Founded in 1957 by Martin Luther King, Jr. with ministers such as Ralph D. Abernathy and Fred L. Shuttlesworth, Jr., SCLC strived “to redeem the soul of America.” It advocated nonviolent direct action, racial integration, and justice for all. In the wake of the victorious Montgomery Bus Boycott and white “massive resistance” to desegregation, it powerfully influenced the freedom movement.

With headquarters in Atlanta, it recruited a national cross section of black and white churchmen and women, community organizers and activists. Early on, it sponsored “Citizenship Schools” to promote adult literacy, voter registration, and civic activism. Beginning at Albany, Georgia in 1961, SCLC pursued local campaigns against segregated public accommodations and employment. Nonviolence, including marches and sit-ins, marked its internationally publicized struggles to end Jim Crow. Its 1963 campaign in Birmingham, which saw much police repression and the murder of four black girls, not only helped compel Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act. Its massive march from Selma to Montgomery and rally catalyzed passage of the Voting Rights Act.