Fannie Lou Hamer Centennial
1917-2017
“I was born 1917, in Montgomery County, October 6th.”
- Fannie Lou Hamer
In 2017, organizations across the globe made a special effort to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Fannie Lou Hamer’s birth. These celebrations stemmed from gratitude, appreciation and utter respect for a woman who gave so much and died too soon. Members of the Fannie Lou Hamer’s America Team, director and editor Joy Davenport and our lead consultant, researcher and curriculum designer, Dr. Maegan Parker Brooks, were privileged and honored to be invited to and speak at several of those events.
Fannie Lou Hamer Memorial Garden and Park
Ruleville, Mississippi
October 6, 2017
A promotional poster for the celebration in Hamer's hometown of Ruleville, MS. A celebratory program in honor of Hamer's birthday is held annually.
Dr. Maegan Parker Brooks, a leading expert on the life and legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer was the guest speaker for the Centennial celebration.
Mississippi Senator Willie Simmons (D) on the right has supported numerous initiatives that honor the legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer.
Hattie Jordan, a friend of Hamer's, speaks to a packed pavilion during the Centennial celebration.
Supporters of all ages and cultures came to celebrate the life of the civil rights icon.
Reena Evers Everette (l) the only daughter of civil rights martyr Medgar Evers attended the ceremony and is pictured with Hamer's daughter, Jacqueline (2nd from left) another family member, another of Hamer's daughters, Vergie Ree (center), Dr. Maegan Parker Brooks of Willamette University and Dr. Cassie Sade Turnipseed of Mississippi Valley State University.
Pam Junior of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum (l) and Cynthia Goodloe Palmer (r), Executive Director of the Veteran's of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement also attended the celebration.
A banner advertises the celebration which took place at the Fannie Lou Hamer Memorial Park and Garden.
Several of Hamer's relatives attended the Centennial celebration including her daughters Virgie Ree Faulkner (2nd from left) and Jacqueline Flakes (3rd from left). Hamer and her husband, Pap, are buried at the park.
Christopher Hexter, who worked with Fannie Lou Hamer as a member of SNCC and CORE shows photos of Hamer that he took during his visits to see her in Ruleville, at the Centennial celebration.
Several special T-shirts commemorating the occasion were worn by those who attended.
A cake was prepared for guests.
Dr. Maegan Parker Brooks (second from right) joins Charles McLaurin (third from right) who worked with Hamer until her death, and others in front of the statue dedicated to Hamer in October 2012.
Students from local schools attended the centennial celebration.
Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom High School
Bronx, New York
October 6, 2017
T-shirts were made for students at the high school.
The Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom High School is located at 1021 Jennings Street in the Bronx, New York.
Director and editor Joy Davenport and FLHFHS Principal Jeff Palladino in front of a painting of Hamer. Davenport showed students a trailer from the film, Fannie Lou Hamer's America.
Students from the school.
Filmmaker Robin Hamilton held a Q&A with students after the screening of her 2015 film, This Little Light of Mine: The Legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer.
Students proudly wear their centennial T-shirts celebrating Fannie Lou Hamer.
Students celebrate Hamer's centennial birthday outside of the campus.
A cake to celebrate the occasion.
The student population at Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom High School is very diverse. But because of her struggles and achievements, they wear T-shirts that declare: "We are Fannie Lou".
Stockton University
Stockton, New Jersey
October 10, 2017
Social activist Shaun King was the keynote speaker for the annual Fannie Lou Hamer Symposium with Joy Davenport as a guest speaker.
King and Davenport. Davenport showed a trailer of the new film, Fannie Lou Hamer's America at the start of the symposium and a second that closed the symposium.
King and Stockton students.
King speaks to a crowd about Fannie Lou Hamer and civil rights at the university's performing arts center.
Fannie Lou Hamer Centennial Video
(Created, produced and edited by Joy Elaine Davenport)
