Mama Fannie: Growing Up the Daughter of Civil Rights Icon Fannie Lou Hamer

Fannie Lou Hamer rose from poverty and humble beginnings to become one of the most influential voices in the effort to ensure equal rights for Blacks in the South and all across America. She saw wrongs and tried to find solutions to right them. She sought opportunities to lift others up and extended a hand.

Her fearless fortitude and deep love for people provided the drive to fight for voting rights, civil rights, and laws that would provide the American Dream of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness written into the Constitution. Her work took her to the halls of Congress, the Democratic National Convention, and the hearts and homes of so many. She was beaten, arrested, rejected, and violated, yet she rose and stood for what is right for all.

Fannie Lou Hamer—Mama Fannie—was also a loving and caring mother to her daughters. She provided a safe and nurturing home and taught her children about fairness, equality, and perseverance regardless of the odds faced in life. These are the same values that her own mother had taught her. Here, her daughter Jacqueline (Cookie) shares her insight into Mama Fannie from a perspective only a daughter can write.

This book is an important contribution to the historical records written about one of the most significant and influential leaders in the 20th Century in America.