In Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court ruled that schools with racial segregation violated the 14th Amendment (unconstitutional). The Court's ruling is extremely important in advancing Civil Rights because it was a point in history where racial segregation was finally banned from public schools. This allowed blacks to have the same rights as whites. It also, allowed more opportunities for blacks to fight for their rights. Basically, it was a turning point for black people. It allowed them to say "well why is there racial segregation in other places?" "Lets stop all racial segregation!"
The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. It began after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors.