Medgar Evers’ legacy honoured, 55 years after assassination

JACKSON, Miss. – The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and other places in the state are honouring the legacy of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, 55 years after he was assassinated.

Evers was a World War II veteran who served as the first NAACP field secretary in Mississippi, starting in 1954. He led voter registration drives and boycotts to push for racial equality.

He was shot to death June 12, 1963, outside the family’s home in Jackson.

Several churches across the state rang their bells 55 times at midday Tuesday in remembrance of Evers.

The civil rights museum, which opened in December in Jackson, was hosting an evening event. The program includes a presentation by Michael V. Williams, a professor at University of Texas at El Paso who wrote, “Medgar Evers: Mississippi Martyr.”