A Juneteenth Lunch & Learn Event

Asheville Honors the Legacy of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman

Chaney, a black man from Mississippi, Schwerner and Goodman, Jewish men from up north were murdered as they pursued justice and racial equality in Mississippi in 1964. On the 60th Anniversary/Yahrzeit of their deaths, the Martin Luther King Association of Asheville and Congregation Beth Israel have joined to honor the legacy of these men during the week of Juneteenth. The Memorial on Monday, June 17 at noon will include a candle lighting ceremony by community leaders, music, a panel discussion, refreshments and an opportunity for sharing. We look forward to seeing you at this and other Juneteenth events in Asheville.

Background:  On June 21, 1964, three young men, James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman disappeared near the town of Philadelphia, Mississippi. Michael Schwerner and James Chaney worked for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and Andrew Goodman was a college student from New York who volunteered to work on voter registration, education, and Civil Rights as part of the 1964 Mississippi Summer Project. During the summer of 1964, the Klu Klux Klan burned 20 black churches in Mississippi, including Neshoba’s Mount Zion Baptist Church, where Schwerner had once worked. Before setting the Mt. Zion ablaze, the Klan severely beat several people attending a meeting there. Upon hearing this news, the three civil rights workers traveled from Ohio, where they were training, to Mississippi. At 4 PM, on the drive to Meridian, they were stopped by police. Chaney, the driver, was arrested for speeding and the other two men were detained. At 10 PM, they were permitted to pay the fine and were instructed to leave the county. They were never seen alive again.

On August 4, after six weeks of searching, the FBI uncovered the bodies of Schwerner, Chaney, and Goodman in an earthen dam. After their release from jail, as they drove back to Meridian, they were again stopped by a patrol car, this time accompanied by two carloads of Klan members. The three men were taken to a remote rural road where Schwerner and Goodman were each shot once in the chest. After first being tortured, Chaney was shot three times. The three young men were then buried in shallow graves.