black school children marched through Birmingham, Alabama, in what became known as the Children’s Crusade. Police brought out water hoses and police dogs, and journalists documented the young demonstrators being arrested and hosed down, which caused national outrage. An agreement was eventually made to desegregate lunch counters, businesses and restrooms, per HISTORY.
On June 11, 1963, Alabama Governor George C. Wallace stood in a doorway at the University of Alabama to block two Black students from registering. The standoff continued until President Kennedy sent the National Guard to the campus, according to HISTORY.
On August 28, 1963, approximately 250,000 people took part in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech as the closing address in front of the Lincoln Memorial, as HISTORY records.
On September 15, 1963, a bomb at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham killed four young girls before Sunday services. HISTORY notes that the bombing fueled angry protests.
Landmark laws and turning points: 1964 to 1968
On July 2, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prevents employment discrimination due to race, color, sex, religion or national origin. Title VII created the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, per HISTORY. CBS News says it is often called the most important U.S. law on civil rights since Reconstruction.
On February 21, 1965, Black nationalist leader Malcolm X was shot to death during a rally of his followers at a Harlem ballroom, according to CBS News.
On March 7, 1965, marchers heading toward Montgomery were halted at the Pettus Bridge in Selma, where police used tear gas and batons against them. The day became known as Bloody Sunday. King later led a five-day, 50-mile march from Selma to Montgomery, and marchers finally reached the state capital on March 25, per CBS News and HISTORY.
On August 6, 1965, Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965. CBS News says it made it easier for southern Black citizens to register by eliminating literacy tests as a prerequisite to vote.
Not every moment was nonviolent. From August 11 to 16, 1965, unrest in the Watts district of Los Angeles left 34 dead and more than 1,000 injured, according to CBS News.
On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, on the balcony outside his room at the Lorraine Motel. A week later, on April 11, 1968, Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental and financing of housing, per CBS News.
What happened after 1968?
Courts and Congress kept shaping civil rights law, according to CBS News’s timeline:
- April 20, 1971: In Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, the Supreme Court upheld busing as a legitimate means of integrating public schools.
- March 22, 1988: Congress passed the Civil Rights Restoration Act, overriding President Ronald Reagan’s veto.
- November 22, 1991: President George H. W. Bush signed the Civil Rights Act of 1991 after two years of debate.
- April 29, 1992: Riots erupted in south-central Los Angeles after a jury acquitted four white police officers in the videotaped beating of Rodney King.
- June 23, 2003: In a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court upheld the University of Michigan Law School’s policy, finding that race can be one of many factors in college admissions.
These entries are drawn from the 2011 CBS News timeline, so check later sources for anything that has changed since.
If you want other chapters of the American story, our great depression summary and louisiana purchase facts pages cover two of them.
Frequently asked questions
When did the civil rights movement begin and end?
Show answer
According to HISTORY, it began in the late 1940s and ended in the late 1960s. Its timeline starts with Truman’s Executive Order 9981 on July 26, 1948.
What did Brown v. Board of Education decide?
Show answer
On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that separated educational facilities are inherently unequal and therefore unconstitutional, per CBS News. HISTORY adds that many schools remained segregated afterward.
How many people attended the March on Washington?
Show answer
Approximately 250,000 people took part on August 28, 1963, according to HISTORY.
Which federal laws came out of the movement?
Show answer
The timeline lists the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (July 2, 1964), the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (August 6, 1965) and the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (April 11, 1968). The CBS News timeline describes the 1968 act as a ban on housing discrimination.
