Civil Rights

Malcolm X's Explosive Comments About Elijah Muhammed

In 1964, the rift between Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammed, founder of the Nation of Islam, would reach a tense peak

Martin Luther King, Jr. is arrested for "loitering" in Montgomery, Alabama, in September 1958.

Even Though He Is Revered Today, MLK Was Widely Disliked by the American Public When He Was Killed

Seventy-five percent of Americans disapproved of the civil rights leader as he spoke out against the Vietnam War and economic disparity

Following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in April 1968, cities across the U.S. erupted in protests.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s Assassination Sparked Uprisings in Cities Across America

Known as the Holy Week Uprisings, the collective protests resulted in 43 deaths, thousands of arrests, and millions of dollars of property damage

Malcolm X's Fiery Speech Addressing Police Brutality

In 1962, a confrontation with the LAPD outside a mosque resulted in the death of a Nation of Islam member. It was an event seized on by an outraged Malcolm

Martin Luther King Jr.‘s dream – which alternated between shattered and hopeful – can be traced back to Hughes’ poetry.

In His Speeches, MLK Carefully Evoked the Poetry of Langston Hughes

To avoid being labeled a communist sympathizer, King had to distance himself from Hughes, but he still managed to channel the controversial poet

On April 4, 1968, when his campaign plane reached Indianapolis on that night, Robert F. Kennedy (above: in a 1968 portrait by Louis S. Glanzman) learned of Dr. King’s death.

When Robert Kennedy Delivered the News of Martin Luther King's Assassination

Months before his own slaying, Kennedy recalled the loss of JFK as he consoled a crowd of shocked African-Americans in Indianapolis

This May 8, 1964 file photo shows Linda Brown Smith standing in front of the Sumner School in Topeka, Kansas.

Linda Brown, at the Center of Brown v. Board of Education, Has Died

After being refused enrollment at an all-white school in Topeka, Kansas, Brown's court case led to the historic Supreme Court ruling that ended segregation

Roger Williams University in Nashville, Tennessee, was a historically black college founded in 1866.

First Museum Committed to Sharing the Stories of Historically Black Colleges Opens

The HBCU Museum in Washington, D.C., launched March 9 and has plans to expand to a second location in Atlanta

The King and Queen of Hearts wave from their parade float to crowds gathered for D.C. Capital Pride 2014. The next year, the Academy of Washington waved farewell after 54 years of service to the D.C. community.

These Newly Donated Artifacts Capture the Spirit of Washington, D.C. Drag

Mementos from the Academy of Washington drag organization add a valuable thread to the tapestry of American LGBTQ history

President Lyndon Johnson constituted the Kerner Commission to identify the genesis of the violent 1967 riots that killed 43 in Detroit and 26 in Newark (above, soldiers in a Newark storefront), while causing fewer casualties in 23 other cities.

The 1968 Kerner Commission Got It Right, But Nobody Listened

Released 50 years ago, the infamous report found that poverty and institutional racism were driving inner-city violence

The March That Led to MLK's Arrest and Famous Letter

In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy led a march through the streets of Birmingham, Alabama

Malcolm X by Copain, c. 1967

Is It Time for a Reassessment of Malcolm X?

A Smithsonian Channel film, "The Lost Tapes," challenges misconceptions about the charismatic leader

How Rosa Parks' Protest Sparked a Momentous Chain of Events

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white male. Her arrest sparked a citywide boycott against Montgomery buses

Frederick Douglass, ca. 1875

Frederick Douglass’ 200th Birthday Invites Remembrance and Reflection

This Douglass Day, celebrate an icon’s bicentennial while helping to transcribe the nation’s black history

Cleveland Sellers, center, stands with officers after his arrest in Orangeburg, S.C., where three were killed and 28 others wounded on Feb. 8, 1968.

In 1968, Three Students Were Killed by Police. Today, Few Remember the Orangeburg Massacre

The shootings occurred two years before the deaths of students at Kent State University, but remain a little-known incident in the Civil Rights Movement

In 1968, at Resurrection City, a multicultural, multi-racial people shaped a campaign of hurt and hope out of a tumultuous year, including the war in Vietnam, and the assassinations of King and Robert F. Kennedy.

Deeply Grieving MLK’s Death, Activists Shaped a Campaign of Hurt and Hope

At Resurrection City, an epic 1968 demonstration on the National Mall in Washington D.C., protesters defined the next 50 years of activism

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. chats with African-Americans during a door-to-door campaign in 1964.

This Theologian Helped MLK See the Value of Nonviolence

Minister, theologian and mystic Howard Thurman had a profound influence on Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

In December 1957, Lymon appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show” to sing “Goody Goody,” nearly two years after “Why Do Fools Fall in Love?” was a hit debut single.

Teen Idol Frankie Lymon's Tragic Rise and Fall Tells the Truth About 1950s America

The mirage of the singer's soaring success echoes the mirage of post-war tranquility at home

A Timeline of 1968: The Year That Shattered America

The nation is still reckoning with the changes that came in that fateful year

National Guard troops lined Beale Street during a protest on March 29 , 1968. “I was in every march, all of ’em, with that sign: I AM A MAN,” recalls former sanitation worker Ozell Ueal.

The Strike That Brought MLK to Memphis

In his final days, Martin Luther King Jr. stood by striking sanitation workers. We returned to the city to see what has changed—and what hasn’t

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