page_title: Post–civil rights era in African-American history
section_title: 1965-1970
hierarchical_section_title: Post–civil rights era in African-American history / 1965-1970
caption_attribution_description: English: Malcolm X waiting for a press conference to begin on March 26, 1964
context_page_description: The post–civil rights era in African-American history is defined as the time period in the United States since Congressional passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, major federal legislation that ended legal segregation, gained federal oversight and enforcement of voter registration and electoral practices in states or areas with a history of discriminatory practices, and ended discrimination in renting or buying housing.
  Politically, African Americans have made substantial strides in the post–civil rights era. Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson ran for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988, attracting more African Americans into politics and unprecedented support and leverage for people of colour in politics. In 2008, Barack Obama was elected as the first President of the United States of African descent.
  In the same period, African Americans have suffered disproportionate unemployment rates following industrial and corporate restructuring, with a rate of poverty in the 21st century that is equal to that in the 1960s.
context_section_description: On February 21, 1965, Malcolm X, an African-American rights activist with national and international prominence, was shot and killed in New York City.
  1966 was the last year of publication of The Negro Motorist Green Book, informally known as "The Green Book". It provided advice to African-American travelers, during years of legal segregation and overt discrimination, about places where they could stay, get gas, and eat while traveling cross-country. For example, in 1956 only three New Hampshire motels served African Americans, and most motels and hotels in the South were segregated. After the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Green Book largely became obsolete.
  The African-American cultural holiday Kwanzaa was first celebrated in 1966-1967. Kwanzaa was founded by Maulana Karenga as a Pan-Africanist cultural and racial-identity event, as an alternative to cultural events of the dominant society such as Christmas and Hanukkah.
  Civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. Protests and despair led to riots in multiple U.S. cities, primarily in black-majority communities. Beginning in 1971, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established as a holiday in numerous cities and states. A U.S. federal holiday was established in King's name in 1986. Since his death, hundreds of streets in the U.S. have been renamed in his honour. King has become a national icon in the history of American liberalism and American progressivism.
  Fred Hampton, a prominent Black Panther activist, was murdered by police while sleeping in Chicago on December 4, 1969.
caption: Malcolm X in March 1964.
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