Special to the Atlanta Daily World
The University of West Georgia’s Ingram Library will host the national exhibit “Freedom Riders,” which highlights the period in 1961 when more than 400 courageous, interracial Americans risked their lives to challenge segregation in the South.
The exhibit, which originated as a companion to PBS’ AMERICAN EXPERIENCE documentary Freedom Riders, will be on display from October 16 through November 13. It is free and open to the public.
The exhibit combines powerful photography and news coverage of the 1961 Freedom Rides and examines the movement from many perspectives, including that of the Riders, President John F. Kennedy and his administration, and world opinion. To enhance the experience, visitors can use their cell phones to access first-hand audio accounts from the Freedom Riders.
The Freedom Riders had a simple but daring plan: to board buses in small interracial groups to test and challenge segregated facilities in the South. The Freedom Riders endured savage beatings, humiliation and imprisonment, but ultimately their brave actions and commitment to nonviolence changed America.
The “Freedom Riders” exhibit explores this dramatically important chapter in civil rights history and explains how the selfless actions of the Freedom Riders laid the groundwork for some of the most important civil rights legislation in our nation’s history.
The Ingram Library is also sponsoring two free exhibit-related talks. Dr. Ray Arsenault, the preeminent historian of the Freedom Riders movement and author of “Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice,” will speak in the Ingram Library on October 18, at 7:00 p.m. On October 25, at 11:00 a.m., UWG history professor Dr. Larry Rivers will discuss the Freedom Riders movement within the context of the American Civil Rights Movement.
For further information, visit www.westga.edu/library or contact Catherine Hendricks at chendric@westga.edu or (678) 839-5337.
About Post Author
