By — Associated Press Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/who-is-fannie-lou-hamer Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Who was Fannie Lou Hamer? Here’s why DNC speakers keep mentioning her Politics Aug 19, 2024 7:52 PM EDT Multiple speakers at the Democratic National Convention have mentioned Fannie Lou Hamer, a civil rights activist who gave a landmark speech at the convention in 1964. WATCH LIVE: 2024 Democratic National Convention Night 1 Hamer was a former sharecropper and a leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, a racially integrated group that challenged the seating of an all-white Mississippi delegation at the 1964 DNC. Her televised testimony to the credentials committee in Atlantic City, New Jersey, mesmerized the nation and shone light on the violence inflicted on Hamer and others as they worked to secure rights that were supposed to be guaranteed by the Constitution. Rev. Edwin King, Fannie Lou Hamer and Annie Devine, co-founders of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, are seated with the Michigan Delegation at the 1964 Democratic Convention. Photo via Getty images Hamer spoke on Aug. 22, 1964 — exactly 60 years before Kamala Harris is scheduled to accept the Democratic nomination and become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to be the presidential nominee of a major party. Find more of our DNC 2024 coverage Live updates: Biden, Hillary Clinton and Shawn Fain expected to speak on Day 1 of the DNC in Chicago Live fact check: Night 1 of the Democratic National Convention A look ahead to this week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago As 2024 Democratic National Convention kicks off, here are 4 things to watch What to expect on Day 1 of the DNC in Chicago A look back at the 1968 Democratic convention and its relevance today We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Associated Press Associated Press
Multiple speakers at the Democratic National Convention have mentioned Fannie Lou Hamer, a civil rights activist who gave a landmark speech at the convention in 1964. WATCH LIVE: 2024 Democratic National Convention Night 1 Hamer was a former sharecropper and a leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, a racially integrated group that challenged the seating of an all-white Mississippi delegation at the 1964 DNC. Her televised testimony to the credentials committee in Atlantic City, New Jersey, mesmerized the nation and shone light on the violence inflicted on Hamer and others as they worked to secure rights that were supposed to be guaranteed by the Constitution. Rev. Edwin King, Fannie Lou Hamer and Annie Devine, co-founders of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, are seated with the Michigan Delegation at the 1964 Democratic Convention. Photo via Getty images Hamer spoke on Aug. 22, 1964 — exactly 60 years before Kamala Harris is scheduled to accept the Democratic nomination and become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to be the presidential nominee of a major party. Find more of our DNC 2024 coverage Live updates: Biden, Hillary Clinton and Shawn Fain expected to speak on Day 1 of the DNC in Chicago Live fact check: Night 1 of the Democratic National Convention A look ahead to this week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago As 2024 Democratic National Convention kicks off, here are 4 things to watch What to expect on Day 1 of the DNC in Chicago A look back at the 1968 Democratic convention and its relevance today We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now