Free Audio Book : Medgar and Myrlie, By Joy-Ann Reid

On her inaugural day at college, Myrlie Louise Beasley crossed paths with Medgar Evers. It was love at first sight, leading to their marriage a year later. Myrlie decided to leave her studies to concentrate on their expanding family.

Medgar took on the role of field secretary for the Mississippi branch of the NAACP, tasked with overcoming the most stubborn and violent opposition to black voting rights in the nation. Myrlie was Medgar’s secretary and trusted advisor, joining him in their fight against public accommodations and school segregation, lynching, violence, and utter hopelessness within their state’s “black belt.” They battled to end segregation at the obstinate University of Mississippi, organized picket lines and boycotts, despite continuous threats of terrorism, including the 1962 firebombing of their home, where they resided with their three young children.

Medgar Evers, on June 12, 1963, became the most prominent victim of a Klan-related assassination of a black civil rights leader of that era; he was shot in the couple’s driveway in Jackson. Following his heartbreaking death, Myrlie continued their civil rights legacy; she penned a book about Medgar’s struggle, attempted to secure a congressional seat, and emerged as a leader of the NAACP in her own right.

Joy-Ann Reid provides a groundbreaking and captivating account of two civil rights movement heroes, Medgar and Myrlie, using their relationship as a prism to examine the grassroots efforts that led to securing fundamental rights for Black Americans, and the repercussions that continue to echo today.