Challenge and Change

Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans struggled for civil rights. Men and women of all these minority groups had served heroically in both world wars, in Korea, and in Vietnam. Yet they often faced discrimination in parts of the United States. This meant they were treated differently and often unfairly because of their racial or ethnic background. 

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, many states passed laws to separate the races. The legal separation of races is called segregation. These laws applied to most public places, especially in the South. 

By the 1950s, blacks began to challenge the discrimination they faced in parts of New Mexico and across the country. The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., emerged as the leader of the Civil Rights Movement. He led nonviolent protests against segregation and discrimination.

The first major victory of the Civil Rights Movement was the Supreme Court's decision Brown v. the Topeka Board of Education. This important 1954 ruling declared that segregation in public schools was illegal.

Haroldie Kent Spriggs and her brother, Sammie Kent, experienced the pain of segregation in Tucumcari's public schools during the early 1950s.

Black teachers also felt the sting of prejudice and discrimination. Lauretta Loftus applied to teach in the Albuquerque Public Schools in 1949. She was turned down year after year. She was finally hired to teach special education in 1954, becoming the first black teacher in Albuquerque history. 

After much time and sacrifice, civil rights activists (people who strongly support a cause) won other major victories. The 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibited any kind of discrimination in public places. The 1965 Voting Rights Act made it easier for blacks to vote. The 1968 Fair Housing Act stopped discrimination in the sale or rental of property.