Mississippi

 

 Freedom Summer

June 1964

Freedom Summer was a campaign to assist African Americans in registering to vote, to education black youth, and to fight for desegregation and equality. To achieve these goals, African American organizers needed to train volunteers, who were subsequently mostly white, to prepare for the inevitable attacks they would experience in Mississippi. 1 Many of the volunteers were beaten and three young men would be killed; Michael Schwerner, James Chaney, and Andrew Goodman. 2 As you can see in the photographs, the attacks could be very serious, requiring medical treatment. 3


Image Credit in Order of Appearance
Polumbaum, Ted. "Freedom Summer Volunteers Canvasing in Mississippi." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. June 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
Polumbaum, Ted. "David Owen in Mississippi." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. June 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
Herron, Matt. "Lexington Mississippi Freedom School Opens." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. July 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
Polumbaum, Ted. "David Owen Receives Medical Treatment." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. June 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.

 

Freedom Day

July 16, 1964

Freedom Day was a day of mass protesting for voter rights in which several of the participants who were also part of the Freedom Summer program and SNCC volunteers were arrested. 4 This event is slightly more publicized than the general canvasing for voter registration, likely due to the violence, and could make for a strong Webquest type of assignment.


Image Credit in Order of Appearance
Polumbaum, Ted. "Young Man Arrested at the Freedom Day Protests." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. July 16 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
Polumbaum, Ted. "Pregnant Woman Arrested at the Freedom Day Protests." Digital image. USA Today. July 16 1964. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/03/freedom-summer-1964/5190961/.
 

  

Meredith Mississippi March

March - June 1966

The Meredith Mississippi Marches of 1966 were named for James Meredith who had been granted the right to attend college, regardless of his ethnicity, by the federal government and was subsequently murdered. 5 The march was to protest fear of white rage with every step toward equality. 6Participants were of all ages and though the marchers were not met with police brutality there was a heavy police presence and some marchers were attacked by counter-protestor, some of which were also youths, on stops along the march. 7


Image Credit in Order of Appearance
Freeman, Jo. "Marchers Line Up After Lunch." Digital Image. The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966. 1966. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
Freeman, Jo. "Hosea Williams Addresses the Crowd." Digital Image. The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966. 1966. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
Freeman, Jo. "Marchers Watch Rally From Courthouse Steps." Digital Image. The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966. 1966. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
Freeman, Jo. "Young Marcher Remembers Jimmy Lee Jackson." Digital Image. The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966. 1966. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
Freeman, Jo. "Counter-Protestors Spectating." Digital Image. The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966. 1966. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
 

Videos

The following videos will provide you with the voices of those involved in events of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

This video discusses the attack of James Meredith, who had successfully integrated the University of Mississippi. The video shows images of his one-man march growing in popularity, including participation from children. The march would continue, grow, and become more than a voters rights march but one against fear of white rage.

    

Audio

The following links will take you to audio clips about the Civil Right Movement in Mississippi

Freedom Summer:

  • Oh Freedom Over Me by John Biewen. (February 2001)
Featured Image Credit
Polumbaum, Ted. "Freedom Summer Volunteers Canvasing in Mississippi." Digital image. PBS: American Experience. June 1964. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
  1. "The Mississippi Summer Project." PBS: American Experience. June 24, 2014. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.
  2. Ibid.
  3. Ibid.; Additionally, David Owen was only nineteen when he volunteered but would stay in Mississippi for the cause until January of 1965, a testament to the devotion to equality.
  4. "The Mississippi Summer Project." PBS: American Experience. June 24, 2014. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-project/.; It is also worth mentioning that Freedom Day did not occur only in Mississippi.
  5. Freeman, Jo. "The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966." Jo Freeman. Accessed April 14, 2017. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.
  6. "White Rage" is a modern concept of the fear a white person has over the rights and equality of minorities taking something from them to the point that they lash out.
  7. Freeman, Jo. "The Meredith Mississippi March-June 1966." Jo Freeman. Accessed April 14, 2017. http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/meredith.html.

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