Handbill advertising a Brotherhood Rally featuring T.R.M. Howard
date: label: Date
content: February 16, 1956
name: label: Created by
content: Harvard Society for Minority Rights, American, 1950 - 1959
label: Subject of
content: Dr. Theodore R. M. Howard, American, 1908 - 1976
label: Subject of
content: Rev. George W. Lee, American, 1903 - 1955
label: Subject of
content: Lamar "Ditney" Smith, American, 1892 - 1955
label: Subject of
content: Emmett Till, American, 1941 - 1955
label: Subject of
content: Harvard University, American, founded 1636
label: Subject of
content: National Medical Association, American, founded 1895
notes: label: Caption
content: This flier, from a collection of documents related to the Boston chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), provides insight into the Northern reaction to the violence against African Americans in the American South.
label: Caption
content: On August 28, 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till was brutally lynched in Drew, Mississippi. The murder and subsequent acquittal of the perpetrators were catalysts for a new determination among African Americans in the fight for civil rights. Emmett’s mother, Mamie Till-Mobley said, "The murder of my son has shown me that what happens to any of us, anywhere in the world, had better be the business of us all!!!"
label: Caption
content: In the same year, Lamar Smith, a farmer and World War I veteran, was shot and killed on the courthouse steps of Brookhaven, Mississippi, and George W. Lee, a grocery store owner and director of the local NAACP branch, was murdered in Belzoni, Mississippi, both in retaliation for encouraging Blacks to register to vote. The violence shocked the nation and inspired new action in the Civil Rights Movement across the country.
label: Description
content: A printed handbill advertising a "Brotherhood Rally" focusing on the topic "Mississippi and Murder" featuring T.R.M. Howard, President Regional Council of Negro Leadership of Mississippi and President of the Negro Medical Association. The rally, held February 16, 1956, was sponsored by the Harvard Society for Minority Rights and held at Harvard University.
label: Description
content: The flier is printed in black ink on beige paper. At center is large, bold text reading "MISSISSIPPI AND MURDER." Right above is a small block of text: "On the night of May 7, the Rev. George W. Lee was shot and killed in Belzoni, Mississippi." Just below are two similar blocks of text, the first about the murder of Lamar Smith and the second about Emmett Till. At the bottom is the date, time, and location information for the event. There are no marks or inscriptions on the back.
place: label: Place used
content: Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Activism
label: Topic
content: American South
label: Topic
content: Associations and institutions
label: Topic
content: Civil Rights
label: Topic
content: Education
label: Topic
content: Medicine
label: Topic
content: Professional organizations
label: Topic
content: Violence
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Memorabilia and Ephemera - Advertisements
label: Movement
content: Civil Rights Movement
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2012.46.34.15
objectType: label: Type
content: handbills
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No known copyright restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on paper (fiber product)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 8 5/8 x 5 5/8 in. (21.9 x 14.3 cm)