Bob Dylan sang: “I feel like I'm knocking on heaven's door. » Joan Baez, Bob Dylan and Mahalia Jackson performed with the Freedom Singers on their first tour. The four original singers of the Freedom Singers are Cordell Reagan, Rutha Harris, Bernice Johnson and Charles Neblett. It was a remarkable group that performed Mae at the March on Washington and had an impact on the civil rights movement and opened people's minds. The Freedom Singers of the civil rights movement performed in middle schools, elementary schools, high schools, concert halls, living rooms, prisons, political rallies, and the March on Washington. The Freedom Singers were successful in their singing efforts and earned SNCC nearly $50,000 to spread the civil rights message. The music the group sang was as affective as a means of communication because active participation and unique sounds were part of the musical heritage of black Americans of African descent. The music symbolized the horror and truth, but also the peaceful hope of the civil rights movement. One of the folk music singers who sang with the Freedom Singers was Joan Baez. Joan wanted people to have peace through her music. Joan Baez was born in Staten Island, New York, on January 9, 1941. In 1951, she spent a year in Baghdad, Iraq, with her family when her father took a job there. When Joan's family returns to the United States; the family moves to California. In 1956, she heard a lecture by Martin Luther King Jr. on nonviolence and civil rights. She also bought her very first guitar. In 1957, she committed her first act of civil disobedience by refusing to leave her high school during an anti-aircraft exercise. Then, she graduated in 1958 from Palo Alto High School. Joan Baez accomplished a...... middle of paper ...... ngs knew they had to change their ways and do what was right. This is why the Freedom Singers were brought together and created. Works Cited Berman, Elie. Jewish Virtual Library. April 24, 2014. Hatfield, Edward A. New Georgia Encyclopedia. November 2, 2007. May 6, 2013. office, Atlanta. The freedom singers. 1963. May 15, 2014. Rose, Leslie Paige. Infohio. 2007. May 23, 2014. Sandmel, Ben. KnowLA: Encyclopedia of Louisiana. February 25, 2014. April 24, 2014. The Freedom Archives. April 24 2014 .