Opportunities abound on the 60th anniversary of Freedom Summer
by the National Council of Churches | Special to Presbyterian News Service
Bishop Vashti McKenzie is President and General Secretary of the National Council of Churches (contributed photo)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) is excited to announce its NCC Freedom Summer campaign, which will launch in Washington, D.C., with a Day of Action on June 19 (Juneteenth), and conclude with a Freedom Summit in Jackson, Mississippi on August 17.
This announcement comes as NCC commemorates the 60th anniversary of its 1964 Freedom Summer efforts and prepares for the 2024 general election this fall. NCC urges its member denominations as well as all people of faith and goodwill to use this summer as a time to educate, engage, and empower voters for social change, transformation, and to strengthen our democracy.
The 2024 NCC Freedom Summer is a faith-based civic engagement campaign to mobilize voters in five priority states (Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan) through voter registration, voter education, and voter mobilization efforts for the 2024 election.
According to Bishop Elizabeth A. Eaton, Chair of NCC’s Governing Board, “The Freedom Summer of 1964 led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, making it possible for thousands of disenfranchised to vote. In 2013 the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act, enabling new restrictions to the constitutional right to vote. The Freedom Summer of 1964 turned deadly. The Freedom Summer of 2024 is still a matter of life and death. We dare not stand idle — too much is at stake.
Bishop Elizabeth A. Eaton
“We call upon all people of faith, our member communions, and partner organizations to mobilize for this movement. As we follow in the footsteps of Freedom Summer 1964, let us educate, engage, and empower voters around the country to take part in the democratic process this upcoming election season. ‘For freedom Christ has set us free,’” said Eaton.
With the 2024 Freedom Summer campaign, NCC hopes to recapture the energy and spirit of the 1964 project, which sought to integrate Mississippi’s segregated political system using nonviolent methods. Almost 1,500 volunteers, including 254 NCC-sponsored clergy, worked in project offices across Mississippi.
NCC’s President and General Secretary, Bishop Vashti McKenzie, emphasized the timeliness and importance of this year’s campaign and the ongoing efforts to mobilize and educate voters this election year.
“In 1964, NCC, with a deep sense of urgency, immersed itself into the troubled waters of racial injustice in Mississippi to engage in direct action in the struggle of African Americans for racial justice,” she said. “There was a belief that it was going to be a decisive moment in American history. As it was then, so it is now. We are at a pivotal point in a polarized country. We must retrace our steps to build upon the foundations of justice left by previous generations.”
Three Actions. One Summer
Educate – NCC Freedom Academy
Freedom Academy is designed as an intensive six-week virtual “Sunday school” to teach the principles of civic engagement, social justice and the importance of voting rights from a faith-based perspective.
Engage – NCC Freedom Fellows
NCC Freedom Fellows will be appointed to help organize congregations in civic engagement activities such as voter registration, community canvassing,and phone and text banking.
Application Deadline: May 15
Fellowship: July 8, 2024-August 17
Empower – NCC Freedom Ride
NCC Freedom Summer will host a five-city Freedom Ride tour to empower voters and inspire communities through faith, food, and fellowship. The Freedom Ride schedule is as follows:
July 19, 2024 — Jacksonville, Florida
July 26, 2024 — Atlanta, Georgia
August 2, 2024 — Durham, North Carolina
August 9, 2024 — Detroit, Michigan
August 16, 2024 — Jackson, Mississippi
For more information and to find out how to get involved, visit go here or contact freedomsummer@nationalcouncilofchurches.us.
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