Stanley Nelson chronicles the journey of a group of individuals, known as the Freedom Riders, whom fought for the rights of African Americans to have the same amenities and access as the Caucasians. The purpose of the Freedom Rides was to deliberately violate the Jim Crow laws of the south that prohibited blacks and whites from mixing together on buses and trains. Expectedly, many of the Freedom Riders were beaten and the majority was imprisoned. This carried on for the majority of 1961 and culminated with the Interstate Commerce Commission issuing an order to end the segregation in bus and rail stations. Nelson encapsulates this entire movement in about two hours. At the end of the two hours, the viewer is emotionally tied to the riders. For the sake of this analysis, I will focus on a portion towards the end of the film that gives us a sense of what kind of emotions victory evoked from those vested in the Freedom Rides. Nelson’s pairing of music and song coupled with a mixture of pictures and footage provides great emphasis to the subject matter while emotionally connecting the viewer.
The first shot of analysis is a compilation of mug shots of some of the Freedom Riders. The shot begins with the overlap of Rep. John Lewis declaring “The Freedom Ride created an unbelievable sense: Yes, we will make it. Yes, we will survive. And that nothing, but nothing, was going to stop this movement.” The shot begins focused on about ten Freedom Riders and as Lewis speaks, the shot expands to include many more Freedom Riders. As Lewis finishes, the music, which I would characterize as solemn yet optimistic, intensifies and individual members begin to be replaced with other Freedom Riders. Before the shot transitions, it has included more ...
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...recognizes that determination would dictate the success of the movement. After the ICC ruled that segregation in bus and train terminals had to stop, it propelled the entire movement forward. For the viewer, Nelson employed music to give a great sense of the feelings of the Freedom Riders. More specifically, Nelson’s synchronization of the music to certain shots educed emotion from the viewer so that he/she would feel as though he/she at least partially understood the magnitude of the situation. Ultimately, Nelson was able to piece together a message that embodied what he Freedom Riders believed: “Yes, we will make it. Yes, we will survive. And that nothing, but nothing, was going to stop this movement.”
Works Cited
Transcipt. (n.d.). Retrieved February 18, 2014, from Freedom Riders: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/freedomriders/about/transcript
The film observes and analyzes the origins and consequences of more than one-hundred years of bigotry upon the ex-slaved society in the U.S. Even though so many years have passed since the end of slavery, emancipation, reconstruction and the civil rights movement, some of the choice terms prejudiced still engraved in the U.S society. When I see such images on the movie screen, it is still hard, even f...
Black liberation was stalled once again in 1961 and 1962, as white savagery reared its head again and black people were forced to deal with the reality that success was not inevitable, yet. Still more "sit-ins", "shoe- ins" were led to combat segregation in public places which were met with violent responses from some white people. These responses ranged from burning down a bus with black people to assaulting black passengers on a train car in Anniston. These racist white people also targeted other white people who were deemed as sympathizers to black struggle or "nigger lovers". Police refused to arrest the white aggressors and in some cases also refused to protect the black people. The Freedom Rides resulted in both losses and gains in the civil rights movement. People came to the realization that justice will not be won through merely trying to persuade Southern whites with peaceful protest but only "when
... passion while still encompassing an air of morality. In the end, the Civil Rights Movement eventually prevails, marking a victory for the message the SNCC Freedom Singers wanted to convey to the public.
This story is great in a way that it gives us an alternative view of the past but still able to tell us the correct past. The entire time Whitehead tries to expand the idea of freedom and give us multiple views of that idea. Juan G. Vasquez from The New York Times was totally correct when he said “ The Underground Railroad achieves the task by small shifts in perspective”. Colson is able to tell one story using many point of views. We got to see the white supremacy in the story. White supremacist is such a crazy thing that it makes those whites look delusional as something so cruel can feel so right to them. Whitehead describes a scene as “ all ages rushed” to lynch one girl. That is some savage humans just ready take a life away because of their mentality. Whitehead gives the reality of how it was to be a black in those times. For example the road called “ Freedom Trails” which sounds like the road every African American wanted but it wasn’t. It was a street to publicly send a message to all the people against slavery which include slaves and abolitionist by lynching them. The freedom trail technically was for “the night riders” as they saw they were liberating their freedom as they saw blacks as threat. We get an raw visual of what how inhuman some whites were towards
On May 4, 1961, the Freedom Riders left the safety of the integrated, northern city of Washington D.C. to embark on a daring journey throughout the segregated, southern United States (WGBH). This group of integrated white and black citizens rode together on buses through different towns to test the effectiveness of newly designed desegregation laws in bus terminals and areas surrounding them (Garry). Founded by the Congress of Racial Equality (Garry) , or CORE, the first two Freedom Ride buses included thirteen people as well as three journalists to record what would become imperative historical events in the Civil Rights Movement. This group of fifteen people would begin to emerge as an organization that would eventually reach 400 volunteers (WGBH). Those involved were mostly young, college students whose goal it was, as said by the CORE director James Farmer, to “…create a crisis so that the federal government would be compelled to enforce the law.” (Smith). But on their journey throughout these southern states, the Freedom Riders faced many challenges, threats, and dangers.
Gross, Terry. "Get On the Bus: The Freedom Riders of 1961." NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.
Additionally, by asking the listeners if they want freedom, a choice must be made by the listener, illustrating how individuals must have freedom of choice in order to begin to be free.Through the combination of repetition and pathos, J Cole is able to appeal to the audience’s desire for freedom, showing how freedom is precious and valued by people as a
It was in eye opener for many who endured the lawful acts of racism. Franklin story on the “The Train for Hate” shared how racism was not only a form of abuse, but an emotional roller-coaster for the mind. The way Franklin told the story through the eyes of a child gave it an innocent touch to it. It gave the reader security and insight on how important racism was in the United States. The author (Franklin) gave the readers description and dialogue so many Americans can go back in time and understand the realness of how places and people were segregated. Franklin gave a detail, dialogue on what his family on the day that they boarded the train. After being kicked off the train because of their skin color, the mother informs her child that it’s now always what it appear to be. The coach stopped in the wrong area and yet the conductor had no compassion for the fact that the mother had a small kid with her. Racism will never be really gone in the eyes of some. It may be lawfully removed from buildings, cars and school, but never out the minds of some people. As Franklin continues to write about his experiences, African Americans were ready to read the next best thing that he was writing. Today whites and blacks both have the right to choose and vote for whomever they like. As racism stood the test of time, we as a people and as a country
Foner, Eric and John A. Garraty. "Freedom Rides." The Reader's Companion to American History. 1 Dec. 1991: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 19 May. 2014. .
" Sing for freedom : the story of the Civil Rights Movement through its songs. Montgomery, Ala.: NewSouth Books. Kirk, J. (2007). The 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the 'Secon Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement: Controversies and Debates. Basingstoke, New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
The Civil Rights Movement was an act in the 1950’s and 1960’s in which African Americans tried to achieve civil rights equal to whites. During this time, there was definite tension; African Americans were nonviolently protesting for their rights. In the movie Remember the Titans, The Civil Rights Movement ties in because of bussing black and white neighbourhoods together, also causing the football team, The Titans to come together. The linebacker on the team, Gerry Bertier represents a good and fair captain in these feuding times, for he accepted the African Americans deeply after some bonding exercises. The essay will persuade the reader that Gerry Bertier was a good and fair captain because (1) he didn’t tolerate others not treating African Americans on the team well, (2) he shows leadership and responsibility throughout the team, (3) and he stayed motivated.
The focus of the video documentary "Ain't Scared of your Jails" is on the courage displayed by thousands of African-American people who joined the ranks of the civil rights movement and gave it new direction. In 1960, lunch counter sit-ins spread across the south. In 1961, Freedom Rides were running throughout the southern states. These rides consisted of African Americans switching places with white Americans on public transportation buses. The whites sat in the back and black people sat in the front of the public buses. Many freedom riders faced violence and defied death threats as they strived to stop segregation by participating in these rides. In interstate bus travel under the Mason-Dixon Line, the growing movement toward racial equality influenced the 1960 presidential campaign. Federal rights verses state rights became an issue.
The book, “My Soul Is Rested” by Howell Raines is a remarkable history of the civil rights movement. It details the story of sacrifice and audacity that led to the changes needed. The book described many immeasurable moments of the leaders that drove the civil rights movement. This book is a wonderful compilation of first-hand accounts of the struggles to desegregate the American South from 1955 through 1968. In the civil rights movement, there are the leaders and followers who became astonishing in the face of chaos and violence. The people who struggled for the movement are as follows: Hosea Williams, Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, and others; both black and white people, who contributed in demonstrations for freedom rides, voter drives, and
The attention drew from both historical events highlighted the inequality present, between the black and white. It created an shadowing type of effect, which impacted on society. It influenced many black people to take a stand, especially those who had accepted this type of discriminating behaviour as an inevitable part of their day. The Freedom Rides were successful in their work due to their strategy. In this case, it was power, people power. Power creates change, whether it’s for the better, or worse. An example of this would be towards the end of the US Freedom Rides. Violence and arrests continued to amass national and international attention due to the media and newspaper coverage. This drew hundreds of more freedom riders to the cause. The US Freedom Ride had inspired many people to mirror their work, which added to the accumulation of the population fighting for rights and equality between races, specifically public transport in this
The first social issue portrayed through the film is racial inequality. The audience witnesses the inequality in the film when justice is not properly served to the police officer who executed Oscar Grant. As shown through the film, the ind...