"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter."
-Martin Luther King Jr.
Explore the changes that took place in the lives of African Americans and white Americans alike. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's was a turning point for the status of African- Americans in America. They united to fight against the inequality they faced in the workplace, education system, public places, and political arena. Powerful leaders rose to prominence at this time and through the use of boycotts, sit-ins, demonstrations and court cases they brought the issue of inequality to the forefront.
Directions: Use the given websites to answer the questions on the handout. After you are done with the handout, pick one significant event or person that you think impacted this movement the most and begin to work on your newspaper article.
Montgomery Bus Boycott (also includes links to Rosa Parks and other significant events)- http://www.montgomeryboycott.com/frontpage.htm
Martin Luther King Jr. (Take the pop quiz at the top of the page)- http://www.martinlutherking.org/
(Video) "I have a Dream" speech given by Martin Luther King Jr. in 1963- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbUtL_0vAJk
Rosa Parks 1913-2005, in her own words- http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-189420203914406728#
Civil Rights Court Cases- 1950-70s- http://reportingcivilrights.loa.org/timeline/year.jsp?year=1950
Civil Rights Era (Includes a timeline and details of significant events and people) - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart9.html
Links to events and laws (Take a look at the Greensboro sit-in)- http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/civil1.htm