Lawrence Guyot Jr. (July 17, 1939 – November 23, 2012) was an American

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

activist and the director of the

Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), also referred to as the Freedom Democratic Party, was an American political party created in 1964 as a branch of the populist Freedom Democratic organization in the state of Mississippi during the ...

in 1964.

Biography

Guyot was a native of Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he was raised

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He joined the Freedom Movement in Mississippi in 1961, when he was a student at

Tougaloo College Tougaloo College is a private historically black college in the Tougaloo area of Jackson, Mississippi. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It was originally established in 1869 by New Yor ...

in Mississippi. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry in 1963. Guyot also directed the

Congress of Racial Equality The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States that played a pivotal role for African Americans in the civil rights movement. Founded in 1942, its stated mission is "to bring about ...

(CORE) project in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and later became director of the

via the 1963 Freedom Ballot of 80,000 participants and the Summer Project of 1964. The major accomplishment of SNCC/MFDP was to establish a close bond with the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...

. In 1966, Guyot ran for Congress as an anti-war candidate. Guyot was severely physically beaten many times, including while at the Mississippi State Penitentiary, also known as Parchman Farm, in the early 1960s. He has stated that his testicles were burned with sticks by police officers. Guyot helped lay the groundwork for the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He received a degree in law in 1971 from

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

, and then moved to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, where he worked for the election of

Marion Barry Marion Shepilov Barry (born Marion Barry Jr.; March 6, 1936 – November 23, 2014) was an American politician who served as the second and fourth mayor of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991 and 1995 to 1999. A Democrat, Barry had served ...

as mayor in 1978. Muhammad Ali, the world boxing champion, was a good friend of Lawrence Guyot. Guyot has appeared in many documentaries such as '' Eyes on the Prize'', released in 1987. From the 1990s until the mid-2000s, Guyot often appeared as a commentator on

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

, defending the legacy of the

civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

in heated discussions with hosts Bill O'Reilly and

Sean Hannity Sean Patrick Hannity (born December 30, 1961) is an American talk show host, conservative political commentator, and author. He is the host of '' The Sean Hannity Show'', a nationally syndicated talk radio show, and has also hosted a commen ...

. He continued speaking out on voting rights issues and encouraged people to vote for President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

. Until his retirement in 2004, Guyot was a program monitor for the D.C. Department of Human Services’ Office of

Early Childhood Development Early childhood development is the period of rapid physical, psychological and social growth and change that begins before birth and extends into early childhood. While early childhood is not well defined, one source asserts that the early years b ...

. His daughter Dr Julie Guyot-Diangone announced on November 24, 2012, that her father had died at home, in

Mount Rainier, Maryland Mount Rainier is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, bordering Washington D.C. The population was 8,333 at the 2020 census. Mount Rainier is contained between the Northwest Branch Anacostia River, Cedar Lane Alley, and 3 ...

. She said he had had heart problems and had suffered from

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

References

External links

SNCC Digital Gateway: Lawrence Guyot
Documentary website created by the SNCC Legacy Project and Duke University, telling the story of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee & grassroots organizing from the inside-out
Lawrence Guyot, Jr. Archival Collection Finding Aid Washingtoniana Collection DCPL
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guyot, Lawrence 1939 births 2012 deaths Activists for African-American civil rights American activists People from Pass Christian, Mississippi People from Mount Rainier, Maryland Rutgers University alumni

Biography

References

Further reading

External links