Freedom Summer

Shattering the foundations of white supremacy over 10 memorable weeks in 1964.

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Freedom Summer American Experience

Premiered June 24, 2014

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Freedom Summer

The story of 10 memorable weeks in 1964 known as Freedom Summer, when more than 700 student volunteers from around the country joined organizers and local African Americans in a historic effort to shatter the foundations of white supremacy in Mississippi - then one of the nation’s most viciously racist, segregated states.

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Episode Extras

"We knew that we were working to do better, and that one day it would be better."

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Anita Walton Moore - "The Librarian"

"I felt morally empowered, but it was very scary." Freedom Summer premieres June 24, 2014.

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Barney Frank - "The Politician"

"We were asked to leave. We did not, and we were arrested and locked up for the night."

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Charles McLaurin - "The Foot Soldier"

Determined to secure the right to vote for herself and for future generations.

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Daisy Harris Wade - "The Voter"

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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Freedom is Not Free

Shattering the foundations of white supremacy in a segregated state. June 24 on PBS.

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Preview

Freedom Summer Extended Preview

Shattering the foundations of white supremacy. Freedom Summer premieres on June 24, 2014.

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Preview

Freedom Summer Preview

"Freedom Summer" premieres June 24, 2014 at 9/8c.

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Freedom Summer, Chapter 1

Watch a clip from American Experience "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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How Many Beatings Have You Taken?

"We began to rethink some of the attitudes that we had lived with." Premiering June 24.

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John Howell - "The Publisher"

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014 on American Experience PBS.

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Living in Mississippi

"We accomplished some things, but we didn't do the whole job." Freedom Summer, June 24

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Mark Levy - "The Teacher"

Watch a clip from American Experience "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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On a Hair Trigger

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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Opposition to Freedom Summer

"The kids need to know history. Black and white, they need to know history." June 24, 2014

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Roscoe Jones - "The Preservationist"

"I am going to find the answer. If this means driving every back road... I will do it."

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Searching for the Bodies

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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Seeking Radical Change

"Freedom Summer" premieres on American Experience PBS June 24 at 9/8c.

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Tensions During Training

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014.

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The Eulogy

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014 on American Experience PBS.

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The Risk

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014 on American Experience PBS.

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Three Missing Workers

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014 on American Experience PBS.

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Clip

Training for Mississippi

They called it "a campaign that may have no parallel since the days of Reconstruction."

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What Was Freedom Summer?

"Freedom Summer" premieres on American Experience PBS June 24 at 9/8c.

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Clip

"Miss Mississippi" Finds Trouble

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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Bad Things Were Going to Happen

"The line was drawn in the sand for blacks and whites... I decided to cross that line."

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Dorie Ladner - "The Activist"

Watch "Freedom Summer" on American Experience PBS on June 24, 2014.

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Fannie Lou Hamer's Powerful Testimony

Shattering the foundations of white supremacy. Freedom Summer premieres on June 24, 2014.

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Freedom Summer - Short Clip 1

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer," premiering June 24, 2014.

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Freedom Summer's Widow

“There will always be a need to document the struggle.” Freedom Summer premieres June 24.

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Clip

Herbert Randall - "The Photographer"

"If somebody can threaten your life they own you. They own your soul." June 24, 2014.

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Clip

Julius Lester - "The Folk Singer"

We interviewed Pete Seeger last April for the upcoming doc Freedom Summer, coming June 24.

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Pete Seeger and Freedom Summer

Watch a clip from "Freedom Summer" premiering June 24, 2014 on American Experience PBS.

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Clip

The State of Mississippi in 1964

Watch "Freedom Summer" on American Experience PBS on June 24, 2014.

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An Integrated Party

Watch "Freedom Summer" on American Experience PBS June 24 at 9/8c.

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Clip

Freedom Schools

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About the Program

American Experience

American Experience, TV's most-watched history series, brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.

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