Over 50 years ago, Berkeley students joined with other university students and civil rights activists from around the country to promote and expand voting rights in Mississippi. “Freedom Summer” remains an iconic moment in the Civil Rights movement, the history of student activism in the U.S., and in the political engagement culture at Berkeley as students returning from Mississippi that summer sparked the Free Speech movement.
In 2023, One Fair Wage, in partnership with the Food Labor Research Center at UC Berkeley and the UC Berkeley Public Service Center will be sponsoring a “Freedom Summer 2023” trip to Ohio to provide students with training in social movements and organizing and conducting real-life outreach and organizing work with low-wage workers.
While in Ohio, students will learn from social movement leaders, elected officials, and celebrity activists. Freedom summer interns will also receive training in social movements and organizing from experts in the field, then conduct real-life outreach and organizing work with low-wage workers.