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NGE >> Features >> Black Leaders of the Civil Rights Movement |
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Many major figures in the struggle for civil rights in the South were from Georgia or lived in Georgia before, during, and after the turbulent 1950s and 1960s. As nonviolent warriors for racial equality, these men and women staged sit-ins, mobilized black voter registration drives, challenged and helped to dismantle segregation laws, and set up important coalitions that are still relevant today. Beyond their roles as civil rights leaders, they were also judges, war veterans, attorneys, ministers, politicians, and mothers and fathers. Like their legacies, some of these leaders are still alive and active today; others passed away in the midst of the civil rights movement but left their mark on civil rights history in Georgia and the nation. From Martin Luther King Jr., the most prominent civil rights leader, to Grace Towns Hamilton, the first black woman elected to the Georgia state legislature, these men and women stand out for the sacrifices they made to advance racial justice. Without their groundbreaking, rule-breaking efforts, the political, economic, and social landscape of Georgia and the South would be vastly different from what it is today.
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