William H. Lawson
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781496816351
- eISBN:
- 9781496816399
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781496816351.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, Political History
Chapter Six examines the final rally of the campaign. Advertised as a “Victory Rally” both by posters and the speeches given at the final event, the Freedom Vote participants are able to look back ...
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Chapter Six examines the final rally of the campaign. Advertised as a “Victory Rally” both by posters and the speeches given at the final event, the Freedom Vote participants are able to look back upon the campaign and on their own terms institute its significance.Less
Chapter Six examines the final rally of the campaign. Advertised as a “Victory Rally” both by posters and the speeches given at the final event, the Freedom Vote participants are able to look back upon the campaign and on their own terms institute its significance.
Maegan Parker Brooks and Davis W. Houck
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604738223
- eISBN:
- 9781604738230
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604738223.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
In the 1964 congressional primaries, some of the candidates backed by the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), including Fannie Lou Hamer, Annie Devine, and Victoria Gray, lost to ...
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In the 1964 congressional primaries, some of the candidates backed by the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), including Fannie Lou Hamer, Annie Devine, and Victoria Gray, lost to Mississippi’s five white congressmen. Suspecting fraud, the Council of Federated Organizations held a “Freedom Vote” mock election, the results of which differed significantly from the official primaries. In the primaries, Hamer’s white opponent, Jamie Whitten, received 35,218 to Hamer’s 621 votes. In the mock election, however, Hamer garnered 33,009 votes to Whitten’s 59. This mock election also demonstrated that the blacks of Mississippi would vote if given the opportunity and could influence the outcome of the elections. On September 13, 1965, Hamer testified before the Subcommittee on Elections of the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. in connection with the MFDP’s questioning of the electoral legitimacy of Mississippi’s five white congressmen. This chapter reproduces Hamer’s testimony.Less
In the 1964 congressional primaries, some of the candidates backed by the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), including Fannie Lou Hamer, Annie Devine, and Victoria Gray, lost to Mississippi’s five white congressmen. Suspecting fraud, the Council of Federated Organizations held a “Freedom Vote” mock election, the results of which differed significantly from the official primaries. In the primaries, Hamer’s white opponent, Jamie Whitten, received 35,218 to Hamer’s 621 votes. In the mock election, however, Hamer garnered 33,009 votes to Whitten’s 59. This mock election also demonstrated that the blacks of Mississippi would vote if given the opportunity and could influence the outcome of the elections. On September 13, 1965, Hamer testified before the Subcommittee on Elections of the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. in connection with the MFDP’s questioning of the electoral legitimacy of Mississippi’s five white congressmen. This chapter reproduces Hamer’s testimony.
Maegan Parker Brooks and Davis W. Houck
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604738223
- eISBN:
- 9781604738230
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604738223.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
In the fall of 1963, Allard Lowenstein and Bob Moses organized a “mock election” called the Freedom Vote to show that disenfranchised black Mississippians would cast a ballot if given the ...
More
In the fall of 1963, Allard Lowenstein and Bob Moses organized a “mock election” called the Freedom Vote to show that disenfranchised black Mississippians would cast a ballot if given the opportunity. They fielded an integrated ticket composed of black Clarksdale pharmacist Aaron Henry and white Tougaloo College chaplain Reverend Edwin King to run for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively. The people behind Freedom Vote also formed the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. By late October, the campaign had gathered momentum and publicity and Freedom Vote rallies were held across the state. One such rally took place in the town of Greenwood in the Mississippi, with Fannie Lou Hamer as a speaker. This chapter reproduces Hamer’s speech, in which she quoted extensively from the Bible to warn Mississippi blacks that they would go “straight to hell” with their oppressors if they did not take action and vote.Less
In the fall of 1963, Allard Lowenstein and Bob Moses organized a “mock election” called the Freedom Vote to show that disenfranchised black Mississippians would cast a ballot if given the opportunity. They fielded an integrated ticket composed of black Clarksdale pharmacist Aaron Henry and white Tougaloo College chaplain Reverend Edwin King to run for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively. The people behind Freedom Vote also formed the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. By late October, the campaign had gathered momentum and publicity and Freedom Vote rallies were held across the state. One such rally took place in the town of Greenwood in the Mississippi, with Fannie Lou Hamer as a speaker. This chapter reproduces Hamer’s speech, in which she quoted extensively from the Bible to warn Mississippi blacks that they would go “straight to hell” with their oppressors if they did not take action and vote.
