The Civil Rights Movement 1954–1963

The Civil Rights Movement was a struggle by African Americans to achieve equal rights and end racial segregation and discrimination. This lesson covers the key events, figures, and strategies of the movement from the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954 to the March on Washington in 1963.

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Background: Segregation in America

By the 1950s, African Americans — particularly in the South — faced systematic racial discrimination enforced by Jim Crow laws. These laws mandated segregation in schools, transport, restaurants, housing, and public facilities.

Aspect	Detail
Legal basis	Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) — the Supreme Court ruled that "separate but equal" facilities were constitutional
Education	Schools for Black children were underfunded and of lower quality
Voting	Poll taxes, literacy tests, and intimidation prevented many African Americans from voting, especially in the South
Violence	Organisations like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) used terror, including lynching, to maintain white supremacy

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Key Events

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)