History glossary
racial segregation
the enforced separation of people by race.
- Category
- Civil rights
- Region
- United States
- Date range
- 1954–1968
What it means
In this story, segregation means rules and practices separating Black and white people in schools, buses, restaurants and other spaces. In much of the American South it was required by law and used to maintain unequal treatment.
Stories using this term
Apartheid South Africa
From white minority rule to mass resistance, Mandela's release and the first democratic election, apartheid reshaped South Africa and the world.
The Anglo Boer Conflict
A war between Britain and Boer republics that exposed imperial costs and reshaped South Africa.
The American Civil War and the Abolition of Slavery
The American Civil War determined the survival of the Union and led to the abolition of slavery, fundamentally reshaping the United States.
The British Empire
Britain built the largest empire in history through sea power, trade, slavery, industrial wealth, conquest, and rule, before decolonisation reshaped the modern world.
The Civil Rights Movement
From school desegregation to Montgomery, Selma and Memphis, organised communities challenged racial exclusion and transformed American democracy.
