Myrlie Evers-Williams facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Myrlie Evers-Williams
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Evers-Williams at the Medgar Evers' christening, 2011
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| Chair of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People | |
| In office 1995–1998 |
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| Preceded by | William Gibson |
| Succeeded by | Julian Bond |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Myrlie Louise Beasley
March 17, 1933 Vicksburg, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Spouses |
Walter Williams
(m. 1976; died 1995) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Alcorn State University Pomona College (BA) |
Myrlie Louise Evers-Williams (born March 17, 1933) is an American civil rights activist and journalist. For over 30 years, she worked to get justice for the murder of her husband, Medgar Evers, who was also a civil rights leader. She also led the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as its chairwoman. Myrlie Evers-Williams has written several books about civil rights and her husband's important work. On January 21, 2013, she gave a special prayer at the ceremony where Barack Obama became president for his second term.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Myrlie Louise Beasley was born on March 17, 1933, in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Her parents separated when she was very young. Myrlie was raised by her paternal grandmother, Annie McCain Beasley, and an aunt, Myrlie Beasley Polk. Both women were respected school teachers. They inspired Myrlie to also become a teacher.
Myrlie went to Magnolia High School and graduated in 1950. She also took piano lessons and performed at school and church. In 1950, Myrlie started college at Alcorn A&M College. This was one of the few colleges in Mississippi that accepted African-American students. She planned to study education and music.
Meeting Medgar Evers
On her first day of college, Myrlie met Medgar Evers. He was a World War II veteran and eight years older than her. They fell in love and got married on Christmas Eve in 1951. They later moved to Mound Bayou. Myrlie worked as a secretary there. Medgar was secretly working on voting rights activities. Their family grew with the birth of their first child, Darrell Kenyatta. Their second child, Reena Denise, was born in 1954.
Working for Civil Rights
In 1954, Medgar Evers became the Mississippi field secretary for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Myrlie worked closely with him. She became his secretary, and they organized voter registration drives. They also led civil rights demonstrations.
Myrlie helped Medgar fight to end racial segregation in schools and public places. They also worked to get voting rights for African Americans in the South. For over ten years, the Everses fought for equal rights for African Americans in Mississippi.
Facing Danger
Because they were important civil rights leaders, the Everses became targets for violence. In 1962, their home in Jackson, Mississippi, was attacked with firebombs. This happened after they organized a boycott of white businesses in downtown Jackson. The family received threats, and Medgar was targeted by the Ku Klux Klan. In 1963, Medgar Evers was murdered at their home in Jackson. His home is now the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument.
Life After Medgar
In 1964, Myrlie moved with her children to Claremont, California. She continued her work as a civil rights activist. She earned her college degree in sociology from Pomona College. Myrlie spoke for the NAACP and, in 1967, she co-wrote a book called For Us, the Living. This book told the story of her late husband's life and work.
Myrlie also tried to run for the U.S. Congress twice, but she did not win. From 1968 to 1970, she was the director of planning at the Center for Educational Opportunity for the Claremont Colleges.
Working in Business
From 1973 to 1975, Myrlie was a vice-president at an advertising company in New York. In 1975, she moved to Los Angeles. There, she became the national director for community affairs for the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO). At ARCO, she managed all the company's community programs. This included helping to fund community projects and outreach programs. She helped get money for groups like the National Woman's Educational Fund. She also worked with a group that provided meals to people who were poor or homeless.
Leading the NAACP
Myrlie Evers-Williams kept looking for ways to serve her community and work with the NAACP. In 1987, Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley appointed her as a commissioner on the Board of Public Works. She was the first black woman to hold this position, which she had for eight years.
Evers-Williams also joined the board of the NAACP. In the mid-1990s, the NAACP was facing problems, including financial difficulties. Myrlie decided to run for chairperson of the board of directors to help the organization. She won the position in 1995. As chairperson, Evers-Williams worked to improve the NAACP's image. She also helped its financial situation, raising enough money to pay off its debts.
Myrlie Evers-Williams received many awards for her work. Ms. Magazine named her Woman of the Year. Once the NAACP was financially stable, she decided not to run for re-election in 1998. In the same year, she received the NAACP's highest honor, the Spingarn Medal.
Other Achievements and Honors
After leaving her role as NAACP chairwoman, Evers-Williams started the Medgar Evers Institute in Jackson, Mississippi. She also wrote her autobiography, called Watch Me Fly: What I Learned on the Way to Becoming the Woman I Was Meant to Be (1999). She also edited The Autobiography of Medgar Evers: A Hero's Life and Legacy Revealed Through His Writings, Letters, and Speeches (2005).
In 2009, Evers-Williams received the National Freedom Award from the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. Ebony magazine named her one of the "100 Most Fascinating Black Women of the 20th Century." She has also received seven honorary doctorates from different universities.
In February 2012, Alcorn State University announced that Evers-Williams would be a special scholar-in-residence there.
On January 21, 2013, Myrlie Evers-Williams gave the prayer at the second inauguration of Barack Obama. She was the first woman and the first person who was not a religious leader to give the prayer at a presidential inauguration.
Personal Life
On December 24, 1951, Myrlie married her classmate Medgar Evers. They had three children: Darrell Kenyatta, Reena Denise, and James Van Dyke Evers. Medgar was murdered in 1963.
In 1976, Myrlie married Walter Williams. He was a civil rights and union activist. They moved to Bend, Oregon, in 1993. Walter Williams passed away in 1995.
