Word: mississippi
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...Missippi Project was begun with a series of articles stating that Mississippi would be a "bloodbath as a result of a massive, daring assault on the recial barriers of that state." Such articles were released from various sources all over the United States. Mississippians had no cause to expect anything else. So they braced themselves and planned a defense against what they feared might be aggressive measures. Before the members of the Project arrived, Mississippians were strongly opposed...
...blunders of the Project, I think this was the most absurd and unnecessary. If the members of the Project really wanted to help the Negroes of Missippi, the most obvious mistake they could make would be to threaten the white Mississippians to force them to be cooperative. Mississippi's race problem will not be solved by pitting the nation against Mississippi with techniques of violence...
When the volunteers arrived, they continued to alienate Mississippians. Their attitude seemed to be one of disrespect toward the white Mississippi way of life. Instead of observing codes of conduct common not only to Mississippi, but to the rest of the United States, they openly flouted these codes, showing their disgust for them. A prime example of this was the shabby appearance of the workers, who appeared in ublic unshaven, unclean, and dressed in a poor manner. This was a common sight during the summer and one which disgusted every Mississippian who saw them. I thought the workers were supposed...
Still another factor in white Mississippian opposition was that students were sent. Contrary to popular belief, state leaders, familiar with the problem, were and still are working toward a practical solution; Mississippians wondered how northern students could help the situation. Mr. W. S. Cain, a Canton, Mississippi attorney, summed up the typical attitude of Mississippians, saying, "In the first instance, it was recognizable that these young people were uninformed, misinformed, and ignorant to the situation in Mississipi and what needed to be done, and were not equipped to accomplish their goal...
...Project has not done what it had planned to do. Many of the goals set forth in a pamphlet published by COFO entitled "Operation Freedom--Mississippi 1964" have not been achieved. Voter registration is probably the biggest flop, since very few new Negro voters were registered...