Freedom Summer 1964: Turning Point for Voting Rights

Description: "Voting gives people a voice in their communities. In the past, racist laws and practices kept Black American voices silent. No place was more affected by this racism than the state of Mississippi. In 1964, organizers and volunteers brought change to Mississippi. This movement to register Black voters became known as Freedom Summer, and it led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Discover the people, events, and results of Freedom Summer and learn why voting rights remain an important issue today"--

Brief description: Ngeri Nnachi is an activist, educator, and scholar with a focus on social justice and equity. She loves working with children in building their literacy and leadership skills. In her spare time, she can be found visiting critical civil rights spaces and sewing bright, vibrant fabrics into fun items.

Review Quotes: In the 1960s, racial violence and voting restrictions for Black residents in the South were largely ignored by people in other regions of the country. But in 1964, a coalition led by activist Robert Moses aimed to change that by training college students from northern states and sending them into Mississippi that summer to teach reading to Black residents, train them to take an active role in the civil rights movement, and encourage voter registration. While several excellent books on Freedom Summer are available for young people, this one is well worth adding to library collections. Nnachi offers a framework for understanding the conditions in Mississippi that led to the Freedom Summer initiative as well as its most significant events, their repercussions, and what was accomplished. The concise narrative, presented in wide-spaced lines, and its juxtaposition with pertinent archival photos are particularly helpful to readers seeking an informative overview of the topic. Throughout the book, sidebars introduce key figures in the civil rights movement, including a few lesser-known leaders. A well-designed, informative introduction to Freedom Summer.--Carolyn Phelan "Booklist"