Spotlight On the Civil Rights Movement

On June 2, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the most sweeping civil rights legislation since the Reconstruction era, after the Civil War. This act made discrimination in public places and workplaces illegal, and required public schools and other public facilities to be integrated. Learn how the act created controversy in Congress and resulted in a dramatic fifty-four-day filibuster, and how it passed through President Johnson's determination to see it succeed. Readers will also see how the Civil Rights Act was not only a huge step forward for civil rights, but also a legacy of President John F. Kennedy.

In fall of 1957, nine black students approached the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. The students, who became known as the Little Rock Nine, were testing a 1954 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation illegal. Their actions led to a standoff, with the state National Guard ordered to bar the students' entry. Weeks later, federal troops sent by President Eisenhower arrived to escort them inside. Readers will find themselves experiencing the desegregation crisis and a time of clashing attitudes that would affect all Little Rock's students, black and white, and the rest of the country's as well.

In the early 1960s, the civil rights movement brought national attention to the need for equal treatment for African Americans. Activists demonstrated their opposition to unfair Jim Crow laws and racial separation by silently sitting in restaurants and other segregated places. Sit-ins proved that silence and nonviolent resistance can effectively combat injustice. Despite their peaceful intentions, protesters often found themselves targets of people opposed to racial integration. Readers will learn about the factors behind these groundbreaking protests as well as the key civil rights figures who rose to prominence during a turbulent era in U.S. history.

Affirmative action includes policies and laws meant to give equal footing to minorities after historic discrimination and oppression. Learn about the history of affirmative action from just after the Civil War through important milestones of the civil rights movement and on to today. Enhanced with accessible text and historical photographs, this guide explains affirmative action through its background, key players, and Supreme Court decisions. The debate about affirmative action is covered in a thoughtful, well-rounded, and timely manner since it remains a controversial issue.

For decades leading up to the civil rights movement, African Americans faced segregation, danger, and humiliation while using public transportation and facilities. Interstate travel posed additional risks, until black as well as white nonviolent protestors challenged the status quo. In solidarity, they boarded public transportation, rode across state lines, and staunchly violated discriminatory laws. Harassed, beaten, and jailed, they pressed forward toward integration. Their courageous "freedom rides" drew widespread attention and ultimately helped change laws. Readers take a fast-paced trip through history to learn about the Freedom Rides' gutsy passengers, treacherous routes, and remarkable achievements.

Of all the events of the civil rights movement, the March on Washington is the most iconic. Millions of Americans can remember where they were when the television news announced that two hundred thousand people had converged on the nation's capital. Most of those Americans can still experience the thrill of hearing Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his "I Have a Dream" speech. Even today, photographs of the event have the capacity to stir the imagination. This volume allows twenty-first century readers to discover the flavor, energy, and impact of that exciting event in the nation's history.

The Brown v. Board of Education decision comes to mind whenever the topic of landmarks of the American civil rights movement is discussed. The 1954 Supreme Court decision declared it unconstitutional to segregate public school students, opening the door for many other civil rights advances after that. This thoughtful and informative book details the history of the case as well as its impact on the quickly changing America of the 1950s and 1960s. The book also describes how schools and civil rights have changed since this important Supreme Court case. "A succinct overview. Concisely explains the significance of the case, initial reaction to the Supreme Court's decision, and the case's effects on the civil rights movement." --Booklist

By the late 1960s, the slow pace of progress brought about by the civil rights movement caused growing dissatisfaction for some. The assassinations of civil rights leaders during this time convinced many activists that white supremacy could not be countered with silence. The Black Power movement arose to address these concerns by holding a philosophy that black Americans could obtain basic human needs through self-reliance and self-determination. Readers will learn about the movement's ideals, the methods used to achieve them, and the people who led the campaign for improved social conditions for all African Americans.

In 1955, when Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on an Alabama bus to a white passenger, her decision sparked the beginning of a new era in the civil rights movement. Her arrest inspired Martin Luther King Jr. and other African American leaders to organize a bus boycott that ended only when a U.S. Supreme Court decision ended segregation on public buses. Readers will learn how events in her life brought Parks to the point where she decided to stand up for her rights and how her courage helped to change America.

In August 1955, Emmett Till was a fourteen-year-old African American teenager on vacation. He had traveled to visit relatives in rural Mississippi. He would return home to Chicago to be buried. Emmett Till was murdered by two white men, making him a victim of racial violence that galvanized the unfolding civil rights movement. This account details the circumstances of his abduction, murder, and funeral, plus the subsequent trial. Readers will learn how his legacy still resonates today and how emerging information sheds a different light on what really happened to him.

Few national figures have been as divisive as Malcolm X. Many revered the famous civil rights leader as a voice for equality and justice, many others saw him as a violent firebrand. This page-turning biography reveals how a man born Malcolm Little, harassed by white supremacists as a boy, fell into a life of crime. He emerged from prison as a convert of the Nation of Islam with the adopted name of Malcolm X. In stark contrast to the nonviolent teachings of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X advocated the end of racism "by any means necessary."