Fannie Lou Hamer

1917-1977

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When she found out that blacks had the right to vote under the U.S. Constitution, but had been denied that right by local laws and prejudiced officials, Hamer was outraged. For the next fifteen years she dedicated her life to organizing southern blacks to claim their legal right to vote and be recognized as a significant force in national politics. She suffered beatings by the police, lost her job, and was forced to leave her home because of her belief in justice for all. In 1964, she led the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party delegation to the Democratic Convention, forcing the party to reconsider the way in which women and minorities were represented within its state delegations.

Ida B. Wells: Civil Rights Activist
Journalist and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells fought for women's right to vote, but the National American Woman Suffrage Association asked her not to march with them. Didn't black women have as much right to vote as white women?

Harriet Tubman
Born into slavery on a farm in Maryland, Harriet Tubman made her way to freedom, then returned to the south nineteen times in order to lead more than 300 more people to freedom on what came to be known as the Underground Railroad.

Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I A Woman?
Read an inspirational excerpt from Sojourner Truth's electrifying speech to the Ohio Women's Rights convention of 1851.

UNIT PLAN	Black History in America Students learn about the African-American experience through interviews, historical sketches, interactives, and lessons.
ONLINE ACTIVITY	Women's Suffrage: The History of Women's Right to Vote Explore the history of women's suffrage with interactive maps and quizzes. Plus, discover Effie Hobby, who remembers voting in the first...