On March 16, 2025, the National Civil Rights Museum proudly celebrates the 100th birthday of A.W. Willis, Jr., a trailblazing attorney, businessman, and civil rights leader who dedicated his life to justice and equality. Willis’ legacy is one of historic firsts – barriers broken, institutions reformed, and a relentless fight for the rights of African […]
Category: Historical Feature
Go deep on the people, events, and turning points that shaped the civil rights movement, and connect them to the issues communities face now. Museum historians and staff examine figures like Emmett Till, Frederick Douglass, and the Freedom Riders, alongside present-day questions from police violence to the fight for LGBTQIA+ rights. Every piece ties documented history to why it still matters.
President Jimmy Carter: A Giant Among Leaders
The National Civil Rights Museum joins the world in mourning the passing of President Jimmy Carter. A giant among leaders and a true example of the highest ideals of public service, President Carter’s legacy will forever be etched in history. As a recipient of the Museum’s 1994 Freedom Award and the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, […]
Bayard Rustin – Strategist, Organizer, Unifier
As he approached the podium, Bayard Rustin was determined and elated. He expected about 100,000 marchers to converge at the Washington Monument on August 28, 1963. To his delight, approximately 250,000 people cheered as he listed the demands of the march. The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom began after eight weeks of recruiting […]
Honoring Jazz: an early American art form
This post contains mature language. April is National Jazz Appreciation Month. Jazz remains a highly celebrated art form and inspires artists in other genres to this day. Jazz music had a critical role in the Civil Rights Movement and was integral to African American history. The music genre was born from the work songs of […]
John Lewis: Freedom Rider
In a 1961 strategy meeting, members of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) gather in Alabama to discuss their next moves. Key among them is a young activist named John Lewis, a member of SNCC who had been attacked by the Ku Klux Klan in Rock Hill, South […]
James H. Laue
Photographs taken at the Lorraine Motel on April 4, 1968, have indelibly etched our museum’s landmark in America’s collective memory. These famous images were taken in the midst of the chaos that ensued after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot on the balcony outside Room 306. In the first photo, Shelby County Sherriff’s Deputy […]
Letter to Coretta Scott King
The assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, caused shock throughout America. His loss was mourned not only in our country, but throughout the whole world, and people’s reactions ran the gamut of emotions. Both civil rights organizers and the federal government urged citizens to exercise calm, but nevertheless, violence broke […]
Ben Branch
Musician Ben Branch was at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4, 1968. He had returned to his hometown at the behest of the Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC) and Dr. Martin Luther King to participate and play at an upcoming rally. In an interview for the Library of Congress oral history project, Branch […]
Stacey Abrams: Champion of Voting Rights Honored at the National Civil Rights Museum
Every year, the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee, bestows its prestigious Freedom Award upon individuals who have made significant contributions to the advancement of civil and human rights. In 2023, one of the distinguished honorees is none other than Stacey Abrams, a dedicated advocate for voting rights. Abrams has dedicated her life to […]
A Demonstration that Ignited Change: 60 Years After the 1963 March on Washington
“We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.” ? Martin Luther King Jr. Sixty years ago, one of the “greatest demonstrations for freedom in the history of this country” took place on the Washington, DC Mall, according to Dr. Martin Luther […]
Stop Asian Hate
America’s hate problem persists. We know that Blacks have been victims of hate crimes in pretty much every category since the FBI started gathering data more than 20 years ago. We can go back further, 400+ years, when Africans were enslaved and brought to America. This nation has experienced extreme hate, a sick culture of […]
Farewell Terri
By Herb Hilliard Chair, Museum Board of Directors Terri Lee Freeman answered the call to lead the National Civil Rights Museum in November 2014. She arrived just a few months after the museum’s most expansive renovation. She came to the museum understanding the huge investment and brought with her a new perspective on what the museum […]