Park 1 Joshua Park Stephanie Sparling Williams Black Social Movements 21 October 2013 Essay 1 Fannie Lou Hamer

As famously stated by the impactful activist, nobodys free until everybodys free. Fannie Lou Hamer, established as one of the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement and the American Voting Rights Movement, utilized her gifts of speaking to fight racial injustices and segregation. Born on October 6, 1917 in Montgomery County, Mississippi, Fannie Lou Hamer flourished as she worked laboriously worked out on the fields even as a young child. She possessed the motivation to battle for civil rights at an early ageshe registered to vote with 17 other blacks, which actuated conflicts on their venture to their goal. Her pre-mature actions as a young teen resulted in her dedication to wholeheartedly serve her community and fight for civil rights. Fannie Lou Hamer garnered involvement in different civil rights organizations/political parties, such as SNCC and MFDP. Although some similarities are evident, the goals, strategies, and obstacles that were presented to Fannie Lou Hamer differed from other organizations: SCLS and MFDP. Specific examples of class, gender, and race rendered the development and fulfillment of programs and leadership of southern Civil Rights Movements. Rodney King, beat by Los Angeles police officers, and those partaking in the Civil Unrest of 1922 gained knowledge from Fannie Lou Hamers experiences, as well as many other activists today. Fannie Lou Hamers life and her passion to make the world a better place positively infected the racial realm of this country.

Park 2 Fannie Lou Hamer generated and facilitated a grandiose amount of time with the SNCC organization, also known as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. In August 1962, at the age of 44, Fannie Lou Hamer bravely took a risk by venturing towards civil rights; for the first time in her life, she endeavored to successfully be apart of the voting process (Lee 23). The primary and critical focus of the SNCC organization was centered voter-registration drives. The organization has a basis and foundation in non-violence; the members truly affirm their faith in non-violence, and the future impacts that it will produce (Marabel, Mullings 371). The SNCC organization presented specific missions for Fannie Lou Hamer to fulfill: she was called to setup and empower the leadership body and constitute and analyze smaller goals towards civil rights. Specifically, Fannie Lou Hamer was placed in emphasis to further the development of voter registration (Lee 43). Other topical goals for the SNCC organization were the support of black power and direct action protests against segregation. Strategies of variation were put into play for the SNCC organization. The members utilized litigations, boycotts, and sit-ins; more specifically, they participated in freedom rides, segregated lunch counter protests, and voter registration drives. The SNCC organization focused a sufficient but enduring amount of energy on the voter registration drives. This crucial event actuated more blacks to register to become a voter, even at the risk of losing their jobs on the plantations. Although the significances pushes and advancements made by the organization, continual trials and conflicts were presented to Fannie Lou Hamer and the SNCC organization. Because many of the events and strategies were hands on and in public locations, the possibility of conflicts with white officials exponentially grew. Sit-ins, in public and populated places, ultimately

Park 3 influenced white citizens to be involved in a negative way. Arguments and fights led to chaos and physical abuse to the members of the SNCC organization that took action in these specific sit-ins. Fannie Lou Hamer also faced many trials head to head. By the time of arrival, she was mobbed by a group of white citizens that did not affirm with blacks possessing the right to vote. Many blacks participants in voter registrations drives were fired from their jobs on the plantations, because of their absence on the field (Lee 34). Difficulties and struggles were implemented into the venturing towards civil rights for the SNCC organizationFannie Lou Hamer. Along with the SNCC organization, Fannie Lou Hamer placed major emphasis in the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party, also known as the MFDP organization. The forming of the MFDP organization occurred on April 26, 1964; hundreds of Mississippians that did not have the ability to vote gathered and pursued to constitute a important change. One of their primary goals was to influence the government to be more inclusive; they wanted black delegates to join with the white delegates. The MFDP organization pursued for equal racial representation (Lee 88). Fannie Lou Hamers position in the MFDP organization was very similar to her role for the SNCC organization. She now had to travel further beyond the South and to new locations. Her promising role with the MFDP organization allowed her life to be publicized more and gain popularity, not just in one location. Their main applicable strategy implemented the use of Fannie Lou Hamer and her effect of the community. She utilized her public likability and motivated the people to attain increased activity in fighting for civil rights and racial equality. This actuated more citizens to partake in sit-ins and attend voter registration drives. Some struggles that they faced included: the inability to attend

Park 4 Democratic Party meetings, many whites responded with violence and disagreements, and the compromise that only allowed two seats for the black people in Mississippi. Fannie Lou Hamer denied the compromise and continued to fight for equal representation. Martin Luther King Jr. established the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, also known as the SCLC organization, in 1957. The leadership of Martin Luther King Jr. provided hope in the eyes of black citizens. The main goals and missions for the SCLC organization consisted of achieving full citizenship rights, racial equality, and the addiction of blacks into American Life (Marabel, Mullings 345). They also empowered large emphasis on nonviolent protest to create awareness and securing the right of the ballot for all citizens. Most of their strategic plans involved non-violent actions and also boycotts. They faced the struggle of challenging Jim Crow in the southern areas. Similarly, compared to the SNCC organization, both focus on the philosophy of nonviolence, which is very crucial for both sides. The most evident similarity between the two organizations is their push to gain equal voting rights; they both emphasize the presence of voter registration drives. Their non-violent philosophies and primary energy on voting rights presented their alikeness. Although many parallels are presented, the SNCC organization possessed more extreme and forceful protests, while the SCLC organization maintained a more peaceful strategic way to fight for civil rights. Founded on February 12, 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, also known as the NAACP organization, was a prominent civil rights group. The mission of the organization is to fight for social, political, educational rights for the people and to destroy any racial discrimination. The main strategy of the NAACP

Park 5 organization is to establish victory by fighting legal conflicts to grasp social justice for black people. Some struggles are the inability to move at a fast pace and the location, in the courtroom, for the trials, which caused people to lose interest in this organization. The prominent leaders constituted of Ida B. Wells and W.E.B. Du Bois. The slow process of change differed from the fast pace and the fieldwork of the SNCC organization. Although the MFDP organization focused more on the voting aspect of equality, their philosophical goal of fighting for civil rights and desegregation held the common ground between the two organizations. Gender, class, and race have had a large impact in the shaping and molding of the programs and leadership of the southern Civil Rights Movement. Women were beaten more harshly and sexually assaulted by police officers. This caused groups like the SNCC organization to take a stand and promote feminism. This shaped the leadership of SNCC because Fannie Lou Hamer had a heart and passion for feminism; she helped with the finding of the National Womens Political Caucus. Fannie Lou Hamers position on feminism allowed the SNCC organization to focus on it as well. Class was used effectively by the different Civil Rights organizations. Because most of the blacks in the southern were poor, certain organizations would gather large groups of them, with like clothing and food drives, and then promotes and advocates the importance of racial equality or voter registration. This benefited the leaders by generating responses using the social class of the people. Race, most obviously, garnered the most impact on programs and leadership. All of the Civil Rights organizations have one thing in common: they are striving to end racial discrimination and promote racial equality.

Park 6 The life of Fannie Lou Hamer is an inspiration to students, but more specifically for the current activists. Her desire and heart to generate changes, especially at an early age, can help motivate activists to continue to work sparingly and for their true purpose. Fannie Lou Hamers life consisted of many different organizations; other activists can be inspired and be more active with the community and by joining other groups and organizations. Rodney King and others participating in the Civil Unrest of 1992 have great amounts to learn from Hamers experiences. Although they were treated unfairly and were abused, Fannie Lou Hamers enduring life experiences can establish a stronghold in their lives; they should continue to fight for their rights. Hamers experiences have shown to people that hard work and strong desires can alter the course of time. Fannie Lou Hamers involvement, in SNCC and MFDP, has impacted and generated sound results, goals, strategies, and struggles that are in variation to SCLC and NAACP. Although their basis comes from abolishing racial inequality, the major purposes of the organizations are different and the approaches to fight for civil rights are dissimilar. Race, gender, and class establish support and positive effects for the Civil Rights organizations. Fannie Lou Hamers life and her experiences has molded and inspired many activists and normal citizens around the country. As famously stated by the impactful activist, nobodys free until everybodys free.

Park 7 Works Cited Lee, Chana Kai. For freedom's sake: the life of Fannie Lou Hamer. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1999. Print. Marable, Manning, and Leith Mullings. Let nobody turn us around: voices of resistance, reform, and renewal : an African American anthology. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2000. Print.