In 1953, Highlander began hosting similar assemblies for the nascent civil rights movement. Talks and group discussions about tactics (boycotts and sit-ins) were accompanied by folk songs and spirituals. It was at Highlander that an old hymn was recast into the powerful anthem “We Shall Overcome.” Literacy and citizenship classes for African Americans were offered both on-site and in sponsored programs elsewhere in the South. For Parks, the school was an invaluable entryway to a network of allies. She is reputed to have said, “The only reason I don’t hate every white man alive is Highlander
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