Civil Rights Movement: Definition, Protests, Activists
                     CIVIL RIGHTS 
MOVEMENT | 
DEFINITION, 
PROTESTS, 
ACTIVISTS
INTRODUCTION
American civil rights 
movement, mass protest 
movement against racial 
segregation and discrimination 
in the southern United States 
that came to national 
prominence during the mid-
1950s.
Source: www.britannica.com
ABOUT THE 
MOVEMENT
A series of critical rulings and laws, 
from the 1954 Brown v. Board of 
Education to the Civil Rights Acts 
of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 
1965, outlawed major forms of 
discrimination against African 
Americans and women, including 
racial segregation and unequal 
application of voter registration 
requirements.
Source: courses.lumenlearning.com
CITY RIOTS
A wave of inner city riots in black 
communities from 1964 through 
1970 undercut support from the 
white community. The emerging 
Black Power movement, which 
lasted from about 1966 to 1975, 
demanded political and economic 
self-sufficiency.
Source: courses.lumenlearning.com
CIVIL RESISTANCE
The movement was characterized 
by major campaigns of civil 
resistance. Between 1955 and 
1968, acts of nonviolent protest 
and civil disobedience produced 
crisis situations between activists 
and government authorities.
Source: courses.lumenlearning.com
LEGISLATION
A critical Supreme Court decision 
of this phase of the Civil Rights 
Movement was the 1954 ruling, 
Brown v. Board of Education. In the 
spring of 1951, black students in 
Virginia protested their unequal 
status in the state’s segregated 
educational system. Students at 
Moton High School protested the 
overcrowded conditions and failing 
facilities. 
Source: courses.lumenlearning.com
BLACK POWER 
MOVEMENT
During the Freedom Summer 
campaign of 1964, numerous 
tensions within the Civil Rights 
Movement came to the forefront. 
Many black Americans in the 
Student Nonviolent Coordinating 
Committee developed concerns 
that white activists from the north 
were taking over the movement. 
Source: courses.lumenlearning.com
THE VOTING 
RIGHTS ACT
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was 
passed. This legislation protected 
minority voting rights, barring states 
from passing laws that would 
discriminate against minority voters 
and requiring certain state and local 
governments with a history of voting 
discrimination to get approval from 
the federal government before 
making any changes to their voting 
laws or procedures.
Source: www.adl.org
CIVIL RIGHTS ACT
Finally, the Civil Rights Act of 1968, 
commonly known as the “Fair 
Housing Act,” provided equal 
housing opportunities regardless of 
race, creed or national origin and 
made it illegal to interfere with 
housing rights and opportunities.
Source: www.adl.org
IMPACT OF CIVIL 
RIGHTS 
MOVEMENT
Between 1954 and 1968, civil 
rights legislation was passed. 
Fundamental and lasting change 
was made during this relatively 
short period of time and its impact 
can be seen in a myriad of ways in 
our society today.
Source: www.adl.org
THANK YOU