Freedom Vote: Difference between revisions
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The '''1963 Freedom Ballot''' (also known as the '''Mississippi Freedom Ballot''' or simply '''Freedom Vote''') was a [[Mock election|mock-election]] organized in the [[United States]] to combat the [[Disfranchisement|disenfranchisement]] of blacks in [[Mississippi]]. |
The '''1963 Freedom Ballot''' (also known as the '''Mississippi Freedom Ballot''' or simply '''Freedom Vote''') was a [[Mock election|mock-election]] organized in the [[United States]] to combat the [[Disfranchisement|disenfranchisement]] of blacks in [[Mississippi]]. |
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The effort was organized by the [[Council of Federated Organizations]] (COFO), a coalition of Mississippi's four most prominent civil rights organizations, with the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC) taking a leading role. By the end of the campaign, some 78,000 Mississippians had participated.<ref>"Over 70,000 Cast Freedom Ballots." ''The Student Voice,'' vol. 4, no. 4, The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, November 11, 1963, http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15932coll2/id/50136 (Links to an external site.). ''Freedom Summer Collection,'' Wisconsin Historical Society, 2014.</ref> The Freedom Ballot directly led to the creation of the [[Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party]] (MFDP). |
The effort was organized by the [[Council of Federated Organizations]] (COFO), a coalition of Mississippi's four most prominent civil rights organizations, with the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC) taking a leading role. By the end of the campaign, some 78,000 Mississippians had participated.<ref name=":0">"Over 70,000 Cast Freedom Ballots." ''The Student Voice,'' vol. 4, no. 4, The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, November 11, 1963, http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15932coll2/id/50136 (Links to an external site.). ''Freedom Summer Collection,'' Wisconsin Historical Society, 2014.</ref> The Freedom Ballot directly led to the creation of the [[Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party]] (MFDP). |
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== Background == |
== Background == |
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In addition to a poll tax, the Mississippi voting registration procedure in 1963 required Mississippians to fill out a 21-question registration form and to answer, to the satisfaction of the registrars, a question on interpretation of any one of 285 sections of the state constitution.<ref>Sargent, Frederic. ''The Civil Rights Revolution: Events and Leaders, 1955-1968.'' McFarland, 2004, p 72</ref> Such requirements unfairly restricted blacks and poor whites, who often didn't have access to a proper education and couldn't pay the tax. African-Americans made up a large portion of the voting population yet only a small fraction of them were registered; in [[Mississippi's 2nd congressional district|Mississippi's 2nd Congressional District]], despite making up more than half of the total adult population, fewer than 3% of eligible black voters were registered.<ref>[https://www.crmvet.org/docs/ms_voter_stats.pdf "Mississippi Voter Registration Statistics by Race, 1964"] (PDF). Civil Rights Movement Veterans.</ref> |
In addition to a poll tax, the Mississippi voting registration procedure in 1963 required Mississippians to fill out a 21-question registration form and to answer, to the satisfaction of the registrars, a question on interpretation of any one of 285 sections of the state constitution.<ref>Sargent, Frederic. ''The Civil Rights Revolution: Events and Leaders, 1955-1968.'' McFarland, 2004, p 72</ref> Such requirements unfairly restricted blacks and poor whites, who often didn't have access to a proper education and couldn't pay the tax. As a result, African-Americans made up a large portion of the voting population yet only a small fraction of them were registered; in [[Mississippi's 2nd congressional district|Mississippi's 2nd Congressional District]], despite making up more than half of the total adult population, fewer than 3% of eligible black voters were registered.<ref>[https://www.crmvet.org/docs/ms_voter_stats.pdf "Mississippi Voter Registration Statistics by Race, 1964"] (PDF). Civil Rights Movement Veterans.</ref> |
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== Freedom Vote == |
== Freedom Vote == |
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On October 6th, 1963, a convention at the Masonic Temple in Jackson nominated [[NAACP]] leader [[Aaron Henry|Arron Henry]] for Governor, and activist Rev. Edwin King for Lt. Governor.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://snccdigital.org/events/mississippi-freedom-vote/|title=Mississippi Freedom Vote|website=SNCC Digital Gateway|language=en|access-date=2019-05-27}}</ref> From October 14th to November 4th, volunteers worked to inform as many as they could about the Freedom Vote. |
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Beginning on November 2nd, polling stations setup in barber shops, churches, drug stores, and other Mississippi businesses began accepting ballots.<ref>"[https://www.crmvet.org/docs/6311_cofo_fballot-inst.pdf Freedom Ballot Instructions, November 1963"] (PDF). ''Civil Rights Movement Veterans''</ref> When polling concluded on November 4th, 78,869 ballots had been submitted across Mississippi, four times the number of blacks registered to vote.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ibiblio.org/sncc/ballot.html|title=SNCC-Events: Freedom Ballot|website=www.ibiblio.org|access-date=2019-05-27}}</ref> Of those, |
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== References == |
== References == |
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The 1963 Freedom Ballot (also known as the Mississippi Freedom Ballot or simply Freedom Vote) was a mock-election organized in the United States to combat the disenfranchisement of blacks in Mississippi.
The effort was organized by the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO), a coalition of Mississippi's four most prominent civil rights organizations, with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) taking a leading role. By the end of the campaign, some 78,000 Mississippians had participated.[1] The Freedom Ballot directly led to the creation of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP).
Background
In addition to a poll tax, the Mississippi voting registration procedure in 1963 required Mississippians to fill out a 21-question registration form and to answer, to the satisfaction of the registrars, a question on interpretation of any one of 285 sections of the state constitution.[2] Such requirements unfairly restricted blacks and poor whites, who often didn't have access to a proper education and couldn't pay the tax. As a result, African-Americans made up a large portion of the voting population yet only a small fraction of them were registered; in Mississippi's 2nd Congressional District, despite making up more than half of the total adult population, fewer than 3% of eligible black voters were registered.[3]
Freedom Vote
On October 6th, 1963, a convention at the Masonic Temple in Jackson nominated NAACP leader Arron Henry for Governor, and activist Rev. Edwin King for Lt. Governor.[4] From October 14th to November 4th, volunteers worked to inform as many as they could about the Freedom Vote.
Beginning on November 2nd, polling stations setup in barber shops, churches, drug stores, and other Mississippi businesses began accepting ballots.[5] When polling concluded on November 4th, 78,869 ballots had been submitted across Mississippi, four times the number of blacks registered to vote.[1][6] Of those,
References
- ^ a b "Over 70,000 Cast Freedom Ballots." The Student Voice, vol. 4, no. 4, The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, November 11, 1963, http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15932coll2/id/50136 (Links to an external site.). Freedom Summer Collection, Wisconsin Historical Society, 2014.
- ^ Sargent, Frederic. The Civil Rights Revolution: Events and Leaders, 1955-1968. McFarland, 2004, p 72
- ^ "Mississippi Voter Registration Statistics by Race, 1964" (PDF). Civil Rights Movement Veterans.
- ^ "Mississippi Freedom Vote". SNCC Digital Gateway. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
- ^ "Freedom Ballot Instructions, November 1963" (PDF). Civil Rights Movement Veterans
- ^ "SNCC-Events: Freedom Ballot". www.ibiblio.org. Retrieved 2019-05-27.