attorney general—The chief legal advisor for a governor or for the president of the United States. The attorney general for the United States runs the Department of Justice and is a member of the president’s cabinet.
boycott—A group or individual’s refusal to buy goods from or even deal with a store or some other enterprise as a form of protest.
civil disobedience—A form of protest where laws are purposefully violated in order to change the law or some policy.
civil rights—The protections and privileges to which all citizens in a particular country are entitled.
injunction—A court or judge’s order to someone or to a group to either stop some action or require some action.
integration—The opening of facilities such as schools, parks, hotels, and restaurants to all people where previously certain racial or ethnic groups were kept out.
Jim Crow—The name used to refer to the web of laws and customs that formally kept African Americans in a separate and unequal position.
Negro—Once used to refer to an African American, this term is now considered insulting.
the philosophy of nonviolence—The philosophy guiding many activists in the civil rights movement, especially those associated with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Many taking part in protests signed an agreement stating that they would not strike back if they were hit. Leaders from the nonviolent wing of the movement hoped that such behavior would transform opponents.
segregation—The separation of people based on race or ethnicity in schools, hotels, restaurants, residences, and elsewhere.
sit-in—A form of protest where people seat themselves and then refuse to leave until their demands are agreed to or they are forcefully removed. Civil rights activists frequently used this form of protest at segregated facilities such as lunch counters.