BHS Day 21: Septima Clark

Hi! For our 3rd Activism and Political Spotlight we're going to be learning about a pioneer who dedicated her life to fighting for civil rights and both the education and empowerment of disenfranchised African-Americans. It shouldn't be a surprise that this is one of the hardest categories to collect entrants for, not because there aren't many but because there are a ton. It's hard when so many activists lived amazing lives that resulted in us being able to have the freedoms we enjoy and I only get to pick four every year. I want to feature all of them at the same time. lol Let's get to today's entrant!

Name: Septima Poinsette Clark "The Mother of the Movement," 1898-1987

Profession: Civil rights activist, educator

Why is the Spotlight on her today? For her efforts in the civil rights movement and her dedication to educating others

Notables:
--was awarded the Living Legacy Award by then-President Jimmy Carter
--was the keynote speaker at the first National Organization of Women (WOW) convention
--received South Carolina's highest award, the Order of the Palmetto
--taught both children and adults, the latter off the clock and entirely on her own
--was personally acknowledged by MLK Jr. for her efforts in helping civil rights leaders when he won his Nobel Peace Prize award
--put herself through college with the wages earned through her teaching jobs
--was a leading voice in exposing the racial wage gap and advocating for it to be equalized
--joined the NAACP and was able to get 10,000 petition signatures advocating for Black principals to be allowed at the school she taught at, which had until that point a predominantly White staff and administration, which led to Blacks being able to apply for principal positions in the Charleston school system
--was fired and ostracized in Charleston for refusing to leave the NAACP after the 1956 ruling that public employees were no longer allowed to belong to civil rights organizations; it got so bad that even her supporters refrained from taking photographs with her for fear of losing their jobs because of their association with her
--wrote two biographies on her life, the second of which won an American Book Award
--continued her adult literacy work while in Tennessee after being socially ousted in South Carolina, creating and participating in workshops to teach adults basic math and writing, how to sign checks, register to vote, get their licenses, get their start in social activism and instructed other local leaders on how to educate people in their neighborhoods, one of which was attended by Rosa Parks pre-Montgomery boycott
--joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, who took over her program and led to the creation of 800 institutes called the Citizenship/Freedom Schools and graduation of over 100k formerly illiterate Black adults through her guidance as the director of education of learning
--joined the staff at Booker T. Washington High School, where she was a teacher for almost 2 decades and was well-respected
--was able to share her agenda and mission for education with the YWCA, the NAACP, and the Council of Negro Women, who then passed that on to their leaders and members


Further reading links:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
Quote of the Day: 
"Literacy means liberation."