Freedom Summer was a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement that took place in 1964. It was a voter registration drive and effort to increase political participation among African Americans in Mississippi, which was one of the most racially segregated and oppressive states at the time.

Organized by civil rights organizations such as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and the NAACP, Freedom Summer brought together hundreds of predominantly white college students from the North to work alongside local African American activists.

The volunteers faced violent opposition, including harassment, arrest, and even murder. The most infamous incident was the murders of three civil rights workers - James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner - who were killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan.

Despite the challenges and dangers, Freedom Summer was successful in bringing national attention to the struggle for civil rights in the South and in registering thousands of African Americans to vote. It helped pave the way for the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibited racial discrimination in voting. Freedom Summer remains a significant chapter in the ongoing fight for civil rights and social justice in America.