Atlanta in Fulton County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
National Medical Association: Medicine in the Civil Rights Movement
Photographed by Brandon D Cross
1. National Medical Association: Medicine in the Civil Rights Movement Marker
The National Medical Association (NMA) was founded in 1895 when African-American physicians met at Atlanta's Cotton States and International Exposition. Formally established here at First Congregational Church, the NMA served as a professional organization for Black medical professionals largely denied membership in the American Medical Association (AMA). From its inception, the NMA advocated for the racial equality of African-American physicians and patients. During the Civil Rights Movement it campaigned for the desegregation of the AMA. The NMA supported integrationist public policies like the Social Security Acts amendments, which created Medicare and Medicaid. These acts required the enforcement of the Civil Rights Act, leading to the integration of facilities wherever federal funds were used, such as public hospitals. Today, the NMA remains an advocate for healthcare equality and is the oldest continuously existing medical society for African Americans.
Erected 2022 by The Georgia Historical Society, the Rich Foundation, the Georgia State Medical Association, and the Atlanta Medical Association. (Marker Number
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Science & Medicine. A significant historical year for this entry is 1895.
Location. 33° 45.433′ N, 84° 23.043′ W. Marker is in Atlanta, Georgia, in Fulton County. It is at the intersection of John Wesley Dobbs Avenue and Courtland Street NE, on the right when traveling west on John Wesley Dobbs Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 105 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta GA 30303, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Georgia’s Piedmont. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: First Congregational Church United Church of Christ
Photographed by Brandon D Cross
2. National Medical Association: Medicine in the Civil Rights Movement Marker
Also see . . . National Medical Association History. (Submitted on December 22, 2023, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)
Photo Courtesy National Library of Medicine #101455945
3. Medical Committee for Civil Rights at the March on Washington, 1963
Wikipedia Commons/Public Domain
4. Marchers with Medical Committee for Civil Rights banner at the March on Washington, 1963
Credits. This page was last revised on December 3, 2024. It was originally submitted on December 22, 2023, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 420 times since then and 32 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on December 22, 2023, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
