10 years ago  . .  .In September 2012, over 200 Southern organizers gathered at the historic site of Lowndes County, Alabama where the original Black Panthers was born, to regenerate the power of the Southern Freedom Movement in the 21st century! We camped in the spirit of Freedom City from 1965 and gathered under tents to tell our struggles, share our visions, and strategize for a liberated South. Together we declared that NOBODY is free until everybody is free. A decade later, our resistance is growing, the power of organizing is expanding, and the need for movement governance is as urgent as it ever was!  

"We’re part of a historical continuum. A movement is about more than policy. It touches us in our hearts, our spirits, and our minds, inspiring in us a new consciousness. Our purpose is to build our power and numbers. To defend against right wing attacks by holding the line against them and advancing our work so we shoot forward." - Emery Wright, Project South, SMA I, September 22, 2012

This movement, this declaration, this transformative act continues to fuel the fire that makes up the Southern Movement Assembly. During this second segment of Formed by Fire: The Stories that Birthed the Southern Freedom Movement, we will be joined by SMA members to tell the stories of our roots, the fights that have connected us through the years, and the momentum that we gain through our collective organizing.