Ella was a major player in the civil rights movement, preferring to work behind the scenes. It’s shocking how little the youth of today know about the civil-rights movement. She was a founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). On August 28, 1955, Mobley’s 14-year-old son, Emmett Till, was brutally murdered in Money, Mississippi, by two white men who claimed that Till had “wolf-whistled” at one of their wives. The Moore Legacy: The True American Heroes Fannie Lou Hamer dedicated her life to fighting racial injustice and encouraging African Americans to get out and vote. While the same popular figures often get celebrated throughout Black History Month, here are some lesser-known figures who have more than earned their place in history. Throughout the 1940s, as he got involved with dissent organizations, he got into trouble with the law. Brown still shares his stories of how you can affect history without being at the forefront of the movement. Murray was named as a co-author on the brief. In 1854, the United States was only a few years from its Civil War (1861-1865), a conflict largely fought over the issue of slavery. As president and general manager of the Dodgers, he brought that dream to fruition by signing Jackie Robinson. Washington was also a writer and served as entertainment editor of the People’s Voice. Whitney M. Young Jr. was head of the National Urban League during the organization's most productive decade, 1961 to 1971. Her work with grassroots organization made her a valuable member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). King earned a bachelor’s degree in Music and Education from Antioch College, and had met her future husband while studying at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Murray's writings were crucial to issues of gender and race. She also became the president of the state's NAACP chapter. We are going to shine the light now on an establishment figure, the first black Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. James Zwerg is a White Freedom Rider who was beaten bloody and unconscious by an angry White mob when he stepped off of a freedom bus in Montgomery Alabama. “I didn’t have time to worry about what might happen, or what had happened, or what would happen,” said Ballou, who went on to serve as a teacher and college administrator. After her time in Congress, Chisholm continuined to serve as an educator. Pininterest. The greatest facet of his legacy was his work to integrate baseball. After agreeing, Ballou became the Rev. In this list, we will spread the definition of ‘Civil Rights Movement’ a little bit beyond the orthodox, and examine a view unsung personalities that you might not have guessed were civil rights activists. January 10, 2012 / by Gaius Chamberlain. In 1972, Chisholm became the first black woman to run for president of the United States as a major party candidate, which also made her the first woman to run for president as a Democrat. Brandeis University professor Dr. Pauli Murray, 1970. Thurgood Marshall. But Ballou just kept on working. https://www.splcenter.org/what-we-do/civil-rights-memorial/civil-rights-martyrs Like us on Facebook to see similar stories, On International Women's Day, Biden to sign executive orders on gender equity, Title IX policies, Georgia Senate considers repealing no excuse absentee voting in sweeping election bill. Thurgood Marshall, took Justice to the Supreme Court. She was one of the 17 protesters hospitalized on Bloody Sunday, when she was beaten unconscious. Profile: Martin Luther King, Jr. Women of the civil rights movement. Colvin felt slighted, but later joined three other women—Mary Louise Smith, Aurelia Browder and Susie McDonald—as the plaintiffs in Browder v. Gayle, the case that ultimately overturned bus segregation in Alabama. “More than 100,000 people saw his body lying in that casket…at that time the largest single civil rights demonstration in American history.” Until her death in 2003, at the age of 81, Mobley advocated for underprivileged children and against racial injustice. Messeroux said that shoot was one of the most memorable. There, she met Samuel Boynton, who would become her husband. “We were very busy doing things, knowing that anything could happen, and we just kept going.”. In 1944, Murray was the only woman enrolled at Howard Law School—and at the top of her class. Frank Smith Jr. is one of several contributing founders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Regardless, the Moores’ death would make them the first Civil Rights martyrs, inspiring millions across the nation and globe. Baker also taught courses in consumer education, labor history, and African history for the Worker's Education Project. Subscribe (Free!) In 1955, Maude Ballou—a young mother who had studied business and literature in college and was program director of the first Black radio station in Montgomery, Alabama—was approached by her husband’s friend, a young minister and activist named Martin Luther King, Jr., to be the personal secretary. Nash, unshaken by the stance of the White House, told Seigenthaler that they knew the risks involved and had already prepared their wills before continuing the Freedom Rides. Ella Baker grew up hearing her grandmother's firsthand accounts of slavery, which sparked her interest in fighting for change. Claudette Colvin would prove integral to the movement once again when she served as a plaintiff in Browder v. Gayle, the case ruling that Alabama's bus segregation laws were unconstitutional. Bayard Rustin developed his political philosophy and got involved in activism when he met A. Philip Randolph. BLACK WOMEN. Mamie Till Mobley was brought into the civil rights movement with the tragic, brutal death of her son, Emmett Till. As president of the Women's Political Council (WPC), she focused on changing the city's segregated bussing system. Two years later, she registered to vote and was subsequently arrested. Black History Month, Civil Rights (Forty3Zero / Shutterstock.com) On August 28, 1963, over 250,000 men, women, and children had made their way to Washington DC to march for civil rights where Dr. Martin Luther King, JR gave his moving “I Have a Dream Speech” that is part of the communal memory of the civil rights movement. https://historycollection.com/10-unsung-heroes-of-the-civil-rights-movement Chisholm represented New York's 12th congressional district for seven terms, from 1969 to 1983. The couple worked at helping African Americans in Alabama with literacy, voting, and property rights. Ruby Bridges (born Sept. 8, 1954), the subject of an iconic painting by Norman Rockwell, was only 6 years old when she received national attention for desegregating an elementary school in New Orleans.In her pursuit of a quality education during a time when Black people were treated as second-class citizens, little Bridges became a civil rights icon. (Credit: Leigh Vogel/Getty Images), Freedom Rider and Nonviolent Student Activist for Desegregation. She cofounded the Dallas County Voters League in 1933 and would hold voting drives in Alabama over the following two decades. It’s shocking how little the youth of today know about the civil-rights movement. Elizabeth Peratrovich. SNCC—under the direction of Nash— continued the protest from Birmingham, Alabama, to Jackson, Mississippi. Civil Rights Heroes Assignment: Rosa Parks 1) She refused to give up her seat to a white man when the bus was full - she was thrown off and arrested. He was shot several times, once through the heart. Mamie Till Mobley’s story is one of triumph in the face of tragedy. Mug Shot Ledger Mug Shot Ledger. She began her life working as a sharecropper, eventually becoming the plantation timekeeper because she could read and write. The boycott went into action after Rosa Parks' arrest. To see a hero featured each day, along with vocabulary, holidays, calendars, and other printables, bookmark PrintablesToday.com There were many incredbile people whose contributions, both big and small, made an immense difference. The Crusade for Citizenship. She was 93 years old. Pininterest. Dr. Anna Pauline “Pauli” Murray were a cornerstone of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, the 1954 Supreme Court case that ended school segregation, but the lawyer, Episcopal priest, pioneering civil rights activist and co-founder of the National Organization for Women wouldn’t be made aware of that extraordinary accomplishment until a decade after the fact. Houston also taught law at Howard Law School, where he mentored Thurgood Marshall. Here are a few of their stories. “Mrs. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., his wife, Coretta Scott King, took his place at a sanitation workers’ protest in Memphis. “I’d like my grandchildren,” she said, “to be able to see that their grandmother stood up for something, a long time ago.”, Maude Ballou, in 2015, with a photo of herself taken when she served as Martin Luther King, Jr.’s secretary from 1955 to 1960. Diamond was one of 13 individuals — seven African Americans and six whites — who were refused service at a People’s Drug Store in Arlington, Virginia, in 1960. Her contributions to the success of Civil Rights movement have been increasingly recognized in the years since. By 1937, he founded the first African American labor union, Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. Her life and the lives of her family were threatened constantly. He joined the Federal forces himself, serving as a chaplain to a regiment stationed in Mississippi. Pauli Murray, born Anna Pauline Murray, was a fierce leader of the Civil Rights Movement, but she's often overlooked. February 1 marked the beginning of Black History Month. Timeline of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. She and three other Black students were told to give up their seats for a white woman. Daisy Bates' journalism documented the fight to end segregation in Arkansas. While their stories may not be widely known, countless dedicated, courageous women were key organizers and activists in the fight for civil rights. On the Civil Rights Memorial are inscribed the names of individuals who lost their lives in the struggle for freedom during the modern Civil Rights Movement - 1954 to 1968. Luvaughn Brown was integral to the integration fight in Mississippi. “I just didn’t know where or when.”, Colvin got her chance on March 2, 1955, when she boarded a bus in downtown Montgomery. The fight for civil rights … Though their stories are sometimes overlooked, these women were instrumental in the fight for equal rights for African-Americans. In the early years of the civil rights movement, she hosted a series of popular “Freedom Concerts,” raising thousands of dollars for the movement. Nash kept the group’s commitment to nonviolence front and center at the sit-ins, which proved very effective in ending the discriminatory practices within the restaurants. She became the first African American to receive a doctor of juridical science degree from Yale University. (Credit: AP Photo), The Draftswoman of Civil Rights Victories. In 1957, she was listed as number 21 on the Montgomery Improvement Associations list of “persons and churches most vulnerable to violent attacks.” (King was at the top of the list.) She taught sociology and politics, while also speaking at schools around the country. 3) She was a Civil Rights Activist. During the 1980s, she was a vigorous opponent of apartheid. He got involved with Martin Luther King Jr. and began organizing for him. “It felt like Sojourner Truth was on one side pushing me down, and Harriet Tubman was on the other side of me pushing me down. Shirley Chisholm was a pioneer for African Americans in politics. He was also an accomplished baseball player who wanted to see sports desegregated. Whitney Young Jr. may not be as well-known as some of the towering figures of the civil rights movement, but he had just as much impact, if not … The fight for Civil Rights became one of the biggest movements in the 19th and 20th centuries. He worked within the African American community to increase educational opportunities, desegregate trolley cars, and increase voting opportunities for African Americans. Rustin worked on both civil and human rights issues. She created the term "Jane Crow" to refer to the discrimination black women faced. He continued his activism as an organizer, and teamed up with Bayard Rustin and A. J. Muste to propose and develop what would eventually become the March on Washington. The Freedom Rides, which were initially organized by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), encountered a mob of angry segregationists as they entered Anniston, Alabama, and were brutally beaten and unable to finish the route.