Laws & Citizen Rights Archives

July 9, 1868: 14th Amendment Adopted

The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted.

Niagara Movement Founders, 1905. Top row (left to right): H. A. Thompson, Alonzo F. Herndon, John Hope, James R. L. Diggs (?). Second row (left to right): Frederick McGhee, Norris B. Herndon (boy), J. Max Barber, W. E. B. Du Bois, Robert Bonner. Bottom row (left to right): Henry L. Bailey, Clement G. Morgan, W. H. H. Hart, B. S. Smith. Reproduction. Detail.

July 11, 1905: The Niagara Movement

The Niagara Movement — starting as a conference of Black leaders in upstate New York — was formed, paving the way for the creation of the NAACP.

Elizabeth Jennings Graham | Zinn Education Project

July 16, 1854: Elizabeth Jennings Graham

Schoolteacher Elizabeth Jennings Graham successfully challenged racist streetcar policies in New York City.

The Sugar Shack | Zinn Education Project

Aug. 6, 1965: Voting Rights Act

The Voting Rights Act was signed into law.

Aug. 22, 1781: Elizabeth Mumbet Freeman Secures Her Freedom

Elizabeth Mumbet Freeman won her freedom after she got an attorney and filed a “freedom suit” under the 1780 State Constitution for Massachusetts.

Suffragists White House | Zinn Education Project

Aug. 26, 1920: 19th Amendment Adopted

The 19th Amendment was formally adopted.

Aug. 27, 1963: W. E. B. Du Bois Dies

W. E. B. Du Bois died in Accra, Ghana.

Aug. 30, 1843: Liberty Party Convention

The Liberty Party held its second convention.

Black Power USA Book Cover | Zinn Education Project

Black Power U.S.A.: The Human Side of Reconstruction, 1867-1877

Book — Non-fiction. By Lerone Bennett Jr. 1967. 426 pages.
A bottom-up, student friendly text about the people's history of Reconstruction.

Sept. 22, 1862: Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation

Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.

Oct. 1, 1964: Free Speech Movement

The Free Speech Movement was launched at UC–Berkeley.

American Islamophobia (Book) | Zinn Education Project

American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear

Book — Non-fiction. By Khaled Beydoun. 2018. 264 pages.
Describes the many ways in which law, policy, and official state rhetoric fueled the resurgence of Islamophobia in the United States

Nov. 3, 1874: White League Attacks Black Voters

Deadly election “riots” took place in Barbour County, Alabama against African American politicians and voters.

July 30, 1920: Lynching of Sergeant Edgar Caldwell

Sergeant Edgar Caldwell, a Black man, was hanged before a crowd of spectators in the yard of the Calhoun County jail for riding in a white streetcar.

Headline of article from the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic, September 4, 1919.

Sept. 1, 1919: Lynching of WWI Veteran Clinton Briggs

Decorated WWI veteran Clinton Briggs was killed in Arkansas.

Aug. 3, 1946: J. C. Farmer Killed

J. C. Farmer, a 19-year-old African American WWII veteran, was killed by a mob of 20 white men.

Dec. 9, 1867: Georgia Constitutional Convention

The Georgia Constitutional Convention was held with 33 African Americans and 137 white attendees.

Dec. 9, 1872: P. B. S. Pinchback Becomes Governor

P. B. S. Pinchback of Louisiana became the second Black governor in the United States.

Montgomery Boycott Ends | Zinn Education Project

Dec. 20, 1956: Montgomery Bus Boycott Prevails

After a 381-day boycott, a federal ruling declared the Alabama laws requiring segregated buses to be unconstitutional.

Dec. 15, 1791: Bill of Rights Ratified

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, known as the United States Bill of Rights, were ratified.

Jan. 4, 1965: Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party Challenges Congress

Hundreds of Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party supporters went to support the Challenge to the seating of the Mississippi delegation.

Julian Bond in Mississippi, 1963 | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

Jan. 9, 1967: Julian Bond Sworn in Georgia House of Representatives

Julian Bond was finally sworn in as a member of the Georgia House of Representatives.

Jan. 7, 1868: Mississippi Constitutional Convention

The Mississippi Constitution was one of the first pieces of legislation that provided a uniform system of free public education for children regardless of race.

Feb. 5, 1866: Thaddeus Stevens Proposes Land Distribution Amendment

Congressman Thaddeus Stevens offered an amendment to the Freedmen's Bureau Bill to authorize the distribution of public land.

McCarthy State Dep't | Zinn Education Project

Feb. 9, 1950: Sen. Joseph McCarthy Announces “Enemies Within”

Senator Joseph McCarthy delivered a speech at the McLure Hotel during which he claimed to hold a list of known communists in the U.S. State Department.

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