Civil Rights Activist. An African-American educator in Florida during the days of segregation, in 1934 he started the Brevard County chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. In 1937, Moore filed the first lawsuit in the Deep South to equalize black and white teacher salaries, backed by NAACP attorney Thurgood Marshall in New York City, New York. The case was eventually lost in court, but it spawned many other federal lawsuits in Florida that eventually led to equal salaries for teachers of all races. In 1941 he organized the Florida State Conference of the NAACP and eventually took on the causes of lynchings and police brutality of African Americans. In 1944 Moore organized the Progressive Voters League and soon over 116,000 black voters were registered in the Florida Democratic Party. On Christmas Day 1951, Moore was killed when a bomb planted under his house in Mims, Florida exploded. Moore died en route to a hospital in Orlando, the only one in the area at the time that accepted blacks. His wife, Harriette died nine days later of her injuries. The crime remains unsolved. Harry T. Moore was the first NAACP official killed in the Civil Rights struggle, and he and Harriette are the only husband and wife to give their lives to the movement.
Civil Rights Activist. An African-American educator in Florida during the days of segregation, in 1934 he started the Brevard County chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. In 1937, Moore filed the first lawsuit in the Deep South to equalize black and white teacher salaries, backed by NAACP attorney Thurgood Marshall in New York City, New York. The case was eventually lost in court, but it spawned many other federal lawsuits in Florida that eventually led to equal salaries for teachers of all races. In 1941 he organized the Florida State Conference of the NAACP and eventually took on the causes of lynchings and police brutality of African Americans. In 1944 Moore organized the Progressive Voters League and soon over 116,000 black voters were registered in the Florida Democratic Party. On Christmas Day 1951, Moore was killed when a bomb planted under his house in Mims, Florida exploded. Moore died en route to a hospital in Orlando, the only one in the area at the time that accepted blacks. His wife, Harriette died nine days later of her injuries. The crime remains unsolved. Harry T. Moore was the first NAACP official killed in the Civil Rights struggle, and he and Harriette are the only husband and wife to give their lives to the movement.
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