Michael Schwerner

Michael Schwerner (November 6, 1939–June 21, 1964), called Mickey by friends and colleagues, was a Jewish CORE field worker kidnapped and killed in Philadelphia, Mississippi, by the Ku Klux Klan in response to the civil-rights work he coordinated, which included promoting registration to vote among Mississippi African Americans.

Related Topics:
November 6 - 1939 - June 21 - 1964 - Jew - CORE - Philadelphia - Mississippi - Ku Klux Klan - Civil-rights - African American

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Born and raised in New York, he attended Michigan State University, originally intending to become a veternarian. He transferred to Cornell University, however, and switched his major to sociology, going on after graduation to the School of Social Work at Columbia University. While an undergraduate at Cornell, he integrated a fraternity there.

Related Topics:
New York - Michigan State University - Cornell University - Social Work - Columbia University - Fraternity

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His passionate dedication to civil rights made him a marked man in Mississippi, and he had been a long-sought target of the Klan. Two CORE volunteers with him at the time of his kidnapping, Andrew Goodman and James Chaney, were also killed. The film Mississippi Burning is loosely based on the murders and ensuing FBI investigation.

Related Topics:
Andrew Goodman - James Chaney - Mississippi Burning - FBI

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On January 7, 2005, Edgar Ray Killen, an outspoken white supremacist nicknamed "Preacher," pleaded "Not Guilty" to Schwerner's murder, but was found guilty of manslaughter on June 21, 2005.

Related Topics:
January 7 - 2005 - Edgar Ray Killen - Manslaughter - June 21

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See also: Mississippi Civil Rights Workers Murders

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