World history: the civil rights movement in the USA

Slavery ended in the USA in 1865, but a hundred years later Black Americans in the South still faced segregation and were often stopped from voting. The civil rights movement set out to change that.

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Segregation

The 13th Amendment abolished slavery in 1865.
Southern states then passed 'Jim Crow' laws that segregated (separated) Black and white people in schools, buses, restaurants and more. Many Black Americans were stopped from voting.
In 1896 the Supreme Court accepted this as 'separate but equal', though facilities for Black people were usually worse.

The movement grows

In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that segregated schools were unconstitutional.
On 1 December 1955 Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man. Black people boycotted the buses for 381 days, and bus segregation was ruled illegal.
A young minister, Dr Martin Luther King Jr, led the boycott and became the movement's best-known leader, using non-violent protest.
In 1957 nine Black students, the Little Rock Nine, needed soldiers to protect them as they entered a white school in Arkansas.

New laws

On 28 August 1963 about 250,000 people joined the March on Washington, where King gave his 'I have a dream' speech.
The Civil Rights Act (1964) banned segregation in public places and discrimination at work. The Voting Rights Act (1965) tackled the barriers that stopped Black people voting.
Other leaders, such as Malcolm X, argued for Black pride and self-defence.
King was assassinated in Memphis on 4 April 1968.
YearEvent
1865Slavery abolished
1954Brown v. Board of Education
1955Montgomery Bus Boycott begins
1963March on Washington
1964Civil Rights Act
1965Voting Rights Act
1968King assassinated
Worked example

Why was the Montgomery Bus Boycott effective?

  1. Black passengers were a large share of bus users, so the bus company lost a lot of money.
  2. It was peaceful and well organised, lasting 381 days, which won public sympathy.
  3. It led to a court ruling that bus segregation was illegal, and made Martin Luther King a national leader.

Answer: It hit the bus company's income, stayed peaceful and won in court.

Key idea

Slavery abolished 1865, but Jim Crow laws segregated the South ('separate but equal', 1896). Brown v. Board of Education (1954). Rosa Parks (1 December 1955) and the 381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott. Martin Luther King: non-violence; March on Washington (28 August 1963). Civil Rights Act 1964; Voting Rights Act 1965. King killed 4 April 1968.

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  1. Where in the USA were Jim Crow laws mainly found?

    1. The North
    2. The South
    3. New England
    4. The West Coast
    Show the answer

    Answer: The South

    Jim Crow laws segregated the South.

  2. Which earlier ruling did Brown v. Board of Education overturn?

    1. Prohibition
    2. The New Deal
    3. The Civil Rights Act
    4. "Separate but equal" from Plessy v. Ferguson
    Show the answer

    Answer: "Separate but equal" from Plessy v. Ferguson

    Brown overturned "separate but equal" in schools.

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Checked by the GCSE-ready editorial team, 17 October 2026. Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

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