16 of the Most Powerful Civil Rights Activists, Ever

In her youth, Hamer had already made notable contributions to the Civil Rights Movement but by her 50s, she was working every tool she had to help Black people in Mississippi get registered to vote. In 1964, she co-founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), challenging the ways the Democratic Party shut out Black voters, per the National Women’s History Museum. So, Hamer and the other MFDP members took it up to the Democratic National Convention and the Credentials Committee demanding official delegation recognition. She even pitched her candidacy for the state House but was banned from the ballot.

Most notably, she delivered a fiery speech in front of the committee that was purposely pushed off the air to make room for President Lyndon B. Johnson’s press conference. It was still convincing enough, later down the line, to allow her the chance to be a member of the state’s first integrated delegation in 1968.

The bulk of Davis’ activism was fueled by education and what some considered “radical” far-left political ideals. She was a vocal member of the Communist Party and Black Panther Party, advocating for criminal and social justice. Eventually, she made her stamp on the Civil Rights Movement when she was faced with her own dealings with the system. In 1970, at 28 years old, she was fired from her position teaching at UCLA strictly for her communist beliefs but after fighting back, a judge ruled her termination was unlawful and she was hired back, per the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

However, following that, her support for three Black inmates in Soledad Prison accused of murdering a prison guard got her swept into a criminal case. She was charged as an accomplice despite no evidence and was placed on the FBI’s most wanted list after going into hiding. After her eventual arrest, she spent 18 months in jail where her viral interview was conducted where she offered a powerful response to the question of whether she approves the use of the violence by the Black Panthers:

“I grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. Some very, very good friends of mine were killed by bombs – bombs that were planted by racists. I remember, from the time I was very small, the sound of bombs exploding across the street and the house shaking … That’s why, when someone asks me about violence, I find it incredible because it means the person asking that question has absolutely no idea what black people have gone through and experienced in this country from the time the first black person was kidnapped from the shores of Africa,” she said.”

Hampton, the chairman of the Chicago chapter of the Black Panther Party and youth leader of the NAACP, worked to improve the local Black community by providing educational resources, better access to food and empowering the youth. His philosophy on activism helped birth the Rainbow Coalition which brought together communities of all colors and creeds to being unity to marginalized group and fight for equality together, per Stanford University.

However, his stance on encouraging Black people to bear arms and self-defense against racist law enforcement put a target on his back as well as the other Panthers which eventually led to the Feds stalking him as his influence grew. Hampton was shot to death in an FBI-led raid as a result of a mole being planted in the Panthers circle by the counterintelligence operative (COINTELPRO) formed by the government agency to target Black leaders. He was only 21 years old.

Marsha “Pay It No Mind” Johnson is known as one of the most impactful figures of the gay rights movement on the latter end of the Civil Rights Era. In fact, her gender/sexual identity led to the common use of the word “transgender.” Johnson nearly risked her life nurturing the identity she chose, being outcasted for wearing women’s clothes and makeup, abused by clients as a sex worker and being bothered by the police just because, per The New York Times.

For that reason, Johnson led a series of protests against police brutality against queer people and was invited to make an appearance the first Pride Parade in 1970 hosted by with several LGBT+ organizations. However, the lack of representation of queer people of color led her to take her own steps toward ensuring the support, safety and visibility of Black and brown queer youth and by proxy, launched her into the limelight as one of the most prominent gay rights figures.

The activist was known during the Civil Rights Era for his radical public speeches whether on the street, at a podium or on the television screen. In stark contrast to the nonviolent approach to fighting for civil rights, the Nation of Islam minister supported Black Nationalism urging the community to take a more aggressive, militant approach to obtaining civil rights “by any means necessary.”

However, following a lengthy trip to Mecca, he’d decided to cut ties with the Nation of Islam and started taking a calmer approach to racial equality more along the lines of Dr. Martin Luther King, who was often characterized as his adversary, per Stanford University. Malcom’s voice empowered the many civil rights groups that formed to challenge segregation and other forms of racial inequality while he looked to those groups to reframe his fight behind Black Nationalism.

The reverend turn civil rights giant is known as one of thee most impactful voices of the Civil Rights Movement. Most notably, he led the Black community in advocating for racial equality, voting rights by his powerful speeches, organized demonstrations and practices of civil disobedience, per The King Center. These protests weren’t without conflict, considering he was sent to Birmingham jail after being arrested during a nonviolent anti-segregation protest in 1963. Even from his cell, he penned a letter to the people.

“We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God given rights. The nations of Asia and Africa are moving with jetlike speed toward gaining political independence, but we still creep at horse and buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter,” he wrote.

However, no matter how long King spent inside a jail or shacked inside a church retreating from violent racists, he was always seen on a platform speaking words of encouragement, peace and unity. The vision cited in his infamous “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington came partly into fruition at the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, making racial segregation illegal.

You can’t talk about Dr. King without talking about talking about his secret weapon, Rustin. The activist, unbeknownst to many, was the main driver behind organizing the 1963 March on Washington. He was also a major force in the Congress of Racial Equality and contributed to the creation of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He also worked alongside A. Philip Randolph to integrate unions and create more of them for Black workers, per the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Despite his influence, Rustin remained as a background character in the Civil Rights Movement due to being outed as gay following an arrest where he was discovered having sex with a man. However, he used that experience to empower himself later on, becoming a strong voice in the gay rights movement.

Newton co-founded the Black Panther Party (previously, “of Self-Defense”) with Bobby Seale by inspiration of Malcolm X but also in response to the string of police brutality incidents against innocent Black people. By the heat of the Civil Rights Era, the party expanded to several cities and recruited over 2,000 members who all worked in their own communities to create “survival programs” providing access to housing, healthcare, food and educational resources, per Smithsonian Magazine. Newton’s work even went international, landing him a trip to China whose citizens criticized the U.S. for imperialism.

Most notably, his activism against police brutality landed him in prison in the voluntary manslaughter of a police officer after a shootout. During his time in prison, the Panthers collaborated with the majority white Peace and Freedom Party to boost a “Free Huey!” rally campaign that spread across the nation. His conviction was reversed two year later and after two more trials resulting in hung juries, the Alameda County Superior Court dismissed his charges.

Mr. Good Trouble was known for his courageous activism while being a mere college student. Lewis was inspired by King to dive headfirst into the Civil Rights Movement, beginning by participating in the first wave of lunch counter sit-ins in Tennessee, per the U.S. Civil Rights Trail. He was also part of the demonstrators who did the Freedom Rides, protesting segregation on interstate buses but was unfortunately with one of the groups who encountered a violent white mob.

That beatdown didn’t stop him, though. Lewis went on to continue advocating for Black voting rights and racial equality, being invited as a keynote at the March on Washington and organizing Mississippi Freedom Summer. Lewis was among the front line in the march across the Selma bridge for voting rights which turned into “Bloody Sunday” as Alabama state troopers violently attacked the group. However, that sacrifice put pressure behind the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Randolph’s stamp on the Civil Rights Movement began in its infancy stages in the 30s and was angled at Black workers’ rights. He founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the country’s first major Black labor union, helping Black workers fight against segregation both in the workplace and in the armed forces. Following the union’s founding, Congress was then pressured to amend the Railway Labor Act which protected Black labor members from being fired by their employers, via the A. Philip Randolph Institute.

Randolph continued the work by convincing President Franklin D. Roosevelt to sign Executive Order 8802 in 1941 which allowed Black workers to participate in war industries and later, convinced President Harry Truman to desegregate the armed forces with the Universal Military Service and Training Act in 1948. Closer to the height of the Civil Rights Era, he helped organize several marches including the March on Washington and also helped found the Negro American Labor Council.

You should know who Mrs. Parks is already but if you need a refresher, let’s discuss how she was behind one of the most iconic moments of the Civil Rights Era. On December 1, 1955, she boarded a segregated bus in Montgomery, Ala. and sat in the front instead of the designated Black-folks section in the back. The driver asked her to move as more white passengers boarded and she refused.

As a result, she was arrested and put in jail for refusing to give up her seat. Subsequently, her arrest triggered the Montgomery Bus Boycott where Black people carpooled or trekked long distances in the blazing summer heat to get to where they needed to go in protest of segregated seating on public transportation, per Women’s History.

Wilkins was one of the main drivers behind campaign toward obtaining civil rights through legislative means. For 22 years, he worked in an executive position at the NAACP. In those early years, around the 50s, he helped co-found the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights which spearheaded the campaigns behind every major civil rights law passed since 1957.

As top dog, Wilkins led the NAACP toward supporting the passing of the Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act as well as Brown v. Board of Education. He also supported a proposal for Black businesses to shift their money to the Black-owned Tri-State Bank, helping fund enough money to support those who were denied loans from other white banks, per NAACP.

As a young Shaw University student and executive secretary for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Baker took initiative and brought together a group of students she believed could make an impact in the protest against segregation. Specifically, sit-ins.

Baker managed to convince Martin Luther King Jr. to front $800 to help her hold a conference for the founding of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. From there, she was able to build a network of activists and organizations who would help the SNCC organize voter registration campaigns, organize transportation for the Freedom Rides and peacefully protest by sitting at “whites only” lunch counters. Baker’s determination helped young people get more involved and become more empowered in the fight for civil rights leading to powerful alliances with Dr. King and even the Black Panther Party, per National Archives.

Farmer was co-founder of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and initiated a series of nonviolent demonstrations such as sit-ins, jail-ins but most notably, the Freedom Rides of 1961 to draw public attention to the fight against segregated interstate buses.

Often, the riders would be arrested or run into violent white mobs. However, the violence is what gathered national attention on the issue. One night, Farmer fled from a mob who threatened to riot Ralph Abernathy’s First Baptist Church where Dr. King was holding a meeting with other riders. U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy asked Farmer to cease the Freedom Rides but Farmer refused. Eventually, the violence forced Farmer to end the campaign. By the end of 1961, the Interstate Commerce Commission ruled segregation on interstate buses and facilities was illegal, per Stanford University.

Mamie didn’t know she’d never see her 14-year-old son, Emmett, alive again after sending him to Mississippi to spend time with family in 1954. While there, Emmett encountered a woman at a store, who lied and told her husband and his brother the teen tried to flirt with her. The two men kidnapped Till in the middle of the night, mutilated and murdered him.

Upon viewing her son’s mangled, unrecognizable face, Mamie was pressured by authorities to quickly bury her son. However, with the help of a Black funeral home, she held an open casket funeral gathering over 100,000 attendees. The photos of Till’s body sounded national alarms about the reality of racist violence and lynchings. From that point on, Mamie used her grieving process to continue speaking out against racial injustice. She toured with the NAACP, gathering the attention from other activists including Rosa Parks, Dr. King and John Lewis who used Till’s lynching as a touchpoint for fighting against racist violence in America, per Women & the American Story.

Bond, inspired by the sit-in movement that had begun in North Carolina, created the Committee on Appeal for Human Rights in Atlanta. He attended the founding conference for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and decided to leave school to work full-time as their communications director.

Bond was also encouraged to run for Georgia state legislature where he campaigned door-to-door getting the community’s first-hand opinion on what they wished for their representative to do. Though he won, he was denied his seat due to the SNCC’s opposition to the Vietnam War and also because he refused to leave the SNCC. He ran again and won but was denied his seat a second time. It wasn’t until his third run that the Supreme Court intervened and forced the state legislature to seat him, per SNCC Digital Gateway.