1950-1959 (African-American)
1953-1954
Septima Clark


Septima Clark establishes “Citizenship Schools” preparing Blacks to be activists in the Civil Rights Movement; students included Rosa Parks.

1954
Brown vs. Board of Education

Brown vs. Board of Education outlaws segregation in public schools.

1955
Emmett Till

14-year-old Emmett Till murdered in Mississippi.

1955
Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on bus, launches Montgomery Boycott.

1955
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. Martin Luther King rises to prominence as Civil Rights Leader, using non-violent protest.

1956-1957
Southern Christian Leadership Committee

Dr. King forms Southern Christian Leadership Committee (SCLC) as an organizing entity for the Civil Rights Movement.

1956
Althea Gibson

Althea Gibson, an African-American tennis player, wins a Grand Slam (the French Championships) becoming the first black athlete to cross the color line of international tennis. By the end of her tennis career filled with “firsts”, she had won 11 Grand Slam tournaments: five singles titles, five doubles titles, and one mixed doubles title.