About this site
Hamer's words on clothing: quote with care
We sell no sportswear. If your school or group is printing Fannie Lou Hamer's words on shirts or banners, here is how to choose a genuine quotation and credit it.
In short
FannieLouHamer.info does not sell sportswear or any other products. Schools, teams and community groups sometimes print Hamer's words on shirts or banners for events. If you do, use a short, documented line, credit her by name, check whether any image you use is copyrighted, and avoid implying that her family or any institution endorses your group.
Why does this page exist?
An earlier site on this domain sold clothing at this address, and people still follow links here. We sell nothing. Rather than leave a dead page, we use the address for practical advice to groups making their own shirts or banners for a Hamer event.
How do I choose words to print?
Pick a short line you can trace to a specific speech, testimony or interview, and print her name with it. Short lines are easy to misquote, so copy them from a transcript, not from a meme. Our legacy page explains the context of her best-known sayings, and our guide for organizers explains how to check a quotation.
What about images and names?
Use only images you have the right to use, and do not suggest an endorsement you do not have. Text-only or hand-drawn designs avoid copyright problems with photographs. Do not use the names or logos of museums, foundations or her family's projects without permission.
Questions readers ask
What is a safe Hamer quotation to print?
Her line about being sick and tired of being sick and tired is well documented and is carved on her headstone. Her 1971 statement that nobody is free until everybody is free is also documented. Avoid lines you cannot trace to a speech or interview.
Can I use a photograph of her on a shirt?
Only if you have the rights. Most famous photographs of Hamer are copyrighted. A drawn design or text-only layout avoids that problem.
Continue in the archive
- About this siteNo merchandiseFannieLouHamer.info sells no shirts, prints or souvenirs. Here is where to find free teaching materials and how to buy books about Hamer from libraries and presses.
- Teach & rememberGuide for organizersPractical advice for schools, churches and groups planning a Fannie Lou Hamer event: checking quotes, dates and photos, crediting sources and respecting Ruleville.
- Her lifeLegacy and honorsHow Fannie Lou Hamer is remembered, from the words on her headstone to the Voting Rights Act renewal, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and places named for her.