Historical Background

Harlem Renaissance

This period was during the 1920s. Blacks began a "new era" fro themselves. It was also a fine arts movement that led to an increase in black confidence, literacy rate, and black culture. Writers wrote about their roots and the current society. Most of the movement took place near Harlem and was led by the middle class educated blacks.

Civil Rights Movement

This period was during the 1960s. Blacks fought for their civil rights and their voting rights. Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, made the phrase "separate, but equal" illegal. Central High School, in Little Rock, Arkansas, was the first school to allow integration without court order. Martin Luther King led many events during this period, such as the March of Washington. The bus boycotts that lasted from 1955-1956 crippled the bus business and eventually allowed blacks to sit anyone on the buses.