National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: African American Identity: Volume Iii, 1917 1968: Segregation
Series of nine primary resources on African American identity explores the concept of segregation and how it was experienced through the years 1917-1968. Inlcudes discussion questions, notes and links to supplemental resources.
Yale University
Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: Supreme Court Rules on School Desegregation
This thoughtful unit explores the history of school desegregation legislation, including a discussion of the impact of the Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education decisions. A six-week plan of lessons, along with other sample...
Other
Colorado College: A Brief History of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
A very good explanation of the problems and political machinations that happened behind the scenes in both the House of Representatives and Senate as the wording of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was developed. See how the legislation was...
Other
Civil Rights Greensboro: Greensboro Sit Ins at Woolworth's
A very detailed description of the sit-ins at the Greensboro, North Carolina, Woolworth's store and other businesses in that city during the first part of 1960. These sit-ins were to call attention to the segregation of public businesses...
NBC
Nbc Learn: Finishing the Dream: 1962 1963: Standoffs
A collection of archival video clips highlighting the efforts of African Americans to fight racial segregation in education. Looks at the struggle of James H. Meredith to attend the University of Mississippi in 1962, and the resulting...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: Race and Voting in the Segregated South
Article and activity in which students read and analyze the historic challenges faced by African Americans as they sought to gain an unimpeded right to vote in the segregated South followed by activity asking students to evaluate current...
C3 Teachers
C3 Teachers: Inquiries: Civil Rights
A learning module on the use of nonviolent protests during the civil rights movement. It includes several supporting questions accompanied by formative tasks and source materials, followed by a summative performance task. Topics covered...
Discovery Education
Discovery Education: Civil Rights: An Investigation
Through the lesson provided here, students will not only learn about civil rights and civil liberty but also understand the key roles played by President Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement. The detailed...
Other
Veterans of the Civil Rights Movement: The Sit Ins
Find photographs of many of the sit-ins at lunch counters in stores in the South to protest "whites only" laws. Each photo has information about the sit-ins and the results.
Stanford University
Mlk and the Global Freedom Struggle: Sit Ins
Read about the organization behind the sit-ins at southern businesses, first in Greensboro, North Carolina, then spread throughout the south. Of interest is the prominence of student-led protest. Be sure to look at the related events and...
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Separate but Equal: A Study of Segregation
Given Supreme Court case summaries, students will compare and contrast the impact of the Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education decisions.
Other
Encyclopedia Virginia: Civil Rights Act of 1964
A detailed look at the Civil Rights Act of 1964, paying particular attention to how Virginia Representative Howard W. Smith added an amendment intended to kill the act by making it cover gender discrimination as well as racial. Read...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Eleventh Commandment Flyer
This flyer from the 1962 Birmingham selective buying campaign encourages African Americans to boycott discriminatory businesses; from the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Rev. Frank Dukes: Selective Buying Campaign
In this oral history from the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Frank Dukes describes his role in the 1962 boycott of discriminatory stores and businesses.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source: Beyond Busing: School Desegregation in Boston
This collection uses primary sources to explore school desegregation in Boston.
Library of Congress
Loc: African American Odyssey: Sit Ins, Freedom Rides, and Demonstrations
The Civil Rights Era explores African American history in the 1960s, the fight against racial discrimination and segregation, and the search for justice through "freedom rides," boycotts, sit-ins, legislation, and marches.
Digital History
Digital History: Discrimination in Public Accommodations [Pdf]
Segregation and Jim Crow laws codified a color line in the United States. African-Americans began pushing back against segregation in the 1950s and 1960s. Read about the non-violent actions taken and how these actions resulted in the...
Scholastic
Scholastic News: Kids Who Fought for Change
Read a first-hand account of a child of the civil rights movement, and learn about the struggles of fighting for change.
Other
Finding Dulcina: Strom Thurmond Ends Longest Filibuster in Senate History
Read about Senator Strom Thurmond's epic filibuster in an attempt to forestall the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. There is a brief biography of Thurmond and his political life, as well as information about the use of the...
Other
Watson.org: African American History: School Integration
A history of the attempt to integrate schools in Little Rock, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Boston.
Brown University
Brown Tougaloo Exchange: Freedom Now!
Looking for documents about the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi? This website is a joint effort between Brown University and Tougaloo College and contains a searchable database of documents collected during the Mississippi Freedom...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: The Civil Rights Act of 1964
Read about the persisitence of President Lyndon B. Johnson in finally enacting the momentous civil rights legislation, the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Find out about his adversaries and allies in getting this legislation passed.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Gains and Pains
Read about the legal gains made by the civil rights movement, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, juxtaposed against the real-life actions meant to deny African Americans their right to racial equality not just legally, but...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Sit in Movement
Just like the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the first sit-in at a Woolworth's lunch counter was the beginning of a nonviolent movement to challenge "white only" laws. Read about how the sit-in movement spread across the South. See how...