Mississippi Archives

To Write in the Light of Freedom: The Newspapers of the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Schools

Book — Non-fiction. Edited by William Sturkey and Jon N. Hale. 2015. 176 pages.
A collection and examination of the creative literary work of students published during 1964 Freedom Summer in Mississippi.

Freedom on My Mind

Film. Directed Connie Field and Marilyn Mulford. Written by Michael Chandler. 1994. 110 minutes.
The story of the Mississippi freedom movement in the early 1960s.

Freedom Summer 1964 Collection

Digital collection. Extensive collection on the Civil Rights Movement and the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project of 1964.

Mama’s Window

Book — Historical fiction. By Lynn Rubright. 2008. 89 pages.
Historical fiction inspired by incidents in the early life of sharecropper Owen Whitfield, the organizer of the Southern Tenant Farmers Union.

Shocking the Conscience: A Reporter’s Account of the Civil Rights Movement

Book — Non-fiction. By Simeon Booker with Carol McCabe Booker. 2013. 334 pages.
Chronicle by Simeon Booker, the first full-time African American reporter for the Washington Post and Jet magazine's White House correspondent, covering half a century of major events that transformed the United States.

Teaching Activity by Simeon Booker with Carol McCabe Booker

Freedom Summer 1964

Profile. Summer initiative to register African American voters in Mississippi.

This Little Light of Mine: The Life of Fannie Lou Hamer

Book — Non-fiction. By Kay Mills. 2007. 390 pages.
First-hand accounts of Fannie Lou Hamer's emergence as a leader of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.

This Nonviolent Stuff’ll Get You Killed: How Guns Made the Civil Rights Movement Possible

Book — Non-fiction. By Charles E. Cobb Jr. 2015. 328 pages.
Cobb Jr. describes the vital role that armed self-defense played in the survival and liberation of black communities in America during the Southern Freedom Movement of the 1960s.

Teaching Activity by Charles Cobb

Thunder of Freedom: Black Leadership and the Transformation of 1960s Mississippi

Book — Non-fiction. By Sue [Lorenzi] Sojourner, with Cheryl Reitan. Foreword by John Dittmer. 2013.
Documents the role of unsung heroes in the voting rights struggle in Holmes County, Mississippi.

Standing on My Sisters’ Shoulders

Film. By Joan Sadoff, Robert Sadoff, and Laura Lipson. 2002. 60 minutes.
Documentary film on women in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

The Voting Rights Act: Ten Things You Should Know

Article. By Emilye Crosby and Judy Richardson. 2015.
Key points in the history of the 1965 Voting Rights Act missing from most textbooks.

Teaching Activity by Emilye Crosby

Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer

Picture book. By Carole Boston Weatherford. Illustrated by Ekua Holmes. 2015. 45 pages.
Illustrated biography of Fannie Lou Hamer, activist for voting and economic rights from Mississippi.

Count Them One by One: Black Mississippians Fighting for the Right to Vote

Book — Non-fiction. By Gordon A. Martin Jr. 2014. 272 pages.
A detailed portrait of brave individuals who risked everything in their fight for the right to vote.

Now Can We Talk? 40 Years Later

Film. By Lee Anne Bell and Markie Hancock. 2013. 45 minutes.
This DVD and discussion guide offer a powerful way to engage students, teachers, and community groups in honest dialogue about the ongoing problems of racism and what we can do to address them.

Jan. 4, 1874: Adelbert Ames Becomes Governor of Mississippi

Adelbert Ames become the elected governor of Mississippi during the Reconstruction era.

Teaching SNCC: The Organization at the Heart of the Civil Rights Revolution

Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez. Rethinking Schools. 24 pages.
A series of role plays that explore the history and evolution of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, including freedom rides and voter registration.

Teaching Activity by Adam Sanchez

Dirt and Deeds in Mississippi

Film. Produced and directed by David Shulman. Narrated by Danny Glover. 2015. 82 minutes.
Documentary about the pivotal role played by Black landowning families during the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi who controlled over a million acres in the 1960s.

Mississippi Morning

Picture book. By Ruth Vander Zee. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. 2004. 32 pages.
A thought-provoking story of one boy's loss of naivete in the face of racism and harsh historical realities.

Letters from Mississippi: Reports from Civil Rights Volunteers and Freedom School Poetry of the 1964 Freedom Summer

Book — Non-fiction. Edited by Elizabeth Sutherland Martinez. Introduction by Julian Bond. 2007.
Letters and poetry from Civil Rights Movement volunteers in the summer of 1964.

The Autobiography of Medgar Evers: A Hero’s Life and Legacy Revealed Through His Writings, Letters, and Speeches

Book — Non-fiction. By Manning Marable and Myrlie Evers-Williams. 2006. 400 pages.
Comprehensive collection of the words of slain civil rights activist Medgar Evers.

On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail

Book — Non-fiction. By Charles E. Cobb, Jr. 2008. 388 pages.
An educational travel guide to historic sites of the Civil Rights Movement.

I’ve Got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing Tradition and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle

Book — Non-fiction. By Charles M. Payne. 1995. 506 pages.
A people's history of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi

Book — Non-fiction. By John Dittmer. 1995. 560 pages.
A detailed, grassroots description of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

Lessons from Freedom Summer: Ordinary People Building Extraordinary Movements

Teaching Guide. Edited by Kathy Emery, Linda Reid Gold and Sylvia Braselmann. Foreword by Howard Zinn. 2008. 456 pages.
Readings and lessons on the 1964 Mississippi Summer Project.

Putting the Movement Back into Civil Rights Teaching

Teaching Guide and Website. Edited by Deborah Menkart, Alana D. Murray, and Jenice L. View. 2004.
Provides lessons and articles for K-12 educators on how to go beyond a heroes approach to the Civil Rights Movement, with a focus on education, economics, labor, youth, women, and culture.

Teaching Activity by Deborah Menkart