Medgar Wiley Evers was a Civil Rights activist, an Army veteran, and the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississippi, appointed on November 24, 1954. Evers became active in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s. Evers was involved in an effort to overturn racial segregation at the University of Mississippi. He also served as president of the Regional Council of Negro Leadership (RCNL). Evers also worked to end the segregation of public facilities, and to expand opportunities for African Americans, including the enforcement of voting rights. During his activist years, in 1963 he was assassinated by Byron De La Beckwith, a white racist. Prior to his death, Evers also conducted actions to help integrate Jackson's privately owned buses and tried to integrate the public parks. Evers led voter registration drives and used boycotts to integrate Leake County schools and the Mississippi State Fair. After the death of Medgar Evers, his wife Myrlie Evers continued his work and established her own activist goals in the fight against racism and discrimination.
More Info
Church Affiliation:New Hope Baptist Church
Role in the Movement:Medgar Wiley Evers was a Civil Rights activist, an Army veteran, and the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississippi, appointed on November 24, 1954.
Birth Place:Decatur, MS
Born Date:July 2, 1925
Deceased Date:June 12, 1963
Place Lived as Adult:Jackson, MS
Church Location:Jackson, MS