Primary Source Set

The Southern Freedom Movement: The Effort for Civil Rights in North Carolina

Following the long history of enslavement and the resulting Civil War, states within the U.S. adopted racist and segregationist policies that became known as Jim Crow laws. Throughout these years and continuing today, people have organized against racist and white supremacist systems, institutions, and practices, both through the lens of the Civil Rights Movement and the broader Southern Freedom Movement. This set of newspapers, photographs, oral histories, and other types of documentation describes the lived experiences of people in North Carolina and the efforts of people organizing for racial justice. 

Proceed with caution and care through these materials as the content may be disturbing or difficult to review. Specifically, there are mentions and descriptions of racist and white supremacist violence and murders, oppression based on race, racist and white supremacist language, and offensive former race labels. Please read DigitalNC’s Harmful Content statement for further guidance. 

Time Period

1954-2007

Grade Level

Undergraduate

People are shown marching together as a demonstration in the street, in front of a public building. Signs are shown that read ‘Join our March For Freedom’ and ‘Black and W[hite] Together.’ Protesters are wearing business attire and coats.

Civil Rights March

From the Winston-Salem African American Archive, protestors are shown demonstrating with signs and marching. This is perhaps the same march organized by Winston-Salem State College students in 1965.

Contributed to DigitalNC by Winston-Salem African American Archive

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Winston-Salem, NC (Forsyth County)

The Southern Freedom Movement: The Effort for Civil Rights in North Carolina

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Background

Slavery, Reconstruction, and Jim Crow

Slavery had become a global institution with the rise of colonialism and the ideology of distinct races; a chosen hierarchy accompanied this construct, now known as white supremacy, and was used to justify the violence enacted through colonization. As the now named Americas were colonized, enslaved people from Africa began to be brought to the colonies during the early 1500-1600’s, and the practice of slavery grew exponentially from this point. Slavery was a strongly held American institution until the idea of abolition began to gain more widespread support in the early and mid-1800’s. Catalyzed by this support of abolition and economic motivations, a Civil War erupted in 1861 from the possible end to slavery in the U.S.

After the Emancipation Proclamation (1863) issued by president Lincoln declaring the end of slavery and then the Union’s victory in the Civil War (1865), the Reconstruction period began in the South to rebuild and restructure the post-war region, circa 1865-1877. The 13th amendment was ratified into the Constitution and officially prohibited the practice of slavery within the United States, except for slavery in the form of being incarcerated.

This saw the rise of laws and policies that continued white supremacist ideology, and in the everyday actions and anti-Black beliefs held by individuals throughout the country. The racist phrase ‘Jim Crow’ became the name given to the era of repression and segregation in the United States marked by racist and segregationist laws. This began primarily after the Reconstruction period in response to the increased participation of Black people in the community and politics, especially with the success of Black politicians in being elected in Southern states. These laws were in place throughout the country, not only the South, although the South’s history with slavery and resentment from its abolition among politicians and former slaveholders created a hostile environment in the region.

People experienced oppression both structurally through these racist laws and personally from individual people. Strongly held racist ideologies gave rise to white supremacist organizations, like the Klu Klux Klan, and spontaneous mobs that resulted in terrorizing Black people and the practice of lynchings. The reality of life throughout the South was marred by violence and oppression, and these occurrences became mostly Southern violence.

Resistance to Oppression

Historically, communities have organized to resist structural and communal oppression, from communities establishing Underground Railroad stops in Guilford County, NC, to modern groups protesting against the continued activity of the KKK. Southern community organizing against white supremacist institutions, laws, and violence is known as the Southern Freedom Movement. The Civil Rights Movement in the South falls under this tradition, many preferring the term Southern Freedom Movement since it encompasses more than select civil rights, representing the struggle against white supremacy and for justice and freedom for all Southern people.

North Carolina became an incubator for many movement leaders and organizations during the 1960’s, including the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and organizers for Community Organizing for Racial Equality (CORE), the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and the NAACP. The legacy of the Southern Freedom Movement continues with many organizations throughout the years: North Carolinians Against Racist and Religious Violence, Southerners on New Ground, Black Workers for Justice, and SpiritHouse to name a few.

The Southern Freedom Movement operates on principles of racial, social, and economic justice with a vision for a South that is free of oppression and where all Southerners have safety, health, and happiness. This organizing effort builds solidarity across the U.S. South and the Global South, seen through connections made between Southern organizers in the 1960’s and the events happening with the war in Vietnam and apartheid in South Africa. This expanded view of Southern solidarity is practiced in organizations like the Southern Movement Assembly.

While the passing of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 and the Fair Housing Act in 1968 saw the legal end of explicit Jim Crow laws, racial injustice persists and the Southern Freedom Movement continues to organize across the South and in North Carolina. By exploring the documented history of lived experiences of people in North Carolina and the efforts undertaken to improve the lives of those who live here, we can understand the causes that lead to these movements and their ongoing work and legacies.

Discussion Questions

  1. Views of Protests and Social Movements

    • Reviewing the Carolina Times issue from February 1960, what were the varying opinions at the time of the sit-in protests? How are they each similar or different to how these sit-ins are viewed today?*
      • Now read the ‘Now It Can Be Told’ article from The News-Journal out of Raeford, NC. Which viewpoint from the Carolina times is reflected in this article?*
        • What is the significance of this article being released four months after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.?**
      • How do we see similarities between views of student and broader protest demonstrations during the 1960’s and how student and community protests are viewed today?**
        • Based on the changing views on civil rights protests over time, how do you think the protests of today will be viewed in the future?**
        • Review this article on the four A&T students that sparked the lunch counter sit-ins and this oral history of a professor at St. Augustine University, then read this article on UNC’s refusal to support integration. How do universities’ involvement or abstention in social movements impact the communities in which they reside?**
      • Read these articles (one and two) on Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy as a radical movement leader. How was he viewed while he was alive? How is he viewed today?*
        • What is the difference between these viewpoints and what do you think led to these differences?**
          • Do you think Martin Luther King Jr. and his ideals have been misrepresented over time? What would be the possible impacts of misrepresenting his work and legacy as a radical?**

  2. Greensboro, NC

    • Review the history of the Greensboro sit-ins through this article. What was the impact of the students’ protest using civil disobedience?*
      • Review the article describing Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech at White Rock Baptist Church in Durham. What was the reaction to these protests?*
        • How did this impact the success of the protests in North Carolina and across the South?**
      • Review the article interviewing Rev. Ben Chavis where he describes the ongoing movement for racial justice in 1977 and his arrest for organizing against racial violence in Wilmington in 1971. According to his interview, did the Black community and organizers in Wilmington receive support and if so, from whom?*
        • What were the reasons for support or lack thereof?*
        • What was the relationship between law enforcement and the racial violence in Wilmington? Is this relationship still seen today?**
      • In 1979, community members in Greensboro had organized a ‘Death to the Klan’ rally to protest the continued activity of white supremacists in Greensboro, further history can be found here. How does this relate to the Wilmington 10 and the ongoing organizing for racial justice in the face of racial violence?**
        • Review this article on Sandi Smith, one of the people killed during the Greensboro Massacre and this article from the Guilford College paper on the massacre. What were the differences in the reporting on the massacre?*
          • How does ideology influence perception of this event? How does perception change over time?**
        • Read this article on the acquittal of all people arrested for the murders during the Greensboro massacre and the resulting protest. What institutions and/or ideologies contributed to the acquittal? Was the protest response helpful? Why or why not?**
        • Read this article on guns and the Southern Freedom Movement. How does this relate to the events of the Greensboro Massacre and the arrest of the Wilmington 10?**
          • What do these events share about the reasons why communities may choose armed self-defense?**

  3. Greensboro Telegram and Goodbye Carolina

    • Read the article “Plea for White Supremacy: Strong Speech by a Brave Man” from the Greensboro Telegram and then watch the “Goodbye Carolina” video. How do these pieces of media stand in opposition to each other?*
    • Were the fears of mass Black migration to North Carolina if racial equality through voter’s rights was achieved as described in the article in the Greensboro Telegram a founded fear? Why or why not?**
    • The video from 1964 detailed why students would not be seeking employment or continuing to live in North Carolina, what were those reasons? How have these conditions changed since and/or how have they remained the same?**

  4. Kissing Case

    • After watching this speech by former Governor Luther Hodges, learn more about his role in the infamous Kissing Case and the impact of public relations campaigns in this dissertation. How were public relations used by the governor in defense of his and the state of North Carolina’s actions with these children? How were public relations tactics used by the side defending the children?**
      • Review the history of this case as told by James Thompson, one of the boys arrested during the Kissing Case. What does this show you about the connection between the actions of politicians and public officials and the impact on individual lives?**

  5. What can you conclude about the reality of the Jim Crow era in North Carolina based on these sources?**

    • Do you notice any legacies of Jim Crow still in North Carolina today? Why or why not?**
    • How did the Civil Rights Movement and the Southern Freedom Movement address the realities of Jim Crow and how does the movement continue to address racial injustice today?**

  6. Review the article from the Lumbee quoting Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘Why We Can’t Wait.” Then review this source on the position of the NAACP regarding the connection between the movement for racial justice in the United States and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. How are social movements linked and what are the advantages of viewing them as such? Are there disadvantages to social movement solidarity?**

  7. How do the St. Augustine students writing in this issue of The Pen describe ‘Black Power’? What is its relation to white supremacy?*

    • How does this fit or not fit as a part of the Southern Freedom Movement?**

     

    * Questions that check for comprehension

    ** Questions that involve a “deeper dive” in conceptual and historical analysis

This primary source set was compiled by cal lane.

Updated January 2025