Tag Archives: Civil Rights Activists

Civil Rights activist Septima Poinsette Clark: “The Mother of the Movement”

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Teacher Septima Poinsette Clark was an integral part of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s. In fact, she was often called “The Mother of the Movement.” Photo Credit: Bob Fitch photography archive, © Stanford University Libraries

Septima Poinsette Clark was an integral part of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Martin Luther King, Jr., often called her “The Mother of the Movement.” In fact, this remarkable educator earned the Martin Luther King, Jr., Award in 1970, the Living Legacy Award in 1979, and the Drum Major for Justice Award in 1987.

Septima was born in Charleston, South Carolina, on May 3, 1898. Her father was born a slave, and her mother, although born in Charleston, was raised in Haiti and never experienced slavery. After Septima graduated from high school in 1916, she didn’t have the money to finance her college education. Nevertheless, she landed a position as an elementary teacher in a school for African American Gullah children on John’s Island in South Carolina’s Sea Islands. By 1919, Septima returned to Charleston to teach sixth grade at Avery Normal Institute, a private academy for Black children. Before long, Septima became involved with Charleston’s NAACP, which inaugurated her involvement in Civil Rights activities. In the 1940s, Septima was finally able to return to school, taking summer school courses to earn her college degree. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from Benedict College and her Master’s from Hampton University.

In the 1950s Septima found herself working at the Highlander Folk School in Monteagle, Tennessee. She was instrumental in fighting against Jim Crow laws by organizing citizenship schools to teach underprivileged African Americans basic literacy skills, voter registration techniques, and the history of the Movement. At Highlander, Septima served as the director of workshops, trained teachers, and recruited students.One of the participants in her workshops was Rosa Parks. Shortly after participating in the Highlander workshops, Rosa helped launch the now-famous Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Septima Clark passed away on John’s Island on December 15, 1987, of natural causes. This talented and dedicated teacher was 89 years old.

Teacher Mary Burrell worked tirelessly for women’s rights, prison reform, and civil rights

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Public school teacher Mary Burrell also worked as a suffragist and social reformer in the early 19th century. Photo credit: Newark Women

I have always believed that teachers are among the most active social reformers in our nation’s history. As an example, I offer Mary Burrell, a public school teacher who worked tirelessly as a suffragist, political organizer, and reformer.

Mary Burrell was born in Richmond, Virginia, in 1866. to Lucy Cary. When she was a youngster, Mary attended public schools in Richmond up to the eighth grade. She graduated in 1883 from the Richmond Colored Normal School.

After her graduation, Mary worked as a public school teacher for two years, until her marriage in 1885 to William Patrick Burrell. To this union were born two sons, William Jr. and John Mercer. In 1913, the family moved to Essex County, New Jersey.

Mary had a reputation for being an outstanding pubic speaker. She worked diligently for such causes as women’s suffrage, holding meetings in her home, organizing political rallys, and canvassing door-to-door to earn votes for the cause. She also prison reform, fighting against race and sex discrimination. In addition, she founded the Richmond Hospital, organized Rosebud youth groups, and served as Chair of the Women’s Auxiliary and Secretary of the Virginia State Federation of Colored Women.

The former teacher worked with Assemblyman Dr. Walter Alexander to draft several pieces of legislation, including prison reform and civil rights bills that passed both the State Assembly and State Senate over the Democratic governor’s veto. In fact, because of her effectiveness as a lobbyist, the state legislature granted her floor privileges for an entire term.

In addition to this work, Mary Burrell held positions in national and state level inter-racial and civic and political organizations, including the National League of Republican Colored Women, the State Colored Republican Conference, the inter-racial National Republican Conference, the inter-racial Newark NAACP, the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, and the (NJ) State Migrant Commission. She remained an honored reformer and political organizer in the state of New Jersey until her passing in 1949.

 

Georgia teacher Patricia Ramón advanced the cause of Civil rights during the 1960’s

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High school English teacher Patricia Ramón of Atlanta, Georgia, was one of many African American educators who worked diligently to advance the cause of Civil Rights during the 1960’s. Photo credit: Teachers in the Movement

Many exceptional African American educators worked diligently to advance the cause of Civil Rights during the 1960’s. One of these was Patricia Ramón, who was a high school English teacher in Atlanta, Georgia, during The Movement.

Patricia earned her Bachelor’s degree in English Education at Clark College, a predominantly Black university at the time. The institution is now known as Clark Atlanta University. She earned her Master’s degree at Georgia State University, a predominantly White university also located in Atlanta. When she garnered a Reader’s Digest grant, she completed the courses required to earn an Education Specialist degree in 1995.

When Patricia was a youngster, she attended Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, the church where Martin Luther King’s father, who was known as “Daddy King,” was a popular pastor. Patricia participated in the church choir, which was directed by MLK’s mother. And she often babysat for the family. When he grew to national prominence, MLK attended church services, where she learned the latest news about the Civil Rights Movement on Sunday. She would then take that information back to her classroom at Benjamin E. Mays High School on Monday. Her students became keenly aware of the Black activists who were out marching, preaching, and teaching about equal opportunity in Atlanta and elsewhere.

In addition, Patricia inaugurated her own version of Black Literature studies in her classroom. She introduced her students to prominent Black authors, including such notables as Alice Walker, Maya Angelou, Richard Wright, and poets from the Harlem Renaissance. This was pioneering curriculum in the 1960’s.

To learn more about Patricia Ramón and other teachers who were active in the classroom during the Civil Rights Movement, click on this link to the Teachers in the Movement Project.

Mississippi Freedom Schools helped Southern Black Americans vote

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Freedom Schools were opened in southern states as part of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. The most famous ones were established in Mississippi during the Freedom Summer of 1964. Photo credit: Civil Rights Teaching

The anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington today gives us the opportunity to think about the courageous and dedicated teachers, both Black and White, who tirelessly worked towards creating a more equal society in our country. Some of them dedicated their teaching expertise to teach in Freedom Schools during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, particularly during the Freedom Summer of 1964.

Freedom schools were the brainchild of New York City math teacher Bob Moses, an African American educator with unique vision. Under his direction, these alternative schools were organized and staffed by White political activists, teachers, and college students. They came from all over the United States to participate in the endeavor.

The goal of the summer program was to empower disenfranchised African American community to register to vote and to exercise their Constitutionally-guaranteed rights to political participation. Volunteers also hoped to help bridge some of the gap created by educational neglect. The neglect had long been rampant in states ruled by Jim Crow laws. Both Black and White citizens realized that only through education and participation in the democratic process could African Americans ever hope to improve their lot.

The enterprise was not without danger. On the first day of Freedom Summer, three volunteers involved in the program—Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner, and James Chaney—disappeared. They were investigating the firebombing of the church facility in Mississippi designated for their voter recruitment activities. Six weeks later, the badly beaten and bullet-ridden bodies of the three missing men were discovered buried in an earthen dam in nearby Neshoba County, Mississippi.

To learn more about freedom schools and Freedom Summer, click on this link to the History Channel.

Civil Rights activist Fannie Richards first Black teacher in Detroit

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Civil Rights activist Fannie Richards of Detroit, Michigan, is recognized as the first African American school teacher in her city. Photo credit: Black Then

Throughout our country, many excellent educators logged “firsts” in their community. One of these was Fannie Richards. She is recognized as the first African American school teacher in Detroit, Michigan.

Fannie was born on Oct. 1, 1840, in Fredericksburg, Virginia, the child of free persons of color. When she was just a child, her family moved to Toronto, Canada. She enrolled in Canadian public schools, and once she graduated, she continued her studies at Toronto Normal School and then in Germany, where she worked with education expert Wilhelm Frobel as he developed the innovative new concept of kindergartens.

Once she returned to the United States, Fannie landed in Detroit. Because of her exceptional scholastic record, she was able to secure a position as a teacher in Detroit city schools. But in 1863 Fannie decided to strike out on her own. She opened a private school for African American children, which she operated for five years. In 1868, she returned to public schools when she was hired to teach in Colored School No. 2.

Under the leadership of John Bagley in 1870, Fannie and members of her family protested vehemently against Detroit’s segregated school system. The effort yielded the desired results when, in 1871, the Michigan State Supreme Court ordered the Detroit Board of Education to abolish separate schools for White and African American children. That same year, Fannie was transferred to the newly-integrated Everett Elementary School, where she established the first kindergarten in Detroit. In all, she taught at that school for 44 years.

Fannie’s activism went beyond the classroom, as she founded the Phyllis Wheatley Home for Aged Colored Ladies which was established to meet the needs of poor and elderly Black women in her community. In 1898, she became the home’s first president.

In 1915, after a career that spanned more than 50 years, Fannie retired. She passed away seven years later on Feb. 13, 1922, at the age of 81. For her work in Michigan’s schools, the Chalkboard Champion was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.