Black Lives Matter Protest Posters Collection (Z/2419)

Collection Details:

Collection Name and Number: Black Lives Matter Protest Posters Collection (Z/2419).
Creator/Collector: Mississippians attending the protest.
Date(s): June 6, 2020.
Size: 1.50 cubic feet.
Language(s): English.
Processed by: MDAH Summer Intern Isabelle White, 2025.
Provenance: Gift of Unidentified donor of Jackson, Mississippi, on June 6, 2020; Z/U/2020.023.
Repository: Archives & Records Services Division, Mississippi Department of Archives & History.

Rights and Access:

Access restrictions: Collection is open for research.

Publication rights: Copyright assigned to the MDAH. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to Reference Services. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the MDAH as the owner of the physical items and as the owner of the copyright in items created by the donor. Although the copyright was transferred by the donor, the respective creator may still hold copyright in some items in the collection. For further information, contact Reference Services.

Copyright notice: This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code).

Preferred citation: Black Lives Matter Protest Posters Collection (Z/2419), Mississippi Department of Archives & History.

History:

Black Lives Matter Protest (Jackson, MS)

On June 6, 2020 at least three thousand people gathered in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi to march from the Governor’s Mansion to the Mississippi State Capitol and back. This protest would become one of the largest in the state’s history. Similar protests against racial injustice and police brutality were taking place all across the nation and the world at this time. Additionally, because this protest took place during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, all attendees wore face masks despite the heat.

The protest was organized by the Mississippi branch of the Black Lives Matter Movement in response to the murder of George Floyd, an innocent black man, by police on March 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The organizers of the march presented five primary demands: the removal of all Confederate symbols and memorabilia, the reopening of the Ricky Ball case, the resignation of Mayor Hal Marx, the decrease of prison populations, and the ensuring that incarcerated citizens receive equitable healthcare, and the centering of public health regarding school openings.

The first demand concerning symbols of the Confederacy was part of a larger national push to remove memorials glorifying the Confederacy and its notable figures. The primary target of this demand was Mississippi’s state flag at the time, which featured a canton of the Confederate battle flag. The second demand concerned the case of Ricky Ball, who was killed by a police officer in 2015 in Columbus, Lowndes County, Mississippi. On May 28, 2020, the Attorney General dropped the manslaughter charge against the officer who killed Ball and was later met with protests at her office. The third demand called for the resignation of Hal Marx, mayor of Petal, Forrest County, Mississippi, who made comments about George Floyd that many considered to be offensive and racist, and he had refused to resign from his position despite several protests at Petal City Hall. The fourth and fifth demands originated from increasing awareness of the injustices of the American prison system in conjunction with the toll that the COVID-19 pandemic was taking on disadvantaged communities and educational facilities that had been temporarily closed to prevent the spread of disease.

Scope and Content Note:

This collection contains twenty-one posters, most handmade, that were used in the Black Lives Matter protest on June 6, 2020, that was organized by the Mississippi branch of the Black Lives Matter Movement. After the protest, someone collected the posters and brought them anonymously to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

Series Identification:

Series 1: Posters. June 6, 2020.
Twenty-one posters, some handmade, were placed in folders and measured, from the Black Lives Matter Protest on March, June 6, 2020, at Mississippi State Capitol and Governor’s Mansion, Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi. Posters collected and donated to MDAH. They are described here in detail.

Box 1, Folders 1-

Box List:

Folder #	Poster Description	Measurements
1	Side A: Dear America, If you want us to heal, you need to know racism is real; you must do more than kneel! Sincerely, [signed initials]. Side B: Say Their Names! Our Lives Matter… [collection of names]	22” x 14”
1	Side A: Crazy thing is, they think all of this is about George Floyd when we’re still crying tears for Emmett Till…. #BlackLivesMatter #WeMatter Side B: Black Lives Matter	22” x 14”
2	Side A: TAKE YOUR KNEE OFF OUR NECK Side B: EQUALITY AND JUSTICE	22” x 14”
3	"Nobody's free until Everybody's Free." – Fannie Lou Hamer	22” x 14”
3	“A man who stands for NOTHING will fall for ANYTHING.” – Malcolm X	22” x 14”
4	Be the protest sign you wish to see in the world… #BLM	22” x 14”
4	ALL LIVES CAN’T MATTER UNTIL BLACK LIVES DO!!!!	18” x 14”
5	Side A: MY SKIN COLOR IS NOT A CRIME! Side B: My Skin ColoR IS Not A CRIME	14” x 18”
5	Side A: BLACK LIVES MATTER Side B: BLACK LIVES MATTER	22” x 14”
6	JUSTICE FOR RICKY BALL	19” x 12.5”
6	WHITE SILENCE is VIOLENCE	22” x 14”
7	Side A: We Live In A World Where Trained Cops Can PANIC & Act On IMPULSE But Civilians MUST REMAIN CALM. Side B: We Will Fight Through Whatever Means WE See Fit. MLK Was Gunned Down Just Like Malcolm. It’s Not The Approach They Hate, It’s The Message, It’s The Mirror.	28” x 22”
8	DON’T FORGET BLACK WOMEN: ALL BLACK LIVES MATTER Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor, Mya Hall, Michelle Cusseaux, Alteria Woods, Dana Martin, Pamela Turner, India Kager, Reika Boyd, Dominique Clayton, Atatiana Jefferson	28” x 22”
9	IF “ALL LIVES MATTER,” then… BLACK LIVES MATTER.	22” x 13.5”
10	Side A: “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.” – Isaiah 1:17 NO JUSTICE NO PEACE. Side B: NO FREEDOM UNTIL WE'RE EQUAL! DAMN RIGHT I SUPPORT IT!	11.5” x 9”
10	Police BRUTALITY = Modern LYNCHIN'	16” x 14”
11	Side A: END POLICE BRUTALITY. BLACK LIVES MATTER. NO JUSTICE NO PEACE. Side B: THERE IS NO EXCUSE	20” x 30”
12	WHITE SOUTHERNER AGAINST WHITE SUPREMACY	20” x 30”
13	BLACK LIVES MATTER Trayvon Martin, Terrence Crutcher, Keith Martin, Tamir Rice, Alton Sterling, John Crawford, Oscar Grant, Michael Brown, Amadou Diallo, Corey Jones, Jonathan Ferrell, Stephon Clark, Sean Bell, Ahmaud Aubrey, Jordan Edwards, Philandro Castille, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Botham Jean, Aiyana Jones, Yvette Smith, Sandra Bland, Korryn Gaines, Renisha McBride, Breanna Taylor, Atatian Jefferson	30” x 20”
14	Side A: BLACK LIVES MATTER Side B: NO LIVES MATTER UNTIL BLACK LIVES DO!	28” x 22”
15	SEEK JUSTICE AND PEACE	24” x 16”