Woman and Flag

The Freedom Summer movement encompassed the entire state of Mississippi, and by July of 1964, hundreds of students were working at their respective posts. While many of the students were working to register Black voters, others were teaching classes in community centers and freedom schools organized by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). In this photo, a woman speaks to a group of community members and volunteers at the Williams Chapel Church in Ruleville, MS. On June 25, 1964, the Williams Chapel Church was firebombed just a few days after volunteers arrived in Ruleville, marking another example of the resistance experienced by Freedom Summer volunteers.