Title: Oral History Interview with Septima Poinsette Clark, July 30, 1976. Interview G-0017.
Identifier: G-0017
Interviewer: Walker, Eugene
Interviewee: Clark, Septima Poinsette
Subjects: King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968    Southern Christian Leadership Conference    Trade-unions--Officials and employees--Southern States--Education    Highlander Folk School (Monteagle, Tenn.)    Women civil rights workers    African American civil rights workers--Georgia    Voter registration--Southern States    
Extent: 01:26:08
Abstract:  Septima Clark was hired by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to continue the voter registration and community education classes she had taught through the Highlander Folk School. She recalls some of the successes of her work with the SCLC, especially the passing of the Voting Rights Act. The challenges of the work included prejudice against the female leaders in the organization, violent reactions by local police and Ku Klux Klan, and occasional class prejudice amongst SCLC leaders. Clark notes how several leaders needed to learn techniques for serving poor rural people, and she often corrected their misunderstandings. She compares the leadership strategies of Andrew Young, Wyatt T. Walker, and Ralph Abernathy and explains why the organization flourished under the influence of certain civil rights workers like Young and Jesse Jackson.