Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party facts for kids

The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP) was a political group formed in 1964 during the Civil Rights Movement. It was also called the Freedom Democratic Party. This party was created in Mississippi by both African Americans and white people. Their main goal was to challenge the main Democratic Party in Mississippi. At that time, the official party only allowed white people to join, even though African Americans made up 40% of the state's population. The MFDP wanted everyone to have a fair chance to vote and be part of the political process.

Why the MFDP Was Formed

For many years, African Americans in Mississippi faced many challenges when trying to vote. They were often scared away by threats and unfair tests. These were called literacy tests. These tests were very hard and confusing. They were designed to stop black people from registering to vote. Since 1890, a new state constitution and the actions of white leaders had kept African Americans out of the political system. Only white people could join the state's main Democratic Party.

Starting in 1961, groups like the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) worked hard. They tried to help black citizens register to vote. In June 1963, African Americans tried to vote in the Mississippi primary election. But they were stopped. This election was very important. It was the only real election in the state.

Because they couldn't vote in the official election, people created an alternative. They held a "Freedom Vote" in November 1963. This was a protest to show that their right to vote was being denied. About 80,000 people voted in this special election. They voted for a group of candidates that included both black and white people.

After this, Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Baker, and Bob Moses started the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party in 1964. They faced a lot of danger for their actions. Activists were threatened. Churches, homes, and businesses were burned or bombed. People were beaten and arrested.

Building the Freedom Democratic Party

Since the regular Mississippi Democratic Party kept black people out, the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) decided to build on the success of the Freedom Ballot. They officially started the MFDP in April 1964. This new party welcomed everyone, no matter their race. The MFDP hoped to become the official Democratic Party in Mississippi. They wanted to send their own delegates to the 1964 Democratic National Convention. These delegates would be chosen by both black and white Mississippians.

Building the MFDP was a big part of the Freedom Summer project. It was very hard to register black voters because state officials tried to stop them. So, Freedom Summer volunteers changed their plan. They focused on building the MFDP. They used a simpler way to sign up party supporters. This way, black people didn't have to openly challenge the powerful white leaders. They also didn't have to take the unfair literacy tests.

By August 1964, the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party had gained a lot of attention. It had about 80,000 members. This party was made up of people from all races. Some activists from other parts of the country, like the Freedom Riders, also helped lead the new party.

State Convention in Jackson, Mississippi

Before the national convention, a sad event happened. On August 4, the bodies of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman were found. They had been buried in a dam. These three young men were working with the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). They were helping people register to vote for the MFDP. They were murdered because of their activism. They had been missing for weeks after looking into a church burning in June 1964.

A huge search for them took place. The FBI and even U.S. sailors helped look for them. The murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner shocked the nation. This outrage made the MFDP even more determined. They wanted to be the true representatives of Mississippi.

On August 6, 1964, the MFDP held a statewide meeting in Jackson, Mississippi. About 2,500 people attended. They decided to take their case to the national Democratic Party's credentials committee. They wanted to be recognized as the official delegation from Mississippi. Joseph Rauh, a lawyer for the MFDP, spoke at the meeting. He said the MFDP was the only party in the state loyal to the national Democratic Party. He believed they had a great chance to succeed.

Ella Baker was the main speaker at the state convention. She didn't give the speech people expected about voting rights. Instead, she talked about society. She said:

• "We have to know what we are dealing with."
• "We can't deal with things just because we feel we ought to have our rights."
• "We have to deal with them based on knowledge."
• "We gain this knowledge by sending our children to certain courses."
• "We also gain it by reading at night instead of just watching TV."
• "We must read things that help us understand the South we live in."

This state convention gave the MFDP confidence. They felt they could make a difference at the national level. They chose several people to be their delegates to the national convention. These included Fannie Lou Hamer, Victoria Gray, Rev. Ed King, and Aaron Henry. The day after the convention, James Chaney was buried in his hometown. Dave Dennis gave a powerful speech about the loss of this young man. He blamed leaders in Washington D.C. and Mississippi for what happened.

Despite facing violence and economic threats from groups like the White Citizens Council, the MFDP continued its work. They held local meetings and county meetings. Then they held a statewide convention. This followed the rules of the Democratic Party. They elected 68 delegates to go to the 1964 Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Four of these delegates were white.

The 1964 Democratic National Convention

Aaron Henry speaking to the credentials committee in 1964.

The MFDP delegates traveled by bus to the convention. They challenged the right of the regular Mississippi Democratic Party delegates to be there. They argued that the regular delegates were chosen unfairly. They said the process was completely segregated. This went against party rules and federal law. The MFDP also pointed out that the regular delegates did not plan to support President Lyndon B. Johnson. He was the party's candidate for president. The MFDP asked that their delegates be seated instead of the segregationist ones.

Some of the key members of the MFDP delegation were Lawrence Guyot, Victoria Gray, Aaron Henry, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Bob Moses.

Martin Luther King Jr. told President Johnson that he would do everything he could to support the MFDP. He wanted them to be seated as the only true delegation from Mississippi. King also told Congress he supported the MFDP's challenge. He asked all Americans to join him.

The Democratic Party sent the challenge to its credentials committee. The MFDP delegates worked hard to explain their case. Many supporters and volunteers formed a picket line outside the convention. The MFDP prepared a detailed legal document. It showed why the "regular" Mississippi delegation did not truly represent the state's people. It also explained how black citizens were kept from participating. The MFDP created brochures, biographies of their delegates, and arguments. These were given to all the convention's delegates. Their actions gained a lot of public attention.

Fannie Lou Hamer giving her powerful speech to the credentials committee.

The credentials committee allowed its meetings to be shown on TV. This meant the whole country could see and hear the MFDP delegates speak. Fannie Lou Hamer gave a very powerful speech. She described her hard life as a sharecropper on a cotton farm in Mississippi. She also spoke about the unfair treatment she faced for trying to register to vote.

After her speech, many people believed the majority of delegates wanted to remove the regular Mississippi delegation. They wanted to seat the MFDP delegates instead. However, some all-white delegations from other southern states threatened to leave the convention. They had done this before. President Johnson wanted the convention to show unity. He was worried about losing support from the South in the upcoming election against Barry Goldwater. To win the election, Johnson tried to stop the MFDP from replacing the regular delegates. He told the head of the credentials committee not to make a decision.

With help from Senator Hubert Humphrey and party leader Walter Mondale, Johnson offered a "compromise." The national Democratic Party offered the MFDP two "at-large" seats. This meant they could watch the convention but not vote. The MFDP refused this offer. It would still allow the white-only delegates, who were not fairly elected, to keep their seats. It also denied votes to the MFDP.

MFDP leader Aaron Henry explained why they refused:

• "Lyndon made the typical white man's mistake."
• "He said, 'You've got two votes,' which was too little."
• "But he also told us who would get those two votes."
• "He'd give one to me and one to Ed King."
• "But 64 of us came from Mississippi on a bus."
• "We ate cheese and crackers and bologna the whole way."
• "We didn't have money. We suffered together."
• "We stayed in a small hotel, three or four of us in a bed."
• "We suffered a common experience."
• "What kind of fool would I be to accept special treatment for ourselves?"
• "He said, Ed and Aaron can get in, but the other 62 can't."
• "This is typical of white men picking black leaders, and that time is gone."

The MFDP was willing to accept a different compromise. This idea came from Congresswoman Edith Green. She suggested that "loyal" Democrats from both delegations should be seated. But the national party did not accept this. Instead, they chose the "regular" party to represent Mississippi. These were the same people who, on July 28, 1964, had passed a resolution saying:

• "We opposed, condemn and deplore the Civil Rights Act of 1964."
• "We believe in separation of the races in all phases of our society."
• "We believe separation is necessary for peace and good relationships."

The MFDP left the Convention rather than accept the unfair offer of two seats. President Johnson had tried to stop Fannie Lou Hamer from speaking. But after the country heard her speech, many people were upset. They called the White House asking for justice for African Americans. The next year, President Johnson helped pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This law allowed the federal government to watch elections in states and local areas. It helped make sure that voter registration and voting were fair, especially where some groups had been kept from voting.

Fannie Lou Hamer famously said, "We didn't come all this way for no two seats, 'cause all of us is tired."

Even though they weren't officially recognized, the MFDP kept protesting at the convention. Most of the regular Mississippi delegates left because they wouldn't support Johnson. The MFDP delegates borrowed passes from other delegates. They then took the empty seats. But the national party wouldn't let them stay. The next day, the MFDP delegates returned. They found that the empty seats had been removed. They stayed and sang freedom songs.

Johnson lost Mississippi in the 1964 presidential election. White voters still tried to stop black people from voting. White Democrats became more conservative and voted for Goldwater. Since then, Mississippi has rarely voted for a Democratic presidential candidate.

What Happened Next

The 1964 Democratic Party convention disappointed many in the MFDP. For a while, the party became more radical. It invited Malcolm X to speak. It also spoke out against the war in Vietnam.

For about a year after the 1963 mock election, the MFDP focused on challenging the elected congresspersons from Mississippi. They argued to Congress that half of the voters were stopped from participating in those elections. The MFDP had many votes in Congress supporting their view. However, the leaders of the House of Representatives and President Johnson's White House did not like this idea. They refused to remove the Democratic representatives from Mississippi.

Many Civil Rights Movement activists felt let down by Johnson and other leaders. They had been promised that if they focused on voter registration, the federal government would support them. Instead, they felt that black civil rights were sacrificed for political reasons. John Lewis, a leader of SNCC, later wrote:

• "This was the turning point of the civil rights movement."
• "Until then, we believed the system would work."
• "We believed the system would listen and respond."
• "Now, for the first time, we had reached the very center of the system."
• "We played by the rules, did everything we were supposed to do."
• "We arrived at the doorstep and found the door slammed in our face."

Even though the MFDP didn't get their delegates seated at the convention, they did succeed in showing the country the unfairness and violence in Mississippi. Their actions helped lead to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The MFDP's actions also led to a new rule for the national Democratic Party. Its credentials committee would no longer seat delegations chosen through racial discrimination. The MFDP continued as a separate group for several years. During this time, more African Americans began to register and vote in the regular political system. Many people from the MFDP kept working for civil rights in Mississippi. After the Voting Rights Act passed, the number of registered black voters in Mississippi grew a lot. The regular Democratic Party stopped discriminating against black people. They agreed to follow the party rules that ensured fair participation. Eventually, the MFDP joined the regular party. Many MFDP activists became party leaders. Today, the FDP has only one active chapter, in Holmes County.

After the MFDP was no longer active, many members formed a new group called the Loyal Democrats of Mississippi. In 1968, they successfully got their delegates seated as the only delegation from Mississippi at the Democratic National Convention. Several of these delegates had been members of the MFDP.

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