MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1999 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Senator(s) Simmons

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING MRS. MAE BERTHA CARTER OF DREW, MISSISSIPPI, ON THE OCCASION OF THE RELEASE OF THE BOOK SILVER RIGHTS BY CONSTANCE CURRY, WHICH IS THE STORY OF THE CARTER FAMILY'S STRUGGLE TO EDUCATE THEIR CHILDREN.

WHEREAS, Mrs. Mae Bertha Carter and her late husband, Matthew, believed that education was the key to success for their thirteen children; and

WHEREAS, the Carters decided in 1965 that their children should attend the white schools of Drew (Sunflower County), Mississippi, which was the option available throughout the southern states to black families under the "Freedom of Choice" alternative in education directed by the United States Supreme Court; and

WHEREAS, the decision to send seven of their thirteen children to the all-white school district was rooted in a passionate desire to ensure that they would rise above the level of sharecropper status that generations of their family had endured, and resulted in over 20 years of emotional and financial hardships to obtain the best education for their children and making it possible for others to follow; and

WHEREAS, of the Carter children, eight graduated from high school, all attended college and seven obtained degrees from the University of Mississippi in Oxford; and

WHEREAS, Miss Mae Bertha's work did not stop with her own family, and through Head Start and her support from the American Friends Service Committee, she continued to pressure government officials and encourage parents and children to obtain a better education and better life for all children; and

WHEREAS, the Atlanta-based author, Constance Curry, has recently released a new book entitled Silver Rights about the Carter family's struggle; and

WHEREAS, through this story, we all recognize the wisdom, strength, deep faith and absolute commitment of Mae Bertha Carter to making justice real in the world, which serves as a beacon to all Mississippi parents who want the best for their children:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend Mrs. Mae Bertha Carter of Drew, Mississippi, on the occasion of the release of the book Silver Rights by Constance Curry, which is the story of the Carter family's struggle to educate their children.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be presented to Mrs. Mae Bertha Carter and her family and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.