Definitive History Book on Emmett Till Set for August Publication -- 60th Anniversary of Till's Death in Mississippi

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(NOTE -- Devery Anderson's fascinating notes on the family and major players involved in the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, and of those involved in the trial of his murderers, appear at the end of The Emmett Till Book, by Susan Klopfer.)

Author Devery Anderson: Photo by Emily Hatch

Author Devery S. Anderson has announced that his newest book, Emmett Till: The Murder That Shocked the World and Propelled the Civil Rights Movement, is set for publication in August 2015 by the University Press of Mississippi, and features a forward by civil rights icon, Julian Bond.

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[My new Emmett Till book] is based on hundreds of hours of archival research, sifting through dozens of newspaper stories, as well as original interviews with those who witnessed the case unfold, including Emmett Till’s family members who were with him in Mississippi, trial witnesses, and newspaper reporters who covered the story in 1955. It also brings the case up to the present, including the recent FBI investigation. Julian Bond, civil rights legend and former chair of the NAACP, has written the foreword.

(Quote From Anderson's website,http://www.emmetttillmurder.com)

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CIVIL RIGHTS AUTHOR DEVERY ANDERSON TELLS website followers that he first became acquainted with Emmett Till in the fall of 1994, as a student at the University of Utah,  after watching the first segment of the PBS documentary series on the Civil Rights Movement, Eyes on the Prize.

"Emmett’s murder and the subsequent acquittal of his killers left me full of questions. What happened to the killers after their acquittal? What happened to Emmett’s mother? Was she alive, or had she died somewhere in obscurity? Why was I not already familiar with this case?" Anderson was soon asking himself.

It was several months later, that Anderson discovered at least one book on the subject in print, "and so I purchased Stephen Whitfield’s A Death in the Delta: The Story of Emmett Till."'

BUT THEN, CLENORA HUDSON-WEEMS, professor of English at the University of Missouri-Columbia, soon came to speak at the University of Utah in May 1995. Her lecture was on another topic, yet the school newspaper noted that she was the author of the book,Emmett Till: The Sacrificial Lamb of the Civil Right’s Movement, Anderson tells his followers on his Emmett Till website at http://www.emmetttillmurder.com/.

Anderson attended Hudson-Weems' lecture, purchased her book and soon was full of questions. "I read both of these books and wanted to learn more. Both were written at a time when research, writing, and a renewed interest in the Till case was in its infancy, and I eventually discovered that they contained many factual errors, but they did whet my appetite for more."



OVER THE ENSURING YEARS, the Utah resident found that this case consumed him "... in ways I could not quite explain."

In 1996, while still a student at the University of Utah, Anderson took a class on racism. Students were given a major assignment, due at the end of the quarter, "that we would each present to the class. I decided that I would put together a scrapbook on the Emmett Till case and include an original interview with Mamie Till-Mobley, Emmett’s mother."

Surprisingly, Anderson found it was not difficult to locate Till-Mobley in the Chicago telephone directory and he wrote her a letter and arranged a time for a telephone interview. Their two-hour conversation took place on December 3, 1996 and was followed by "dozens" more, over the next six years up until a month before her January 2003 death.

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Anderson's fact-filled website allows him a way to contribute to the spread of knowledge about the Emmett Till murder. The author researched and wrote his new book between 2004 and 2014; he lives in Salt Lake City, and is the father of three children, Amanda, Tyler, and Jordan. Anderson holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Utah.

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From reviewers

"The manuscript is balanced, clearly organized, exhaustively researched, and well written. The narrative flows logically and will hold the attention of readers who are otherwise unfamiliar with the case. Right now, and probably for decades to come, it will be the definitive work on this subject. The manuscript will not only be of interest to a general readership but historians in such fields as civil rights history, the history of the South, and legal history. It offers much that is entirely new to our understanding of this topic and/or sheds an original light on old questions. This book will deserve a place in any good library."

—David T. Beito, co,author, Black Maverick: T.R.M. Howard's Fight for Civil Rights and Economic Power

"Much has been written about the Till case in the past decade, but what has been missing is a definitive history of the case. This book provides that definitive history. The author gives a thorough account of the case from almost every angle. I am very familiar with the scholarship on Emmett Till, and the author has left no stone unturned. ...A reader coming to the case for the first time will get the best account we have of the case; scholars familiar with it will learn new details from new sources, and will be persuaded by how well the author settles long debated controversies about what happened and when. The author knows where the historical record is murky or contradictory, and he never rushes to judgment. When he does settle a controversy, he marshals the requisite evidence. When he is not able to settle a controversy, he presents the contradictory evidence and leaves it unresolved. Anyone interested in this case will find this book a valuable guide to the full story of Emmett Till."

—Christopher Metress, ed., The Lynching of Emmett Till: A Documentary Narrative

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ONE FINAL NOTE: I am really looking forward to reading this new book. From time to time I have been in contact with Devery throughout his research process. I know that he has traveled to Europe and elsewhere in search of latest information on this civil rights crime that helped spark the modern civil rights movement. In the future, I will ask him to answer some of my questions, and to tell us more about the book. sk

MLK's Mother Was Assassinated, Too: The Forgotten Women Of Black History Month

(Editor's note: On June 30th, 1974, Alberta Williams King was gunned down while she played the organ for the “Lord’s Prayer” at Ebenezer Baptist Church. As a Christian civil rights activist, she was assassinated...just like her son, Martin Luther King, Jr. But most people remember only one I certainly DID NOT KNOW this story, until I read an article by Aurin Squire. I've put up a link so that you can read his article, too. He makes a number of interesting statements about his acquisition of black history. It's a wonderful article to read during Black History Month. Read it, and share your comments, please.)

Alberta Williams King, victim of assassination

On June 30th, 1974, Alberta Williams King was gunned down while she played the organ for the “Lord’s Prayer” at Ebenezer Baptist Church. As a Christian civil rights activist, she was assassinated...just like her son, Martin Luther King, Jr. But most people remember only one. Until a month ago, I was one of those people.
When a friend told me about Alberta Williams King, my first reaction was “who?” This question was followed by a wave of shame. It was the same feeling I had a few years ago when I first heard about Fannie Lou Hamer. Then later came Ida B. Wells and other leaders who seemed to appear in the discussion of American history to my confused, uninformed silence. I started to suspect that I had half an education and that I had been leaving out the role of women and feminism in Black History.

LINK TO AURIN SQUIRE'S IMPORTANT ARTICLE:

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/mlk-mother-was-assassinated-forgotten-women-black-history-month

Related articles - links

The Guardian: 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/01/martin-luther-kings-mother-slain-in-church-1974

https://dillsnapcogitation.wordpress.com/2010/08/20/the-1974-assassination-of-martin-luther-kings-mother/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alberta_Williams_King

Dick Gregory on W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Thursday - Live

Dick Gregory, civil rights icon

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio:"Bro. Dick Gregory Make It Plain 2013 LIVE!!!"

 W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio: Resurrecting Black Radio one podcast at a time!!!

Date: Thursday May 16, 2013

Showtime:

3pm Eastern/2pm Central/12pm Pacific

 This is a 2 hour show/discussion

Listen Live!!!

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2013/05/16/we-all-be-radio-bro-dick-gregory-makes-it-plain-2013

Call-In & Participate!!!

646-652-4593

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Featured Guests... 

1.)  The Honorable Bro. Dick Gregory

 A meeting of 2 artivists: The Honorable Bro. Dick Gregory & Bro. Ron aka r2c2h2 tha artivist (6/14/2012) 

2.) You!!!

The call in Phone Number: (646) 652-4593

**The show will be archived and available for listens/downloads 24/7 after live airing @ same link...**

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Dick Gregory Gone Wild I Mean Viral… 

'Nigger' Happened!!!~Bro. Dick Gregory

  

In January 2013, an interview W.E. A.L.L. B.E. did with venerable comic legend, author, nutritional guru and civil rights activist Bro. Dick Gregory went viral…The interview, which was uploaded on theW.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV YouTube channel deals with his endorsement of the controversial award winning film “Django Unchained” and his criticisms of Spike Lee as ‘a punk’ and ‘a thug’ for offering a negative review of the film without even seeing it…My video has caused a firestorm of controversy, debate and was even picked up by respected and popular national media outlets such as The Huffington Post, Bossip, NewsOne, The Root, and Black Enterprise magazine just to name a few…The comments made on the YouTube video range from the profane to the profound…I also enjoy reading the insightful comments and blog posts it has generated on social media forums and other internet outlets…I have also received phone calls from folks all over the USA thanking me for the video and sharing their own insights on why hearing the interview was such an affirming learning experience for them…The literally tens of thousands of responses it generated could actually probably make for a great foundation for a decent dissertation on the topic…I was glad that the moment W.E. A.L.L. B.E. captured and shared for posterity also became a true teaching moment for the rest of the world too… 

You can view the actual interview and video that I created at the following link:

 W.E. A.L.L. B.E.: Bro. Dick Gregory On 'Django Unchained': "Spike Lee Is A Thug & A Punk." (1/13/2013) 

http://youtu.be/CS34OiuNmG0 

As a matter of fact the first 4 full interviews the master teacher did with W.E. A.L.L. B.E. this year have gone viral!!! Please listen and/or view at your leisure via the following links...And remember to share with your networks:

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 1 (1/13/2013)

http://youtu.be/PuQQSsSpYPE 

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 2 (1/16/2013)

http://youtu.be/jCpmwm8TmFY 

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 3 (2/22/2013)

http://youtu.be/c165Gj_rGgQ 

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 4 (4/14/2013)

http://youtu.be/KCEtvgglFiw

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 1 (1/13/2013)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2013/03/20/bro-dick-gregory-unchained-part-1-1132013

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 2 (1/16/2013) 

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2013/03/20/bro-dick-gregory-unchained-part-2-1162013

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 3 (2/22/2013) 

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2013/03/20/bro-dick-gregory-unchained-part-3-2222013

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio: Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained Part 4 (4/14/2013)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2013/04/14/we-all-be-radio

For more Bro. Dick Gregory Unchained episodes please visit W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV(http://www.youtube.com/weallbetv)!!!

And The Best Is Yet To Come!!!  

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Support The W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Movement!!!

New Emmett Till Video Posted on YouTube; Mississippi, Conspiracies, Assassinations, Colonia Dignidad All Featured

Susan Klopfer, author

The Plan
http://susanklopfer.com

Publication Date: June 2013

The author of a new fiction book due out in June focused on the multiple murders of two black, gay lawyers and a straight, white FBI agent, today released a Mississippi-based video on YouTube.

"The Plan is based on actual and fictional characters. It starts out in the Mississippi Delta during the modern civil rights movement and moves into South America, as the truth about a torture colony there is coming to light."

Susan Klopfer, the author, once lived in the Delta, on the grounds of Parchman Penitentiary, before moving to Ecuador, where she currently resides. 

I wrote The Plan after spending a number of years living and doing research in the Delta, and wanted to share these photos with readers before the book actually comes out in June," Klopfer said.

"I especially hope that students will find this video on the Internet helpful, because it features dozens of photographs ranging from a civil war era, popular steamboat on the Mississippi River, to burial markers often found around the cotton fields, homes of early civil rights pioneers, as well as the faces of people who helped make a difference in the Modern Civil Rights Movement.

“In Mississippi, this movement was initiated by returning WWII veterans including Amzie Moore, Aaron Henry and Medgar Evers."

Delta Blues lovers will find photographs of The Crossroads sign in Clarksdale, a bluesman wall mural,  a famous rail crossing, Robert Johnson, the Dockery Plantation and more.

"The video also features photos relating to Emmett Till’s murder as well as Mississippi Burning, and I plan to add more photos as I go through my collection."

Klopfer said she included pictures of an early service station owned and operated by Moore, "who had one of the few bathrooms in the Delta that black people were allowed to use in Jim Crow times," as well as photos of the "burned out interior” of Henry's home in Clarksdale.

What’s The Plan about?

“In a nutshell, The Plan is a digital novel about two murdered gay, black lawyers (from Mississippi and Alabama) who probably knew too much about the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and President John F. Kennedy – and a murdered white, Vicksburg detective, formerly an FBI agent, who got in over his head in New Orleans, working for one of the alleged JFK assassination planners – with a quick sidetrip to Ecuador.”

Klopfer said she wrote The Plan with the Fiftieth Anniversary of the JFK assassination in mind. “We just cannot let this date pass by without asking questions. Few people, except for government officials, actually believe the Warren Commission Report was valid. It was even invalidated by a later House Select Committee on Assassinations that concluded the killing of the president was a conspiracy.

“Since only two reporters actually covered the civil trial relating to the murder of Dr. King, we understand well why the national media has continued to stick with its basically flawed reports on this death. In the words of Tommy Smothers -- "I feel nothing [for the national media] but total embarrassment"

Klopfer said she believes it is imperative that armchair historians and lesser known authors keep pushing for truth. “I personally look forward to the release of classified CIA documents on Colonia Dignidad in Chile, showing the agency's involvement in this torture chamber and its use of the facility as a training camp.

“For anyone asking what THIS is about, start googling – because most likely readers in the United States will be kept from the complete truth on this emerging news story, as well.”

The author said The Plan actually revolves around recent reports from Chile on a lawsuit filed against the that government by victims and relatives of people killed in the Southern Andes “Nazi torture chamber.”

“Will the U.S. government be embarrassed when it all comes out? I hope so. It’s our tax dollars at work, so at least anger is a possible response. But first the whole story is required."

The Plan is set for June publication and will be available on all major online bookstores in digital format.

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Where In The World is Hunter Gray (John Salter)?

A special post by Hunter Gray ...	3:45 PM (6 hours ago)

Posted widely. I have always believed in hitting issues openly.

I posted the following piece, On Being A Militant And Radical Organizer -- And An Effective One, almost four months ago.  It's increasingly obvious that, at the events commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the great Jackson Movement, I will be "the man who isn't there."  No meaningful invitation focused on that Movement and its full sweep has come to me from any quarter in that Jackson setting. No surprise. The sentiments expressed by me in my aforementioned Organizer piece continue to stand in total -- and very strongly so.

But my book, Jackson Mississippi: An American Chronicle of Struggle and Schism, can and will represent me very well indeed at Jackson and elsewhere.

We have picked up indications of a surreptitious and defamatory "whispering campaign" in certain Jackson, Mississippi circles directed against me personally -- including even some hostile radical-baiting!  Well, I was a member for some years of the old-time Industrial Workers of the World (IWW Wobblies) -- and I'm a life long supporter of militant industrial unionism, and left democratic socialism with libertarian trimmings. Usually non-violent in the tactical sense, the IWW was once described in semi-jocular/semi-serious fashion as a "cross between Henry David Thoreau and Wyatt Earp."  In any event, there's never been any secret about any social justice doings of mine.

In addition, my book, Jackson Mississippi: An American Chronicle of Struggle and Schism, (now newly out via the University Press of Nebraska, and with a very substantive -- 10,000 word -- new introduction by me), has been the target of the same hostile whispering campaign.  Its quite sound quality is attested by many very positive reviews from its earlier incarnations, among them, the Journal of Mississippi History, Social Forces, The Journal of Southern History, UMOJA -- A Scholarly Journal of Black Studies, Socialist Monthly Changes, Monthly Review Press, Social Development Issues, Sojourners.  You can see these and others via our website book link --http://hunterbear.org/jackson.htm -- and some via University of Nebraska Press  http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/product/Jackson-Mississippi,674910.aspx  There are other solid reviews of JM at Amazon.  It's a 272 page paperback, and it won't cost you an arm and a leg.

I pull no punches. There's no pussy-footing. My book provides a very candid, detailed and insider's view of the rise and development of the Jackson Boycott Movement/Jackson Movement of 1962-63 at every step -- AND what very sadly and tragically happened to it.  One reviewer referred very favorably to my "demythologizing impulse." 

You won't find my book at the Lemuria Bookstore in Jackson.  But Square Books at Oxford does carry it.

If so inclined, you can help immensely by forwarding this entire message widely indeed -- to the very Four Directions.  And I am quite certain that any purchaser of my book will find it and its lessons aplenty extremely interesting and most worthwhile.

ON BEING A MILITANT AND RADICAL ORGANIZER -- AND AN EFFECTIVE ONE  (HUNTER GRAY/JOHN OR. SALTER, JR.  (NOVEMBER 25, 2012)

If you're a militant and radical organizer -- and an effective one who is strong on both tangible grassroots gains and a worthy long range vision of a better world over the mountains yonder -- you do your thing and move on to the next social justice crucible.  As you go along, you are remembered fondly and well for a good while by the people for and with whom you've earlier worked. The power structure, of course, will "never forgive and never forget".  But, as time passes and those grassroots people and friends fade from the scene, and if -- if -- you continue as a militant and radical activist, you aren't going to be broadly welcome in your earlier battlefields by very many of the newly arrived contemporary people. This is certainly true if you're an independent rebel.  And all of this is especially true if you're an "outside agitator" who came from afar.

Quite often, in contrast to the openly repressive and brutal and blatantly defamatory Old Guard of yore, contemporary enemies in the old combat fields tend to be covert and surreptitious, frequently hypocritical, and of notably limited courage.

If you morph, as time passes, into a kind of respectable and non-challenging brand of "liberal," well -- you might be brought back to various old battlefields to talk superficially about the old days of struggle.

A conventional academic who writes about the old civil rights wars and, as many academics do, does so cautiously, may be welcome.  And that person might even get an award of some kind.

What brings all of this to my mind is the fact that, in the 50th anniversary of the great Jackson, Mississippi Movement, no one has asked me to return to discuss the movement of which I was the basic and principal organizer, working with a growing number of young people in our NAACP Youth Council and Tougaloo College. I was their Adult Advisor. They were valiantly involved in developing that worthy struggle and, in doing so, running great risks.  The State of Mississippi is helping fund and organize a number of celebrations -- climaxing in June 2013 -- -- focused mostly on NAACP Field Secretary Medgar W. Evers who was murdered in the course of the massive campaign. Planning for these has been underway for months and agendas are relatively fixed. I learned this belatedly. Somewhere in the mix of motives for these events, and there are certainly some strains of altruism, may be the wish to somehow assuage the collective guilt for a very long and sanguinary and hideously racist past -- and the raw brutality of a garrison police state.  OK -- and redemption can occur in the context of honest admission and tangible and significant redress. 

Medgar, a good friend and colleague who I knew well, would likely be the  first person to disclaim sainthood. And many things -- including the Jackson Airport and a college in Brooklyn, N.Y. as well as a U.S. Naval ship -- have been named for him.  I would be among the very last to deny honorable and courageous Medgar any honors of any kind. But it's very clear that any discussion of the Movement itself, and the depth of the cruel and repressive realities of Mississippi that really weren't that long ago, will very likely be handled gingerly and, if mentioned much at all, in very sanitized fashion.

Am I surprised, shattered by this omission of any meaningful invitation?  Not at all.  In the half century that has elapsed since the rise and climax of the Jackson Movement, I have not received one invitation to come there and speak at length. (I have given several impromptu talks when down there over the years.)  In 1979, I was asked to come to Jackson, expenses paid, for a relatively small part on a panel at a large civil rights retrospective.  I came, with about fifty copies of a 35 page (single spaced) paper on the Jackson Movement, and broadened my small space of time into a short but trenchant speech which, with reference to the National Office of the NAACP and the deepening shadow of the Kennedy administration back then, I concluded  with a denunciation of "the subversion by the corporate liberals of New York and the self-styled "pragmatism" of those splendid scoundrels residing in Camelot on the Potomac." That drew a thundering and standing ovation from about one thousand people.

I know, personally and experientially, a great deal about what happened Movement-wise in those critical years of 1961-63 in Mississippi's capital.  I'm one of the very, very few persons who does -- and  one of a now tiny number who know the innards. (I was chair of the Jackson Movement's Strategy Committee.)   In fact, I wrote a book -- Jackson Mississippi: An American Chronicle of Struggle and Schism -- devoted mainly to an inside view of the Jackson Movement -- the only detailed account of the massive struggle and likely the most detailed book about any local grassroots movement of the '60s. It pulls no punches.  It was very well received when it appeared in 1979 -- especially by those grassroots people in Jackson who actually participated in that crusade and/or who knew first hand what had happened.  Outside of Mississippi, it was well received broadly -- drawing a large number of most positive reviews. (It was reissued late in 2011 by the University of Nebraska Press in expanded form with a new and  substantial introduction by myself.)

As Jim Loewen, a sociologist and professor and writer, very familiar indeed with Mississippi recently wrote:

"Classic account . . .Jackson, Mississippi presents a vivid insider's view of the Jackson boycott movement, the demonstrations that led to mass arrests, the actions of courageous young people, and the murder of Medgar Evers and the incredible tension of his funeral march.  As you would expect, given that Salter was and is a sociologist and a radical, it also contains penetrating analyses of the role of each acting group, including the national office of the NAACP, black ministers, the city government and police force, White Citizens Council, etc. And it shows the important role played by Tougaloo, some of its students and faculty members (including Prof. Salter), and its president, A. D. Beittel."

Despite the extremely repressive odds, we all -- and I emphasize all -- accomplished a great deal in the sanguinary travail of the Jackson Movement of 1962-63.  That stands forever as a shining mountain.

When you're done with your work in a particular setting, you can justifiably look back for awhile, garner lessons and secure appreciation.  But it's dangerous to your life's organizing mission to look back too long and too much. Time-lock can be deadly  to critically needed activism. There have been many campaigns for me after Jackson -- some large, some smaller, all of them important to people of the fewest alternatives.  A truly effective organizer rides over the mountains and crosses the rivers into new horizons of meaningful struggle.  That's the true joy, the ultimate satisfaction, and the great and enduring lure.

(This piece is also found on the Our Thoughts section of Civil Rights Movement Veterans.)

IN THE MOUNTAINS OF EASTERN IDAHO

HUNTER GRAY (HUNTER BEAR)

HUNTER GRAY [HUNTER BEAR/JOHN R SALTER JR] Mi'kmaq /St. Francis
Abenaki/St. Regis Mohawk
Member, National Writers Union AFL-CIO
www.hunterbear.org
(much social justice material)

I have always lived and worked in the Borderlands.

See my piece ON BEING A MILITANT AND RADICAL
ORGANIZER -- AND AN EFFECTIVE ONE (Mississippi et al.):
http://crmvet.org/comm/hunter1.htm

The Stormy Adoption of an Indian Child [My Father]:
http://hunterbear.org/James%20and%20Salter%20and%20Dad.htm
(Expanded in Fall 2012. Photos. Material on our Native
background.)

See the new and expanded/updated edition of my very well-reviewed
"Organizer's Book" -- the inside story of the massive Jackson
Mississippi Movement, the murder of Medgar Evers, and more.
And with my new and very substantial introduction:
http://hunterbear.org/jackson.htm

A Woman To Remember - Rosa Parks. Time to Free Her From the Bus!

Rosa Parks

There is a wonderful CNN article to read on Rosa Parks today, the anniversary of her famous ride at the front of a Montgomery, Ala. bus. I like this article because it tells the true history of this great social advocate. She planned her move, it was not something that just happened one day, as many of us were taught in our white history classes. She had planned to do this, and when Emmett Till was murdered in Mississippi, this was the spark that ignited her decision. The time was now. What a wonderful, brave civil rights hero. We must demand that history books tell the truth. This is just one more example of white privilege.

Here's the article. It's Time To Free Rosa Parks From the Bus!

Lawrence Guyot, long time civil rights advocate, dies

Lawrence Guyot (July 17, 1939 – November 23, 2012) was a civil rights activist who was the head of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party from 1964

(Publisher's note: This story just came in. Lawrence Guyot was a longtime fighter for civil rights. I had the pleasure of meeting him in Philadelphia, Miss., on the steps of that infamous courthouse. He will be missed by many who care about civil rights and freedoms in this country. He was a person who followed his passions and dreams. SK)

Civil rights leader and D.C. statehood activist Lawrence Guyot died today at the age of 73, reports the Afro:

Guyot died at home after a long battle with diabetes and heart disease. Friends who had spoken with him in recent weeks said he was elated at having seen the reelection of President Obama, of whom he was an ardent supporter. He told the AFRO he voted early because he wanted to make sure his vote was counted as his health failed.

Guyot was born in Pass Christian, Miss., on July 17, 1939. He grew up in atmosphere where Blacks had more freedom than they did in other areas of Mississippi, however after enrolling in Tougaloo College at age 17, he discovered the depth of the discrimination that other Blacks suffered in terms of voting and exercising their full citizenship rights. He was one of the early volunteers for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.

Working closely with activists like Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, Bob Moses and Dorie Ladner, Guyot was among the students, Black and White, who put forth their energy and risked their lives to register voters and protest discriminatory policies in everything from business to education.

He was jailed at the infamous Mississippi State Penitentiary, known as Parchman Farm. more than once, suffered several brutal beatings at the hands of corrupt law enforcement officials and faced down death several times. But that did not reduce his resolve to help his people.

Guyot was also active in local politics, serving as a Ward 1 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner and allying himself with a number of local campaigns.

During the fight for same-sex marriage in D.C., Guyot also bucked many from his own generation to argue that marriage equality was a matter of civil rights: "This is a fight whose time has come. There is no middle road on this. You either want liberty for everyone, or you want liberty for non-gays," he was quoted as saying in the Post.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@dcist.com with further questions, comments or tips.