Abstract
Bernice Johnson Reagon was a college student in Albany, Georgia, when she participated in Albany’s first civil rights march in 1961. Reagon was known as a soloist in her church choir, so it was no surprise when other marchers turned to her to lead them in song. Carried by the moment, she adapted the words of a well-known spiritual and sang, “Over my head, I see freedom in the air.” The song became a favored anthem of the civil rights movement.
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© 2000 Marie Cieri and Claire Peeps
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Cieri, M., Peeps, C. (2000). Bernice Johnson Reagon. In: Cieri, M., Peeps, C. (eds) Activists Speak Out. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-63044-8_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-63044-8_3
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Print ISBN: 978-0-312-23504-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-63044-8
eBook Packages: Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies CollectionSocial Sciences (R0)