# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When Harper Lee released "To Kill a Mockingbird" in 1960, the American Civil Rights movement was well underway. Even though the story takes place in the 1930s, Atticus Finch alludes to the movement when he discusses the racial injustice of the south when he says, "Don't fool yourselves - it's all adding up and one of these days we're going to pay the bill for it. I hope it's not in you children's time."

The purpose of this webquest is to have you learn about the events that fueled the Civil Rights Movement beginning with the Supreme Court Decision of Brown vs. The Board of Ed and all the way through the March on Washington.

Read through each linked section and answer the corrosponding questions on a Word document. When you are finished doing this, you will decide which part of the civil rights movement you think was the most important and write a diary entry about it.

Use the websites below to answer the corrosponding questions. Then, answer the additional questions in the conclusion section.

Brown vs. Board (1954)
http://www.nd.edu/~rbarger/www7/brown.html
Why did this case go to court?

Was desegregation easy after the decision? Why or why not?

How did segregation violate the 14 th amendment?

Emmett Till (1955)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/till/timeline/index.html
Who was Emmett Till?

What happened to Emmett Till and Why?

What about Emmett Till's story do you think helped ignite the Civil Right's movement?
http://www.holidays.net/mlk/rosa.htm
Why was Rosa Park Arrested?

Since she was not the first African American woman arrested for a bus violation, why did her arrest ignite the boycott?

How did segregationists fight the boycott?

Freedom Riders (1961)
http://freedomridersfoundation.org/id16.html
Who were the Freedom Riders?

What was their purpose?

Did they encounter resistance?

Were they successful in achieving their purpose?
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_march_on_washington_for_jobs_and_freedom/
How was this march different from previous marches?

Did all African-Americans support the march? If not, who were they?

What was the highlight of the day?

What was the aftermath of the march?

Which of these events do you think helped fuel the Civil Rights Movement the most? Choose any character from the book and write a diary entry about the event as if you were that character. Include details of the event and imagine how that character would react to them.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Madison Public Schools: Civil Rights Webquest

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When Harper Lee released "To Kill a Mockingbird" in 1960, the American Civil Rights movement was well underway. Even though the story takes place in the 1930s, Atticus Finch alludes to the movement when he discusses the racial injustice of the south when he says, "Don't fool yourselves - it's all adding up and one of these days we're going to pay the bill for it.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
History >> Civil Rights for Kids

African-American Civil Rights Movement

March on Washington Aug 28, 1963
from the United States Information Agency

The African-American Civil Rights Movement was an ongoing fight for racial equality that took place for over 100 years after the Civil War. Leaders such asMartin Luther King, Jr., Booker T. Washington, and Rosa Parks paved the way for non-violent protests which led to changes in the law. When most people talk about the "Civil Rights Movement" they are talking about the protests in the 1950s and 1960s that led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Background

The Civil Rights Movement has its background in the abolitionist movement before theCivil War. Abolitionists were people that thought slavery was morally wrong and wanted it to come to an end. Before the Civil War, many of the northern states had outlawed slavery. During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln freed the enslaved with the Emancipation Proclamation. After the war, slavery was made illegal with the thirteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Segregation and the Jim Crow Laws

Jim Crow Drinking Fountain
by John Vachon

After the Civil War, many southern states continued to treat African-Americans as second class citizens. They implemented laws that kept black people separate from white people. These laws became known as Jim Crow laws. They required separate schools, restaurants, restrooms, and transportation based on the color of a person's skin. Other laws prevented many black people from voting.

Early Protests

In the early 1900s, black people began to protest the Jim Crow laws that southern states were implementing to enforce segregation. Several African-American leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Ida B. Wells joined together to found the NAACP in 1909. Another leader, Booker T. Washington, helped to form schools to educate African-Americans in order to improve their status in society.

The Movement Grows

The civil rights movement gained momentum in the 1950s when theSupreme Court ruled that segregation in schools was illegal in the case of Brown v. Board of Education. Federal troops were brought in to Little Rock, Arkansas to allow the Little Rock Nine to attend a previously all white high school.

Major Events in the Movement

The 1950's and early 1960's brought about several major events in the fight for the civil rights of African-Americans. In 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. This sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott which lasted for over a year and brought Martin Luther King, Jr. to the forefront of the movement. King led a number of non-violent protests including the Birmingham Campaign and the March on Washington.

Lyndon Johnson signing Civil Rights Act
by Cecil Stoughton

Civil Rights Act of 1964

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act was signed into law byPresident Lyndon Johnson. This act outlawed segregation and the Jim Crow laws of the south. It also outlawed discrimination based on race, national background, and gender. Although there were still many issues, this law gave the NAACP and other organizations a strong base on which to fight discrimination in the courts.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

In 1965, another law was passed called the Voting Rights Act. This law said that citizens could not be denied the right to vote based on their race. It outlawed literacy tests (a requirement that people be able to read) and poll taxes (a fee that people had to pay to vote).

Interesting Facts about the African-American Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Act was originally proposed by President John F. Kennedy.

The 1968 Civil Rights Act, also known as the Fair Housing Act, outlawed discrimination in the selling or renting of housing.

The National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee was once the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and killed in 1968.

Today, African-Americans have been elected or appointed to the highest positions in the U.S. government including Secretary of State (Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice) and President (Barack Obama).

Activities

Take a ten question quiz about this page.

Listen to a recorded reading of this page:

Your browser does not support the audio element.
To learn more about Civil Rights:

Civil Rights Leaders

Overview Works Cited

History >> Civil Rights for Kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Kids learn about the history of the African-American Civil Rights Movement including segregation, Jim Crow laws, protests, Martin Luther King, and the passage of the Civil Rights Act.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ruby Bridges Desegregates a School

On the road to Civil Rights, even children became public figures, such as six-year-old Ruby Bridges, who integrated an all-white elementary school in New Orleans on November 14, 1960. Four years later, Norman Rockwell depicted her brave act of just walking to school, escorted by federal marshals, in a painting, "The Problem We All Live With." Episode Five: Rise! includes historic footage of Ruby Bridges' first day at school and a conversation with her today.

When recalling the first trip to her school, Ruby Bridges recalls today, "I saw barricades and police officers and just people everywhere. And when I saw all of that, I immediately thought that it was Mardi Gras. I had no idea that they were here to keep me out of the school. "

Six years earlier, after decades of struggle, the NAACP had won a major legal victory in the Supreme Court, represented by then-lawyer Thurgood Marshall, a future U.S. Supreme Court Justice. In Brown vs. Board of Education, the Supreme Court declared that the doctrine of separate but equal schools was unconstitutional. For years after the ruling, the South simply refused to integrate. Ruby became one of six New Orleans children chosen to desegregate several all-white elementary schools in the city.

Of the people who gathered at the school to taunt her, Bridges says, "They didn't see a child. They saw change, and what they thought was being taken from them. They never saw a child."

The story of Ruby Bridges and desegregation is part of Rise!, Episode Five of the six-part series, The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Episode Five premieres on PBS on November 19, 2013, 8-9 pm ET. Check local listings on the broadcast schedule.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ruby Bridges Goes to School | Video | The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross | PBS

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
On the road to Civil Rights, even children became public figures, such as six-year-old Ruby Bridges, who integrated an all-white elementary school in New Orleans on November 14, 1960. Four years later, Norman Rockwell depicted her brave act of just walking to school, escorted by federal marshals, in a painting, "The Problem We All Live With."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Freedom: A History of US. Webisode 14: Let Freedom Ring | PBS

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The constant and highly visible demonstrations of African-American citizens no longer willing to wait for their rights could not help but attract the attention of the federal government. John F. Kennedy became president in 1961 in an aura of youthful optimism and idealism.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
BrainPOP - Animated Educational Site for Kids - Science, Social Studies, English, Math, Arts & Music, Health, and Technology

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Thank you, sister Rosa! Ms. Parks, that is! This movie is all about the civil rights movement, from segregation trials to freedom marches. Plus a few words from Dr. Martin Luther King!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
instant access to thousands of great kids books.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Instantly access 25,000 high-quality books for kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The only kids' eBook subscription service that offers thousands of high-quality books from well known publishers like HarperCollins, National Geographic and others.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Get unlimited access to 40,000 of the best books, audiobooks, videos, & more for kids 12 and under. Try it free.