chakita1
chakita sharnise (15)
RP @blackhistory. Reverend George Washington Lee, co-founder of the Belzoni, Mississippi NAACP and the first African-American to register to vote in Humphreys County since Reconstruction, was shot and killed in Belzoni on May 7, 1955.
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He is considered one of the early martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement.
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Belzoni was also home to a White Citizen's Council, a group of white residents actively working to suppress civil rights activism and maintain white supremacy through threats, economic intimidation, and violence.
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The Council learned of Rev. Lee's voter registration efforts and targeted him with threats and intimidation, but he was undeterred.
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While Rev. Lee was driving home on the night of May 7, gunshots were fired into the cab of his car, ripping off the lower half of his face. He later died at Humphreys County Medical Center.
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When NAACP field secretary for Mississippi Medgar Evers came to investigate the death, the county sheriff boldly denied that any homicide had taken place; instead, he claimed that Rev. Lee had died in a car accident and that the lead bullets found in his jaw were dental fillings.
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Investigation revealed evidence against two members of the local White Citizen's Council, but when the local prosecutor resisted moving forward, the case stalled.
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The NAACP memorial service held in Rev. Lee's honor was attended by more than 1,000 mourners.
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Comment "More black history in schools now" if you read this story to the end.
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#UnitedStreetTours #blackhistory #Allyship - #diversityandinclusion #nashvilleteacher #antiracism #highereducation #blackhistory #ally #teachershare #blackintheivory #whitefragility #changingthenarrative #ushistory #socialstudies #historyteacher #teacherproblems
chakita sharnise (15)
RP @blackhistory. Reverend George Washington Lee, co-founder of the Belzoni, Mississippi NAACP and the first African-American to register to vote in Humphreys County since Reconstruction, was shot and killed in Belzoni on May 7, 1955.
.
He is considered one of the early martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement.
.
Belzoni was also home to a White Citizen's Council, a group of white residents actively working to suppress civil rights activism and maintain white supremacy through threats, economic intimidation, and violence.
.
The Council learned of Rev. Lee's voter registration efforts and targeted him with threats and intimidation, but he was undeterred.
.
While Rev. Lee was driving home on the night of May 7, gunshots were fired into the cab of his car, ripping off the lower half of his face. He later died at Humphreys County Medical Center.
.
When NAACP field secretary for Mississippi Medgar Evers came to investigate the death, the county sheriff boldly denied that any homicide had taken place; instead, he claimed that Rev. Lee had died in a car accident and that the lead bullets found in his jaw were dental fillings.
.
Investigation revealed evidence against two members of the local White Citizen's Council, but when the local prosecutor resisted moving forward, the case stalled.
.
The NAACP memorial service held in Rev. Lee's honor was attended by more than 1,000 mourners.
.
Comment "More black history in schools now" if you read this story to the end.
.
#UnitedStreetTours #blackhistory #Allyship - #diversityandinclusion #nashvilleteacher #antiracism #highereducation #blackhistory #ally #teachershare #blackintheivory #whitefragility #changingthenarrative #ushistory #socialstudies #historyteacher #teacherproblems