Civil Rights

On April 27, 2015, violence broke out in Baltimore, Maryland, where a CVS was set on fire, and at least 15 police officers were injured during clashes with protesters over the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died of injuries sustained during an arrest.

Why Museums Should Be a Safe Space to Discuss Why #BlackLivesMatter

Providing history, backstory and opportunity, the new role of the museum is to help visitors unpack and wrestle with the complex issues of the day

Roberts' wheelchair sports a reclining seat, a headlight for nighttime driving and a space in the back for a respirator and a small portable ramp.

Ed Roberts' Wheelchair Records a Story of Obstacles Overcome

The champion of the disability rights movement refused to be hindered and challenged the world to create spaces for independent living

The Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama

Who Was Edmund Pettus?

The march to freedom started on a bridge that honors a man bent on preserving slavery and segregation

Rosa Parks addresses a crowd in 1989 on the 25th anniversary of the signing of the civil rights legislation.

The Library of Congress Now Has Rosa Parks’ Personal Letters

The loan of over 10,000 documents from the Civil Rights icon’s personal life reveals her complexity and inner struggles—as well as one solid pancake recipe

Friendship Nine members Clarence Graham, Willie Thomas Massey, David Williamson Jr., James F. Wells and Willie E. McCleod (L-R) stand in front of the renamed Five & Dine diner in Rock Hill, South Carolina, on December 17, 2014

The "Friendship 9" Who Sat At A White-Only Lunch Counter Have Been Cleared

The men who participated in a South Carolina sit-in were sentenced to 30 days hard labor in 1961

"One of the most important contributions" of the film, says Lonnie Bunch, "is the humanization of Dr. King," as portrayed by David Oyelowo.

The Director of the African American History Museum Weighs in on 'Selma'

A film with black history at its core and created by African Americans opens up a "national conversation"

Read Through Early Drafts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Speeches

One website gives you a peek into the mind of one of America’s most powerful orators

Bearing witness to the historic march and the freedom songs sung along the way, Carl Benkert carried a large tape recorder hidden from the police and angry whites.

Listen to the Freedom Songs Recorded During the March From Selma to Montgomery

When MLK called for people to come to Selma, Detroit's Carl Benkert arrived with his tape recorder, making the indelible album "Freedom Songs"

A group of young people, joyful at the success of the march, sing while walking through the St. Jude complex in Montgomery.

These Rare Photos of the Selma March Place You in the Thick of History

James Barker, a photographer from Alaska, shares his memories of documenting the famed event

Big News Stories of 2014 That Aren't Going Away

We just have so much to look forward to

King led a throng of 25,000 marchers through downtown Montgomery in 1965.

The Radical Paradox of Martin Luther King’s Devotion to Nonviolence

Biographer Taylor Branch makes a timely argument about civil right leader’s true legacy

Oakland police use Mace during Oakland's "Stop the Draft Week" October 16, 1967, the largest anti-Vietnam war protest in the San Francisco bay area to that date, in downtown Oakland.

The Forgotten History of Mace, Designed by a 29-Year-Old and Reinvented as a Police Weapon

When riots shook America, mace became a tool of crowd control instead of private protection

Bernard Kleina took rare color photographs of Martin Luther King Jr. during the Chicago Freedom Movement.

A Collection of Rare Color Photographs Depicts MLK Leading the Chicago Freedom Movement

The Smithsonian has acquired some of the only known images of Martin Luther King Jr. at the momentous protest

A Deeper Look at the Politicians Who Passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Fifty years later, a dive into what it took to make the historic legislation law

Maya Angelou by Ross Rossin, 2013.

Maya Angelou Was One of the Most Influential Voices of Our Time

Maya Angelou was poet, novelist, educator, producer, actress, filmmaker, dancer and civil rights activist

Marian Anderson performing at the DAR Constitution Hall.

Four Years After Marian Anderson Sang at the Lincoln Memorial, D.A.R. Finally Invited Her to Perform at Constitution Hall

A benefit concert presaged the opera singer’s eventual rapprochement with the Daughters of the American Revolution

Beneath Anderson's coat is a bright orange velour jacket, a form-fitting number trimmed in gold with turquoise buttons, now among the collections at the Smithsonian.

When Marian Anderson Sang at the Lincoln Memorial, Her Voice Stunned the Crowd, and Her Gold-Trimmed Jacket Dazzled

With no color photos of her famous performance in existence, the brilliance of Marian Anderson's bright orange outfit has been lost, until now

Equal opportunity boredom.

Jurors Cannot Be Dismissed From a Case Based on Sexual Orientation

The price for being treated like an equal human? Also having to serve jury duty

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The Stark Reminders of the Birmingham Church Bombing

Upon the 60th anniversary of the tragic attack, these stained glass shards recall the day that saw four girls killed in Alabama

For a photo op, Rosa Parks sits in the front of a bus on December 21, 1956, the day that Montgomery's buses were officially integrated.

Document Deep Dive: Rosa Parks’ Arrest Records

Read between the lines of the police report drawn up when the seamstress refused to give up her seat in 1955

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