Black Women In Fannie Lou Hamer's The Special Plight

At the height of the Civil Rights Movement (1954-1968), women played a big part in not only keeping the crusade alive, but also played a big part in energizing the masses to continue the long and arduous struggle against the seemingly impenetrable institutions of power which disenfranchised African-Americans and regarded their humanity as nothing more than mere pieces of property owned by others. Women like Coretta Scott King, Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Baker, Septima Clark and countless mothers, sisters, and daughters proved to be important

They were still looked down upon for their nurturing habits. Women were the ones who ran the house when it came to protecting it. While fighting for their equality they used this in their favor, saying that they are the ones who know what needs to happen for their home to be protected to the fullest potential. They used what they knew to gather the public’s attention, and this is how they were able to make a change when it came to public sanitation, education, and other factors that lead to a better home. Even though all women were fighting for the same thing, they split up in groups that would benefit more individuals. African American women would fight for the ending of racism, females that worked for equal pay and working conditions, and women who did not work, worked towards fighting for better education systems, better healthcare, and equality in the political system. These small groups of women fighting for different things, all made a huge difference when they came together, and helped changed the lives of Americans all over the country.

In Elise Johnson McDougald’s essay “The Task of Negro Womanhood,” she elaborates on the difficulties of being a black, working woman in society. In order to understand the struggles of a black woman in America, “one must have in mind not any one Negro woman, but rather a colorful pageant of individuals, each differently endowed” (McDougald, 103). This is because to be able to understand the problems they face as individuals one must think of black women as a collective unit. McDougald focuses on the women living in Harlem because they are more free and have more opportunity to succeed than in the rest of the United States. Though they are considered more

To be a woman meant that one had no say in regards to political affairs or in government making decisions. If being a woman had limitations, imagine what a black woman experienced, as they were considered less than human and mistreated more than any other female from any different background. In “A Plea for the Oppressed”, Lucy Stanton, one such black woman, tried to avail her people’s plight upon an audience of white women, to support the antislavery and reform cause.

The most common ways women of different ethnicities were held back were by being barred from certain jobs. Black, and Latina women were not allowed to work in the southern textile industry, or hold a secretarial job like many white women did. Instead they were forced to become maids, and laundresses. (Schaller 594) Another example of the lack of improvement for women in minorities is the percentage of young Italian girls who were withdrawn from school, in order for them to help support their family. Roughly 90% left school at the age of 14 to find work. (Schaller 629) Even though white women were steadily making progress towards equality with their own organizations, african american women did not see such immediate progress. So they decided to create their own similar groups such as the National Association of Colored Women. This group took its stance on it’s own separate set of issues such as lynching, and defending the respect of black women. (Schaller 686) Ida B. Wells, a founding member of the NAACP took the lead on the lynchings, her crusade lead her to flee the south before she eventually settled down in Chicago. She continued to receive death threats had she returned to Memphis but, she continued her campaign and ended up taking it abroad.  There she would form London’s Anti-Lynching Committee, this would causes waves all the way to Memphis, where

“To support whatever is right, and to bring in justice where we've had so much injustice,”(womenhistory.about.com). “Whether you have a Ph.D., or no D, we're in this bag together. And whether you're from Morehouse or Nohouse, we're still in this bag together. Not to fight to try to liberate ourselves from the men -- this is another trick to get us fighting among ourselves -- but to work together with the black man, then we will have a better chance to just act as human beings, and to be treated as human beings in our sick society,”(womenhistory.about.com) Fannie Lou Hamer showed great bravery. She had perseverance through hard times and stayed determined to finish the task at hand, freedom. Fannie Lou Hamer’s life was influenced by her early life. Her major accomplishments to American society included helping organize the Mississippi Freedom

Angela Davis has authored many books and countless articles about her life, her activism and the struggle for equality in the United States and the World. She is a member of both the National Political Congress of Black Women & The National Black Women’s Health Project (FemBio.Org,

In history, women have always struggled to gain equality, respect, and the same rights as men. Women had had to endure years of sexism and struggle to get to where we are today. The struggle was even more difficult for women of color because not only were they dealing with issues of sexism, but also racism. Many movements have helped black women during the past centuries to overcome sexism, racism, and adversities that were set against them. History tells us that movements such as the Feminist Movement helped empower all women, but this fact is not totally true. In this paper, I will discuss feminism, the movements, and its "minimal" affects on black women.

At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance-- a New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power, by Danielle L. McGuire, gives readers a new insight on the birth of the civil rights movement while revealing the stories of African American women in their fight against sexual violence and white supremacy. Throughout her work, McGuire develops her argument emphasizing on the essential role Rosa Parks played in not only shaping and leading the civil rights movement, but the importance of her radical activism on the underlying causes of the movement concerning white men’s abuse of economic intimidation and other terrors to derail hers and other African American’s efforts in gaining their

The modern Civil Rights Movement was a pivoting moment in US History. Many African Americans leaders fought for our rights such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, Medger Evars and E.D. Nixon just to name a few. They sacrificed and lost their lives everyday to fight for freedom and equality, so that this generation could have a better life then they did. The most overlooked activist who is the backbone of the Civil Rights Movement is Fannie Lou Hamer. Fannie Lou Hamer is the name that is not only worth of remembering, it is one of “those” names that became a lighthouse for millions of people all over the world. Her life is the story of a woman with the strongest spirit ever, a story of a woman that was not afraid of anything and ready to fight for the right that people deserve. She changed Mississippi forever with the will power of her voice. Not only did Hamer help African Americans register to vote in the year 1964, but also she was the co-founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

In an attempt to define Black Feminism, Collins clarifies that it must “avoid the idealist position that ideas can be evaluated in isolation from the groups that create them (Collins 385).” This clarification forms her basis for why Black Feminism is necessary, and who it serves. Thinking about feminism historically, the concerns of black women were pushed aside in favor of fighting sexism; a notable example occurs within the Suffrage movement, where votes for white women were prioritized over women of color in order to push such legislation through. And even when feminism began looking at other social injustices, such as racism and class issues, often only prominent feminists were invited to the discussion. What resulted was, and often continues to be, a problem of white women speaking for oppressed people. It’s impossible, Collins argues, to have Black Feminist thought without examining the experiences and positions of African American women. Therefore, Black Feminism must be a movement that “encompasses theoretical interpretations of Black women’s reality by those who live in it (Collins 386).” However, such a definition brings about many questions:

In the following pages, I will be discussing the life of an African American activist for civil rights, Angela Davis. I will be first discussing Davis journey throughout history and our society today. Next, I will state important facts, dates, information, all in chronological order. The fourth page, I will be evaluating the credibility of my sources and also agreeing or disagreeing with the sources information. In the fifth page I will state why Angela Davis is important, and why I believe she helped the civil

In an attempt to define Black Feminism, Collins clarifies that it must “avoid the idealist position that ideas can be evaluated in isolation from the groups that create them (Collins 385).” In reality, this forms her basis for why Black Feminism is necessary, and who it serves. Thinking about feminism historically, the concerns of black women were pushed aside in favor of fighting sexism, most notably during the Suffrage movement. And even when feminism began looking at other social injustices, such as racism and class issues, only prominent feminists were invited to the discussion. What resulted was, and often continues to be, a problem of white women speaking for oppressed people. It’s impossible, Collins argues, to have Black Feminist thought without examining the experiences and positions of African American women. Therefore, Black Feminism must be a movement that “encompasses theoretical interpretations of Black women’s reality by those who live in it (Collins 386).” However, such a definition brings about many questions: who’s experiences are valued, how do black women take their voice back, and how can they center feminist thinking on their own unique standpoint?

The thought of voting has come naturally today for all women citizens in the United States. This process of voting though, in the past, excluded African women from executing any major decisions within the society. Voting today is a right for all women, but in the past numerous passionate activists were compelled to fight against the government. An example of such activist is Fannie Lou Hamer. Not only was Fannie a minority of African descent, but also a woman who was willing to achieve the goal of allowing African women to vote. She was willing to not abide by the rules and took risks by voicing all of her goals and opinions. Ultimately, she wasn’t afraid of the consequences, she had a passion for civil rights and vocalized her voice to be clear to others. Fannie was willing to enforce her beliefs to eventually end the battle of segregation that occurred in our nation. Fannie is a woman who will be remembered for her courageous actions that led to partial change within our governmental system.

One of the ways was the participation of a small handful of black women in the National Organization for Women (NOW) and their involvement in consciousness-raising groups (Thompson, 2002). Another example of black involvement in the feminist movement is of the collaborative effort between Gloria Steinem and Dorothy Pitman Hughes in expanding the feminist image created by The Feminine Mystique – an image that paid no mention to black women or women of colour, during the height of the Civil Rights movement –though extensive speaking at public meetings (Steinem, 1983). A common assumption about the Second Wave feminist movement is that the white ‘section’ of the movement was inherently racist; this was not true for all factions. The 1968 pamphlet released calling for participants in the Miss America protest had a specific call for “black women” and one of the ten points being protested was the racism of the pageant: the fact that there had not been a single black finalist from the pageants inception in 1921. This call for black participation and the protesting of pageant racism implies cohesion in the movement, or at least a call for cohesion (Morgan,