Euvester Simpson Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The oral history consists of seven digital files: 2011.174.72.1a, 2011.174.72.1b, 2011.174.72.1c, 2011.174.72.1d, 2011.174.72.1e, 2011.174.72.1f, and 2011.174.72.1g.

Euvester Simpson discusses her childhood in Itta Bena, Mississippi, and she describes her parents' decision to send her to Racine, Wisconsin, to attend high school because they were fed up with segregated public schools in Mississippi. For her last year of high school, Simpson returned to Mississippi, and she became active in the Civil Rights Movement. She describes attending a citizenship school in Charleston, South Carolina, going to mass meetings, and being arrested with a group of women, including Fannie Lou Hamer. She also discusses her involvement in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Council of Federated Organizations, and the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. Simpson ends the interview by discussing the legacy of the movement.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: March 12, 2013
• Created by: Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
• Interview of: Euvester Simpson, American, born 1946
• Interviewed by: John Dittmer Ph. D., American, born 1939
• Subject of: Fannie Lou Hamer, American, 1917 - 1977
• Subject of: Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, American, 1960 - 1970s
• Subject of: Council of Federated Organizations, founded 1962
• Subject of: Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, American, founded 1964
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 1 hr., 34 min., 46 sec.
• Dimensions: Total: 154.31 GB
• Place collected: Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Itta Bena, Leflore County, Mississippi, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Racine, Wisconsin, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Charleston, Berkeley County, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Education
• Topic: Resistance
• Topic: Segregation
• Object number: 2011.174.72.1a-g
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in partnership with the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.