Q 01/05

Which Alabama city's bus boycott began after a Black woman was arrested for refusing to give up her seat?

A) Birmingham

B) Montgomery

C) Selma

D) Mobile

Answer · why

B) Montgomery

Montgomery's boycott ended only when the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ruling that segregated seating on its buses was unconstitutional.

Q 02/05

Which civil rights leader won the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize?

A) Whitney M. Young Jr.

B) A. Philip Randolph

C) Martin Luther King Jr.

D) Ralph Abernathy

Answer · why

C) Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. gave away the prize money, sharing it among leading civil rights groups instead of keeping it.

Q 03/05

What genre originated in New Orleans' African American communities around 1900?

A) Blues

B) Gospel

C) Jazz

D) R&B

Answer · why

C) Jazz

Jazz star Louis Armstrong learned to play cornet properly in a New Orleans boys' home, where he was sent after an arrest on New Year's Eve 1912.

Q 04/05

Who was the first African American President of the United States?

A) Colin Powell

B) Condoleezza Rice

C) Barack Obama

D) Jesse Jackson

Answer · why

C) Barack Obama

Barack Obama lost a 2000 congressional primary to incumbent Bobby Rush by two to one, eight years before he won the presidency.

Q 05/05

Which whites-only Harlem venue had Duke Ellington's orchestra as its house band?

A) Savoy Ballroom

B) Smalls Paradise

C) Cotton Club

D) Minton's Playhouse

Answer · why

C) Cotton Club

The Cotton Club's live radio broadcasts carried Duke Ellington's orchestra across the country and made him a national star.