Event/Group
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Date
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Description
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Impact on Georgia/U.S.
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End of the white primary
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1946
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A practice started in 1900 that did not allow blacks to vote in primary elections. B/C most candidates were Democrats, it meant that elections were basically decided during the primary.
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Blacks were able to vote in primaries and make a difference in elections.
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Brown vs. Board of Education
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1954
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Court case that started in 1950 when Linda Brown tried to enroll in an all-white school in Topeka, KS. NAACP helped her father file the court case to sue Topeka school board. Supreme Court ruled in 1954 that separate-but-equal schools were unconstitutional
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In Georgia, most schools refused to desegregate. General Assembly voted to cut off funds to schools that did integrate.
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Adoption of the 1956 state flag
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1956
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Adopted state flag with Confederate battle emblem, Pro-flag - claimed it was in preparation for the 100th anniversary observance of Civil War.
Anti-flag – Saw it as a protest against the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling against segregation
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Gave GA a negative image until 1970s and 1980s;
Led to vote by citizens that adopted current state flag in 2003
|
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee
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1960
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An organization of students that worked with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to end segregation. Staged sit-ins at department store lunch counters throughout the south.
Had disagreements eventually with SCLC over methods that were being used for protests.
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Organized in Atlanta; Got students more involved in civil rights movement by organizing freedom rides and beginning the Albany movement
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Sibley Commission
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1960
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A 14-member commission set up to study the issue of school segregation in Georgia. Held public hearings and made recommendations to let local school districts decide on integration. Districts could either abide by impending court order or close
|
Many private schools opened.; Atlanta public schools worked to remain open
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Event/Group
|
Date
|
Description
|
Impact on Georgia/U.S.
|
Albany Movement
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1961
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Started in 1961 when activists sat in white-only waiting room and bus station and were arrested. Freedom Riders were arrested at train station and high school students were also arrested. City would not budge and protests continued for a year. MLK was arrested.
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National coverage of arrests; biracial committee set up to study integration in Albany; Albany not desegregated but activists developed strategies
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March on Washington
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1963
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250,000 citizens of all races marched in the nation’s capital to demonstrate support for the civil rights movement.
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Federal civil rights legislation was passed the next year
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Civil Rights Act
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1964
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Prohibited racial discrimination in employment, labor unions and public facilities. Also allowed the government to withhold federal funds from school systems refusing to desegregate
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Opened public facilities to all people; Penalized companies and states not operating fairly in areas of housing, public access and employment
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