Editing Bernice Johnson Reagon (section)

===Activism===
Reagon's first demonstration had been in protest against the arrest of Bertha Gober, and Blanton Hall, organized by SNCC along with the initial arrest of the two individuals, for they planned to be arrested in a discussion during a SNCC meeting.<ref name="''Eyes on The Prize'': America's Civil Rights Years (1954–1965)" /> Reagon was an active participant in the [[Civil Rights Movement]] of the 1960s. She was a member of The Freedom Singers, organized by the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC), for which she also served as a field secretary. Reagon explains her first encounter with SNCC as a confusion, for she did not understand the name, or its organization, but she claims that she understood that they were for freedom and full-time.<ref name="''Eyes on The Prize'': America's Civil Rights Years (1954–1965)" /> The Freedom Singers were organized by [[Cordell Reagon]] in 1962. The group was the first of the civil rights singers to travel nationally. The singers realized that singing helped provide an outlet and unifier for protestors struggling with mob behavior and police brutality. Thanks to her roles with SNCC and the Freedom Singers, Reagon became a highly respected song leader during the Civil Rights Movement.{{cn|date=April 2024}}

Activist [[James Forman]] later said: "I remember seeing you lift your beautiful black head, stand squarely on your feet, your lips trembling as the melodious words 'Over my head, I see freedom in the air' came forth with an urgency and a pain that brought out a sense of intense renewal and commitment of liberation. And when the call came to protest the jailings, you were up front. You led the line. Your feet hit the dirty pavement with a sureness of direction. You walked proudly onward singing 'this little light of mine, 'and the people echoed, 'shine, shine, shine.{{'"}}<ref name="folkways.si.edu"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://billmoyers.com/2013/05/03/moyers-moment-1991-bernice-johnson-reagon-on-this-little-light-of-mine/|title=Bernice Johnson Reagon on 'This Little Light of Mine'|date=2013-05-03|website=BillMoyers.com|access-date=2017-01-29}}</ref>