A committee established by President Truman in 1946 to investigate and make recommendations on ways to end discrimination and promote civil rights.

A proposed commission by Truman to prevent employers from discriminating against the hiring of Black people; blocked by Southern Democrats.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; a civil rights organization founded in 1909 dedicated to fighting racial discrimination.

The doctrine established in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) that allowed segregation as long as facilities were deemed equal; overturned by Brown v. Board of Education.

The phrase used in Brown II (1955) ordering lower courts to desegregate public schools, but the vagueness allowed for slow and resistant implementation.

A document signed by 101 members of Congress opposing the Brown v. Board of Education decision and pledging to resist school integration.

A guidebook listing businesses that were safe and friendly to Black travelers during segregation.

A 385-day protest in Montgomery, Alabama, sparked by Rosa Parks' arrest, calling for the desegregation of city buses.

A method of nonviolent protest advocated by Martin Luther King Jr., involving peaceful nonresistance to unjust laws and practices.

Southern Christian Leadership Conference; an organization formed by Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957 to mobilize churches in the South for the civil rights struggle.

A form of nonviolent protest where participants occupy a space and refuse to leave, often used to challenge segregation.

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee; an organization formed to organize and coordinate sit-ins and other nonviolent protests.

Truman officially ordered the end of racial discrimination throughout the federal government, including the armed forces.

The brutal murder of Emmett Till and the open-casket funeral galvanized the Civil Rights Movement and built support for change.

The Supreme Court overturned Plessy v. Ferguson, ruling that separate facilities are inherently unequal and unconstitutional, mandating the end of school segregation.

The Supreme Court ordered lower courts to proceed with "all deliberate speed" to desegregate public schools.

A statement of opposition to the Brown v. Board of Education decision, signed by 101 members of Congress, pledging to resist school integration.

A massive African American protest sparked by Rosa Parks' arrest, calling for the desegregation of Montgomery's buses.

Four African American college students began a sit-in protest at a Woolworth's lunch counter, sparking a wave of sit-ins across the South.

Enabled local officials to assign individual students to schools on the basis of scholastic aptitude, ability to adjust, and “morals, conduct, health, and personal standards.”

Cause: Truman's belief in equality. Effects: Establishment of the Committee on Civil Rights, order to end discrimination in the federal government, and strengthened Civil Rights Division.

Cause: Racial prejudice and false accusations. Effects: Galvanized the Civil Rights Movement and increased support for change.

Cause: Legalized segregation under the 'separate but equal' doctrine. Effect: Perpetuated racial inequality and discrimination.

Cause: NAACP's legal challenge to segregation and the argument that separate schools were psychologically damaging. Effects: Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson, declared segregation in schools unconstitutional, and sparked resistance in the South.

Cause: Opposition to the Brown v. Board of Education decision. Effects: Resistance to school integration and attempts to maintain segregation.

Cause: Rosa Parks' arrest for refusing to give up her seat on a bus. Effects: Supreme Court ruling declaring bus segregation unconstitutional and inspiration for other civil rights protests.

Cause: Segregation at lunch counters and the desire for equal treatment. Effects: Sparked a wave of sit-ins across the South and led to the desegregation of many facilities.