Racism in Delaware from the Civil Rights Movement to Today

Ashley Miller

This unit will cover lessons from the Civil Rights movement to today, focusing specifically on events in Delaware. Students will analyze two court cases from Delaware that dealt with the unfairness of “separate but equal” ruling that was the norm in the United States. These two court cases were then added to the Supreme Court cases that became the Brown vs. Board of Education which started desegregation in the US. Students will then move into looking at the 1968 Wilmington Riots and nine month occupation of the city by the National Guard. This is the longest occupation of a US city since the Civil War, which has a long term effect on the city. Students will end by looking at the city of Wilmington today with the violence in the city and how people are trying to change the image of “Murdertown USA”.