Every successful social movement needs both charismatic leaders and faithful followers who enact the vision of the leaders. The American civil rights movement is a model for how this works. Leaders like John Lewis, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, Fred Shuttlesworth, and Andrew Young were crucial to the movement’s success, but they needed countless people working to fulfill their vision. Unfortunately, when historians recall the most significant activists of the American civil rights movement, many foot soldiers are overlooked. King’s leadership was strengthened because of the commitment of his followers, many who are unknown nationally. He led the way only because there were faithful followers who carved their own paths that contributed to the movement. This project tells the story of six unseen changemakers who impacted America’s civil rights history in powerful ways. It highlights six extraordinary people who made an impact in the civil rights movement but were largely unheralded. Though known in their communities, they were not recognized on a national scale. The project illustrates their stories as a recovery narrative that reveals how these relatively unknown figures acted to transform the racial equality of King’s dream into observable progress in their communities.
","abstract_html":"<p>Every successful social movement needs both charismatic leaders and faithful followers who enact the vision of the leaders. The American civil rights movement is a model for how this works. Leaders like John Lewis, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, Fred Shuttlesworth, and Andrew Young were crucial to the movement’s success, but they needed countless people working to fulfill their vision. Unfortunately, when historians recall the most significant activists of the American civil rights movement, many foot soldiers are overlooked. King’s leadership was strengthened because of the commitment of his followers, many who are unknown nationally. He led the way only because there were faithful followers who carved their own paths that contributed to the movement. This project tells the story of six unseen changemakers who impacted America’s civil rights history in powerful ways. It highlights six extraordinary people who made an impact in the civil rights movement but were largely unheralded. Though known in their communities, they were not recognized on a national scale. The project illustrates their stories as a recovery narrative that reveals how these relatively unknown figures acted to transform the racial equality of King’s dream into observable progress in their communities.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Greene, John"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts in Professional Writing (MAPW)","degree_level":"Capstone","degree_discipline":"English","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Laura McGrath","Garrard Conley"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2023,"date_issued":"2023-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2023-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:58Z","subjects":["U.S. History","biography","civil rights","social movements","equality","equal rights","Creative Writing","Public History","Social History","United States History"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/mapw_etd/136","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Laura McGrath","Garrard Conley"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Greene, John"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2033-04-25T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Capstone"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts in Professional Writing (MAPW)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["U.S. History","biography","civil rights","social movements","equality","equal rights","Creative Writing","Public History","Social History","United States History"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/mapw_etd/136"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Every successful social movement needs both charismatic leaders and faithful followers who enact the vision of the leaders. The American civil rights movement is a model for how this works. Leaders like John Lewis, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, Fred Shuttlesworth, and Andrew Young were crucial to the movement’s success, but they needed countless people working to fulfill their vision. Unfortunately, when historians recall the most significant activists of the American civil rights movement, many foot soldiers are overlooked. King’s leadership was strengthened because of the commitment of his followers, many who are unknown nationally. He led the way only because there were faithful followers who carved their own paths that contributed to the movement. This project tells the story of six unseen changemakers who impacted America’s civil rights history in powerful ways. It highlights six extraordinary people who made an impact in the civil rights movement but were largely unheralded. Though known in their communities, they were not recognized on a national scale. The project illustrates their stories as a recovery narrative that reveals how these relatively unknown figures acted to transform the racial equality of King’s dream into observable progress in their communities.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Invisibles of the Civil Rights Movement: Uncovering the Unseen Changemakers"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Laura McGrath","Garrard Conley"],"dc:creator":["Greene, John"],"dc:date.available":["2033-04-25T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Every successful social movement needs both charismatic leaders and faithful followers who enact the vision of the leaders. The American civil rights movement is a model for how this works. Leaders like John Lewis, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, Fred Shuttlesworth, and Andrew Young were crucial to the movement’s success, but they needed countless people working to fulfill their vision. Unfortunately, when historians recall the most significant activists of the American civil rights movement, many foot soldiers are overlooked. King’s leadership was strengthened because of the commitment of his followers, many who are unknown nationally. He led the way only because there were faithful followers who carved their own paths that contributed to the movement. This project tells the story of six unseen changemakers who impacted America’s civil rights history in powerful ways. It highlights six extraordinary people who made an impact in the civil rights movement but were largely unheralded. Though known in their communities, they were not recognized on a national scale. The project illustrates their stories as a recovery narrative that reveals how these relatively unknown figures acted to transform the racial equality of King’s dream into observable progress in their communities.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/mapw_etd/136"],"dc:subject":["U.S. History","biography","civil rights","social movements","equality","equal rights","Creative Writing","Public History","Social History","United States History"],"dc:title":["The Invisibles of the Civil Rights Movement: Uncovering the Unseen Changemakers"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["English"],"thesis:degree_level":["Capstone"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts in Professional Writing (MAPW)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:58Z"}