MEDGAR EVERS
1925 - 1963
Medgar Evers was a civil rights activist who worked closely with well known leaders during the early Civil Rights movement. He was Mississippi's field secretary for the NAACP, and was also a World War II veteran, fighting in the Battle of Normandy.
He was the third of five children, and he and his siblings walked 12 miles per day to attend a rural segregated school. Later, he would lead the efforts to successfully desegregate the University of Mississippi.
Medgar was assassinated 1963, due in large part to the inaction of local police.
Medgar and his wife, Myrlie Beasly, had three children: Darrell Kenyatta, Reena Denise, and James Van Dyke Evers.
"As long as God gives me strength to work and try to make things real for my children, I'm going to work for it - even if it means making the ultimate sacrifice."
Medgar Evers
Source: New York Times // Wikimedia
