Georgia Historical Society to dedicate historical Marker to commemorate the
Albany movement
Savannah, Ga., September 15, 2014 - The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) will dedicate the first in a series of historical markers dedicated to documenting the Civil Rights Movement in Georgia this Wednesday, September 17th at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia.
Reverend Charles Sherrod, longtime Albany City Councilman and founding member of the Albany Movement, will give remarks, with special music provided by The Freedom Singers, a nationally recognized singing group that formed in Albany in 1962 and performed across the country informing audiences and raising needed funds for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
Other speakers for the event will include, Ms. Amanda Peacock, Tourism Project Manager for Plantation Trace, Georgia Department of Economic Development; Mr. Kenneth Cutts of the Albany Civil Rights Institute Board of Directors and Christy Crisp, Director of Programs for the Georgia Historical Society.
The marker dedication will take place on September 17, 2014, at 2 p.m. at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. Free and open to the public.
The Marker reads:
Georgia Civil Rights Trail
The Albany Movement
The Albany Movement began here, at Shiloh Baptist Church, in November 1961. A coalition of black improvement associations and student activists from SNCC and Albany State College, the protest group set an unprecedented goal: the desegregation of an entire community, from bus stations to lunch counters. Demonstrations over two years resulted in the detention of 1,500 protesters. The participation and repeated arrests of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. brought national attention to the Albany Movement. Music sustained the campaign in Southwest Georgia and gave birth to the SNCC Freedom Singers. Legal action and the increase in black voter registration led to school desegregation, the end of public employee discrimination, and the election of black political officials in the region. Lessons learned in Albany influenced events in Birmingham in 1963.
Erected by the Georgia Historical Society, the Georgia Department of Economic Development, and the Albany Civil Rights Institute
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SAVANNAH: 501 Whitaker St., Savannah, GA 31401
ATLANTA: 260 14th St., NW, Ste. A-148, Atlanta, GA 30318