Icons of the Voting Rights Movement

Ida B. Wells was a journalist and activist who campaigned against lynching and racial violence and fought for women’s suffrage as a way to empower black women politically. She challenged the racism of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the National American Woman Suffrage Association, two of the leading organizations of the US suffragette movement. In 1913 she co-founded the Alpha Suffrage Club, and marched defiantly in the women's suffrage parade in Washington, DC.

SNAC - Ida B. Wells

Mary Church Terrell was a well-known African American activist, educator, and author who championed racial equality and women’s suffrage in the late 19th and early 20th century. She was a leader in the African American women’s club movement and was the co-founder and first president of the National Association of Colored Women.

SNAC - Mary Church Terrell

Ella Baker was a civil rights activist and grassroots organizer who co-founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. She was active in the NAACP, SCLC, and SNCC, and helped coordinate SNCC’s Freedom Rides campaign in 1961. She was an important mentor to SNCC activists and believed that empowering ordinary people was more important than charismatic leadership within the civil rights movement.

SNAC - Ella Baker

Fannie Lou Hamer was an American civil rights, voting rights, and women's rights activist. She was the co-founder and vice-chair of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, which she represented at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. She also founded the Freedom Farm Collective and co-founded the National Women’s Political Caucus.

SNAC - Fannie Lou Hamer

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights activist, Baptist pastor, and co-founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He led the fight for civil rights and voting rights for Black Americans and campaigned for economic equality. He is known for his advocacy of civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance to injustice.

SNAC - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Bob Moses is a civil rights activist and educator who was a leader in SNCC and the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) during the 1960s and who directed the Freedom Summer Project voter registration campaign in Mississippi. Along with Ella Baker and Fannie Lou Hamer, he co-founded the the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party in 1964. Later he founded the Algebra Project, which focused on helping students of color to excel in mathematics.

SNAC - Bob Moses

Shirley Chisholm was a trailblazer for African American women in politics. She was the first Black woman to run for President of the United States as a Democrat in 1972. Chisholm was also the first African American Congresswoman, serving seven consecutive terms representing the 12th district of New York from 1969-1983. She also co-founded the National Congress of Black Women in 1984 and was the author of two memoirs.

SNAC - Shirley Chisholm

Barack Obama is an American lawyer, community organizer, and was the 44th President of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African American President of the United States. Earlier in his career he directed voter registration campaigns in Illinois. He was also elected to the Illinois State Senate and the U.S. Senate.

SNAC - Barack Obama