Black History | The Freedom Riders

[sheshe2]

Throughout the summer of 1961, more than 400 black and white young Americans traveled together on buses and trains throughout the Deep South, deliberately violating Jim Crow laws in an effort to overturn them. Led by Diane Nash, the Freedom Riders were a non-violent catalyst for major strides in the civil rights movement. At a White House screening of Stanley Nelson’s award winning film, Freedom Riders, Freedom Rider Diane Nash, author Ray Arsenault, John Seigenthaler, former assistant to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, and DC area Freedom Riders discussed their experiences and the legal issues involved. After the screening and panel, students attended a reception featuring remarks from NEH Chairman Jim Leach and Tom Susman of the American Bar Association.

Diane Judith Nash (born May 15, 1938) was a leader and strategist of the student wing of the 1960s Movement. A historian described her as: “…bright, focused, utterly fearless, with an unerring instinct for the correct tactical move at each increment of the crisis; as a leader, her instincts had been flawless, and she was the kind of person who pushed those around her to be at their best—that, or be gone from the movement.”



Nash’s campaigns were among the most successful of the era. Her efforts included the first successful civil rights campaign to de-segregate lunch counters (Nashville); the Freedom riders, who de-segregated interstate travel; founding the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC); and the Selma Voting Rights Movement campaign, which resulted in African Americans getting the vote and political power throughout the South.

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Freedom Riders: The Music

Group singing provided solace for Freedom Riders facing the constant threat of violence. It was also an effective political tool. “Without singing, we would have lost our sense of solidarity,” John Lewis says.

more

http://3chicspolitico.com/2014/02/10/black-history-the-freedom-riders/#more-51935

With Strength Dignity and a Passion for Social and Civic Justice.

[William769]

1. True hero's of the time.

[sheshe2]

3. Thanks William!

They are indeed.

[malthaussen]

2. Never to be forgotten.

Nor the young men and women who fought and sometimes died to bring the vote to the poor blacks in the South.

But I always quibble at the term "Black History." It is the history of all of us.

-- Mal

[sheshe2]

4. It is the history of all of us, we lived through it too.

Yet it is not our history. Their history goes back to the roots in Africa. Lives stolen and destroyed. Families separated. A heartbreaking truth that happened and the unrelenting irrational prejudice that still exists.

[SouthernGirl2]

10. Thank you so much, Sheshe2

You made me cry. I'm sitting here with tears roping under my chin. The 60's were a brutal time for African Americans. But brave college kids stood up and were willing to die for change. I cannot stop my tears. John Lewis & the Freedom Riders took the brunt of Jim Crow so my mother no longer had to sit in the “colored” waiting room with a sick child in her lap while whites were seen first. They are my heroes.

[sheshe2]

11. They are your hero's, and indeed they should be.

They made the difference for your family and so many others, SouthernGirl2.

You have been here for awhile, yet I still wish you welcome to DU.

[SouthernGirl2]

15. TYSM!

I don't always post but I do read here. Keep up the good work.

[Number23]

5. K&R

Very nice.

[sheshe2]

8. The music

"It gave us hope in a time of hopelessness" ~John Lewis

Thank you Number23.

[kelliekat44]

6. A great group of people...true American heros. nt

[Cha]

7. There are so many people to appreciate in

Black History Month, she.. thank you for bringing so many to light.

[sheshe2]

9. Thank you Cha.

[Heidi]

12. Kick!

[Solly Mack]

13. K&R

[sheshe2]

14. Kick!