The Albany Movement was the 1961 campaign in Albany, Georgia, that challenged segregation through mass demonstrations.
The movement began in November 1961 as a coalition of local Black organizations, including the NAACP, SNCC, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Activists demanded desegregation of public facilities, access to voting, and an end to police brutality.
Hundreds of people were arrested during marches, sit-ins, and other protests. Martin Luther King Jr. joined demonstrations and was arrested, but local officials generally avoided the dramatic confrontations that had generated federal action elsewhere.
The campaign is often described as a strategic lesson for later movements. Organizers concluded that stronger focus, clearer targets, and sustained pressure were needed. The Albany experience influenced the better-known Birmingham Campaign of 1963.