Fannie Lou Hamer was a galvanizing force of the Civil Rights movement, using her voice to advance voting rights and representation for Black Americans throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Faced with eviction, arrests, and abuse at the hands of white doctors, policemen, and others, Hamer stayed true to her faith and her conviction in non-violent progress. She helped found the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, ran for Congress, and was one of the first three Black women in American history to be seated on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. Hamer dedicated herself fully as a grassroots organizer of the Civil Rights movement, inspiring countless activists and pushing progress forward. This is her story.
1962: Registering to vote
Despite violent reprisals, a growing national civil rights movement ignited action against segregation and discrimination. Young people from across the country formed the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to help African Americans in the South register to vote. During the summer of 1962, SNCC leaders, including Robert Parris Moses arrived in Ruleville. Encouraged by the young people’s commitment to help, Fannie Lou took the indecipherable voter literacy test but failed. Her white landlord, incensed by Hamer’s determination to vote, told her, “We’re not ready for that in Mississippi.” He then evicted her. Image: Freedom Day, January 22, 1964, Hattiesburg (Miss.). Forrest County Circuit Clerk Theron C. Lynd attends to voter registration applicants in courthouse. Photo by Winfred Moncrief.
Images are from Walk with Me, except where otherwise noted and linked.
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