The Lasting Impact of Citizenship Schools on the Civil Rights Movement

How a South Carolina community organizer's grassroots education program laid the foundation for the fight for voting rights and racial justice

Feb. 23, 2026 at 9:55pm

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In the 1950s, Esau Jenkins, a community organizer in South Carolina, started Citizenship Schools to empower African Americans with the education needed to pass literacy tests and understand democracy. The program was later reshaped and led by Septima Clark, who became known as the "mother of the movement." By the time the Voting Rights Act was enacted in 1965, tens of thousands of citizens had been trained to be active voters through the Citizenship School model. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference adopted this template and applied it to programs across the South and eventually the North, including in Chicago's Freedom Movement. Today, the Citizenship School legacy lives on through initiatives like Black Bench Chicago, which brings expertise and inspiration to the next generation of community leaders.

Why it matters

The Citizenship Schools were a crucial part of the Civil Rights Movement, providing the education and empowerment needed for African Americans to overcome discriminatory voting barriers and become active, engaged citizens. This grassroots effort laid the groundwork for landmark legislation like the Voting Rights Act and inspired community organizing efforts that continue to this day.

The details

Esau Jenkins, a community organizer in South Carolina, started the Citizenship Schools in the 1950s to teach African Americans how to read and write in order to pass literacy tests that were used to prevent them from voting. But the program went beyond just literacy, also educating participants about democracy and their rights as citizens. Septima Clark, a veteran educator, later joined the program and reshaped it, becoming a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement. By 1965, the Citizenship School model had trained tens of thousands of citizens to be active voters. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference, led by Martin Luther King Jr., adopted the Citizenship School template and brought it to the North, including launching the Chicago Freedom Movement in 1966.

  • In 1870, five years after emancipation, Black men received the right to vote - on paper.
  • In the 1950s, Esau Jenkins started the Citizenship Schools in South Carolina.
  • In 1957, Septima Clark joined the Citizenship Schools after being fired from her teaching job for joining the NAACP.
  • By the time the Voting Rights Act was enacted in 1965, tens of thousands of citizens had been trained through the Citizenship Schools.
  • In 1966, the Chicago Freedom Movement began, tapping into the Citizenship School model brought by the SCLC.

The players

Esau Jenkins

A community organizer in South Carolina who started the Citizenship Schools in the 1950s to empower African Americans with education to pass literacy tests and understand democracy.

Septima Clark

A 40-year veteran in education who joined the Citizenship Schools after being fired from her teaching job for joining the NAACP, and went on to reshape the program and become known as the "mother of the movement."

Martin Luther King Jr.

The leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which adopted the Citizenship School template and applied it to programs across the South and North, including the Chicago Freedom Movement.

Elaine Weiss

An award-winning writer and the author of 'Spell Freedom: The Underground Schools That Built the Civil Rights Movement.'

Black Bench Chicago

A modern initiative that brings expertise and inspiration to the next generation of community leaders, based on the Citizenship School model.

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What they’re saying

“It begins actually on a bus, on a sea island, off the coast of Charleston, where a community leader, a church leader named Esau Jenkins gets the idea that his neighbors on the island need to have political power or they will always be without justice and without opportunity and without their rights.”

— Elaine Weiss, Author

“By the time the Voting Rights Act is finally enacted in 1965, there have been tens of thousands of citizens who have been trained to be active voters. And out of that became community leaders.”

— Elaine Weiss, Author

“Dr King in 1965, wanted to expand the movement from just the South into the North, realizing that segregation was just as vicious in the north, it was just a different form of it. And for that he tapped the citizenship education program of the SCLC and brought members to train in Chicago.”

— Elaine Weiss, Author

The takeaway

The Citizenship Schools were a crucial grassroots effort that empowered African Americans with the education and civic engagement needed to overcome discriminatory voting barriers and become active participants in the democratic process. This model inspired community organizing efforts that continue to this day, demonstrating the lasting impact of the Civil Rights Movement's focus on expanding access to voting and political power.