The Civil Rights Era (1865–1970)

The second occurred in 1950, when United Nations diplomat Ralph Bunche became the first black man to win the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize for his work in reducing Arab-Israeli tensions. Although President Truman offered Bunche a promotion to the position of undersecretary of state, Bunche declined the offer after learning that he and his family would still have to live in the segregated black quarter of Washington, D.C.