Council of Federated Organizations facts for kids

The Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) was a group of important Civil Rights Movement organizations working together in Mississippi. COFO started in 1961. Its main goal was to bring together efforts like voter registration. It also helped manage money from the Voter Education Project. COFO was very important in creating the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. Groups like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People were part of COFO.

Early Civil Rights Efforts in Mississippi

The fight for civil rights in Mississippi began after World War II. Veterans like Medgar Evers, his brother Charles Evers, Aaron Henry, and Amzie Moore came home. They had fought Nazi Germany. These brave veterans helped restart local chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

NAACP Leaders Step Up

After the war, Medgar Evers became an insurance salesman. He saw how poor many families were in rural Mississippi. This made him want to help. He joined the NAACP in the early 1950s. By 1954, he became the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississippi.

Aaron Henry, a friend and fellow veteran, also became an activist. He started the first NAACP branch in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Henry's group even got two white men charged for kidnapping two young Black girls. The men were found not guilty, but getting charges filed was a big step.

Evers and Henry also joined the Regional Council of Negro Leadership (RCNL) in 1951. This was a local group. The national NAACP office did not like this. Evers and Henry also went to a meeting for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Roy Wilkins, the national NAACP director, worried about the SCLC's leader, Martin Luther King Jr.. Evers felt both groups had the same goals. Henry stayed on the SCLC board and became its state president in 1960. This early competition actually made the NAACP pay more attention to Mississippi.

Students Join the Fight: SNCC

Amzie Moore was a leader in the NAACP. He felt the national office was too slow. In 1960, he went to a student conference in Atlanta. There, he met Bob Moses, a young teacher from New York City. Moses was inspired by student sit-ins in North Carolina.

Moore shared his idea with Moses. He wanted a statewide voter registration drive led by students. Moses agreed to return a year later. In the summer of 1961, Moses went to McComb, Mississippi. He worked with NAACP member C.C. Bryant. They held voter registration classes and student protests. This work helped train Moses and other young workers from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

Freedom Rides and CORE

The work in McComb happened at the same time as the Freedom Rides. These rides were organized by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). Freedom Riders were Black and white students. They rode buses together from Washington, D.C., to New Orleans. They wanted to challenge segregation laws on buses.

When the first riders faced violence in Alabama, SNCC's Diane Nash found new students to continue the rides. These new riders arrived in Jackson, Mississippi, on May 24, 1961. Governor Ross Barnett ordered police to arrest them. The Freedom Riders were sent to the state prison in Parchman. Many more riders came and were also arrested. One of them was Dave Dennis. His friendship with Bob Moses would later be very important for COFO.

Why Unity Was Needed

Several things showed that civil rights groups needed to work together. John Doar from the Justice Department came to Mississippi. He investigated claims of Black people being stopped from voting. Aaron Henry helped him.

When Freedom Riders came to Jackson, Henry and the Clarksdale NAACP tried to meet Governor Barnett. He refused. So, they formed the Clarksdale Council of Federated Organizations. This new group continued their voter registration work.

Martin Luther King Jr. briefly spoke in Jackson to support the Freedom Riders. The national NAACP worried about this. Evers told them that strong NAACP chapters would stop the student movement from growing too much. But the student movement did grow in Jackson. Students from Tougaloo College and SNCC workers formed a group. They held workshops on nonviolence and organized sit-ins. Evers and other Black leaders in Jackson sometimes looked down on these "outsiders." There were disagreements between the groups.

Coming Together for a Cause

Evers slowly began to respect the young activists. He asked the national NAACP if he could support their direct action activities. These actions were different from the NAACP's usual way of working through courts. His request was denied. Evers was so frustrated he thought about leaving the NAACP.

Despite the national office, Henry asked King and CORE for help with voter registration and boycotts in Clarksdale. Tom Gaither of CORE and Moses worked together. They wrote a plan for a coordinated voter registration drive across Mississippi. They wanted to focus on areas where Black people made up a large part of the population.

Evers and Henry became convinced they needed to work together. They saw how Jewish groups in Los Angeles worked in harmony. Soon, Henry, Evers, Moses, and Dennis met in Jackson. They discussed how to coordinate their efforts across Mississippi.

Forming COFO

After the Freedom Rides, the Justice Department wanted to help in the South. The Southern Regional Council in Atlanta started the Voter Education Project (VEP). VEP gave money for voter registration activities in the South.

After the meeting in Jackson, VEP director Wiley A. Branton and James Bevel from the SCLC met with the Jackson planners. Branton saw that local activists wanted to work together. The main problem was still Roy Wilkins of the national NAACP. He felt Mississippi was NAACP territory. He did not want NAACP money spent through groups like SNCC.

Since national leaders could stop VEP funds, Branton suggested a new organization. This group would let local groups work together without national interference. This idea, and the vision from the Jackson meeting, led to the creation of the statewide Council of Federated Organizations (COFO).

How COFO Worked

The new COFO had Aaron Henry as President. Bob Moses was the Program Director. Dave Dennis was Assistant Program Director. Carsie Hall, a lawyer, was Secretary. The presidency was supposed to change among the leaders of each group. But Henry stayed president because "no one else seemed interested."

COFO included all four national organizations: NAACP, SNCC, CORE, and SCLC. It also included local groups like the RCNL. COFO staff members kept their ties to their original organizations. SNCC provided most of the workers. Moses and Dennis were close friends, so SNCC and CORE activities often seemed like one.

Working together helped in many ways. It made the work of younger students seem more official. It connected them to older, respected leaders. This opened up old networks to SNCC and CORE workers. Also, working together helped overcome disagreements between different ages, economic groups, and organizations. These disagreements had stopped big efforts for years.

COFO staff focused their work on the Mississippi Delta. This area had the most Black people in the state. Many were sharecroppers, who were a natural group to help. COFO had two main goals: get more support from the federal government, and create a movement led by local people. There would be some protests, but the main focus was on voter registration. This was an act protected by federal law.

Young SNCC and CORE workers learned from older activists like Henry and Moore. These experienced leaders helped the new arrivals. They liked that the young people wanted to create local leaders. A movement led by local people would prove that the state's idea of "outside agitators" was wrong. Many new recruits were teenagers and young adults. Young people like Sam Block found the courage to challenge the sheriff in Leflore County. Women like Fannie Lou Hamer also became important leaders. The NAACP and SCLC usually put women in office jobs. But mentors like Ella Baker influenced SNCC workers to involve local women more. More women and young people caused some tension among COFO's groups. But it was just one of many disagreements to come.

Facing Violence and Finding Courage

As COFO started its work, white people in the state became angry. This caused fear among Black people and civil rights workers. But it did not stop the activities. Violence continued. Boycotts of businesses started in Jackson, Clarksdale, and Greenwood.

Many people in rural Mississippi owned guns. The nonviolent organizers had to understand this. After brutal attacks on workers, including Fannie Lou Hamer and Ed King, nonviolent activists accepted armed self-defense. They felt it was necessary. An NAACP newsletter in 1963 said, "We will never strike the first violent blow. We point out to our white attackers that in the future… you are going to get your lick right back."

Violence got worse and gained national attention on June 12, 1963. Medgar Evers, a symbol of the Mississippi movement, was killed in his driveway. This happened after he came home from a rally. Small riots followed his funeral. More sit-ins and protests happened across the state. Whites responded with more violence.

To keep people focused, COFO organized the Freedom Vote. This was a mock election held at the same time as Mississippi's gubernatorial elections. It showed the federal government that Black people would vote if allowed. A big meeting for this mock election was held in Jackson. Henry and Ed King were chosen as candidates for governor and lieutenant governor. About seventy white students from Stanford and Yale came for a week to help "register" "voters." Many of these students were bothered, but there was no major violence. People debated using white volunteers. But many believed these outside workers were helpful and needed. Dave Dennis felt that after the Freedom Vote, "there was less fear in the Negro community in taking part in civil rights activities."

This new courage led to new actions. COFO planned to bring many volunteers for real voter registration in the summer of 1964. In response, the Ku Klux Klan grew stronger in late 1963 and early 1964.

To help with planning, COFO became a stronger organization. They adopted a constitution. Monthly meetings were held in Jackson. Moses, Dennis, and others talked about letting local leaders take over their positions. SNCC's national office did not want a stronger COFO. This was because of competition for money with the NAACP. It got worse when VEP stopped its funding. VEP did not see the importance of the Freedom Vote. Moses said he was loyal to the SNCC executive committee. Lawrence Guyot defended him, saying that "in Mississippi SNCC is COFO." COFO also took charge of recruiting volunteers for the summer.

Freedom Summer: A Time of Change

White violence became more intense as summer approached. Volunteers were recruited mostly from northern, white colleges. They became voter registration workers and Freedom School teachers. CORE staff members Michael Schwerner and his wife Rita came to Meridian, Mississippi. They prepared for the new volunteers. Schwerner became friends with James Chaney, a local Black activist.

Chaney and Schwerner spoke at Mt. Zion Methodist Church in Neshoba County. A few days later, they went to Oxford, Ohio, with other COFO workers to train volunteers. During this training, the Klan burned Mt. Zion Church. When they heard this, Chaney and Schwerner decided to go back to Mississippi early. They took six volunteers with them to Meridian, including Andrew Goodman.

The next day, Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman went to Neshoba County to investigate the church fire. They were arrested for speeding outside Philadelphia, Mississippi. They were held for several hours. When they left town, law enforcement and others followed them. Their car was stopped, and they were taken to another place and killed. Their bodies were found two months later. The investigation showed that members of the local White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, the Neshoba County Sheriff's Office, and the Philadelphia, Mississippi Police Department were involved. Their arrest, kidnapping, and murder were meant to scare the new volunteers. Instead, it made the activists even more determined. It also brought international attention to Mississippi.

The summer newcomers included experienced activists like Stokely Carmichael. He became the head of the Greenwood summer project. Summer projects in Greenwood and other parts of the state created Freedom Schools. These schools were often in people's homes. They helped make up for the lack of good schools for Black children. People believed that education would create more informed voters. Forty-one Freedom Schools were held around the state, with over 2100 students. In these schools, teachers talked about current events. Students wrote newspapers called "Freedom Papers." In many places, these papers were the only source of civil rights news.

There were also some rivalries among the volunteers. Voter registration was seen as the most important job. Some workers looked down on Freedom School teachers. Some even thought teaching was "woman's work." These small rivalries added to the stress caused by the ongoing violence.

The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP)

Before the Freedom Vote, COFO leaders decided that the Democratic Party was the best way to gain political power. On March 15, 1964, they decided to form a new party. This party would challenge the regular state delegation at the Democratic National convention on August 24. This was the start of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP).

By July, the summer project focused on preparing for the convention. Moses told workers to spend all their time organizing for the convention challenge. On August 6, the MFDP held a statewide meeting in Jackson. This was two days after the bodies of Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman were found. A delegation of sixty-eight people was formed. Henry was chairman, and Ed King was vice-chair. Their goal was to show the convention that the regular state delegation was unfair. They wanted the MFDP to be the true Mississippi delegation. Moses felt that the mostly middle-class representatives from Jackson looked down on Fannie Lou Hamer and the poorer, rural members of the delegation.

Former Governor Barnett was worried. He said Black people were "unqualified to vote." Delegations from other southern states threatened to leave the convention if the MFDP was taken seriously. President Lyndon Johnson was trying to keep everyone in his party happy. He spoke to Roy Wilkins. Wilkins told Johnson that the NAACP's part in the challenge was small.

When they arrived in Atlantic City, the MFDP protested inside and outside the convention. The most famous protest was Hamer's "Is this America?" speech. Johnson was so angry that he interrupted her speech to talk about Vietnam. Hubert Humphrey, who wanted to be Vice President, brought a compromise offer. He offered Henry and Ed King two "at-large" seats at the convention. Also, non-discrimination rules would be put in place for the 1968 convention. Ed King offered his seat to a farm worker. Humphrey worried he meant Hamer. He said the President would not let "that illiterate woman" speak. This made Moses against any compromise.

The group took the offer back to the MFDP delegation. Henry, Ed King, and most of the middle-class members liked the compromise. But the rural members, supported by SNCC workers, voted with Hamer. She said, "We didn't come all this way for no two seats." When Wilkins heard they rejected the offer, he told Hamer, "You people are ignorant, you don't know anything about politics ... Why don't you pick up and return to Mississippi?" After more protests, the delegation did return to Mississippi.

Challenges and Dissatisfaction

People felt bitter after the convention. The middle class was even more upset with the poorer representatives in COFO's leadership. Many workers later saw the convention as the start of a split. Some wanted political change, others wanted more radical change. SNCC worker Cleveland Sellers said that after the convention, the "movement was not for civil rights, but for liberation." Moses especially disliked the Democratic Party. He felt it would let poorer Black people get benefits but not have a say in decisions.

Even though many saw the Atlantic City convention as a failure, the MFDP kept gaining support in Mississippi. Many middle-class Black leaders blamed SNCC (which they linked to COFO) for the lack of compromise. Northern liberals who gave money started supporting the now independent MFDP.

Closter Current, an NAACP director, complained that COFO was taking NAACP's territory. He said SNCC was turning young people against them. In November, the state NAACP stopped supporting COFO. Henry remained COFO president. He was confronted at the state meeting the next month. He complained that the NAACP had been left out of planning. He also said that COFO staff's casual clothes and attitude offended traditional leaders. Hamer replied that local decision-making was important. She said casual clothes attracted young people.

Moses was very disappointed after the convention. The MFDP's success did not encourage him. He felt the party was "following national programs." He thought it was losing touch with poorer people. He resigned from COFO in late 1964 and left Mississippi in early 1965. Dennis also felt bitter after the convention and the murders of Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman. He questioned if COFO's methods were working. He returned to New Orleans in early 1965. He tried to continue with CORE but soon quit and became a lawyer.

With the MFDP handling most political activities, the remaining COFO staff started offering medical services and legal help in rural areas. This stretched their limited money even more. SNCC's ongoing debate about white volunteers weakened its organization in the state. This, in turn, weakened COFO. At a SNCC meeting, Jim Foreman called for COFO to be ended. He mentioned the NAACP's withdrawal and the MFDP's growing power. He also worried about low morale and lack of projects after Moses left.

COFO's state meeting in Tougaloo in July was its last. Members voted to end the organization. Staff members were offered jobs with the MFDP. CORE and SNCC became less active in the years after COFO ended. Although disagreements were always there, they became more noticeable after the MFDP delegation returned. Like Moses, many workers believed ending COFO was a mistake. They felt it was the only organization that represented all Black people in Mississippi.