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Civil Rights 'Freedom Riders' Being Honored Saturday by NSBE Chapter
March 14, 2012
Three surviving members of the historic civil rights Freedom
Riders group will be honored during a special event on Saturday,
March 17, at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology's Myers
Hall. The event, from 3-5 p.m. in the presentation room, has
been organized by the college's student chapter of the National
Society of Black Engineers and supported by Eli Lilly and
Company. It is free for Rose-Hulman staff and students, while
the public is being charged $5 to help cover event expenses.
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Kwame Lillard |
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Etta Simpson Ray |
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Allen Cason |
The Freedom Riders were a dedicated group of men and women,
black and white, young and old (many from university and college
campuses) across the country that boarded buses, trains and planes
bound for the deep South in 1961 to challenge that region's
outdated Jim Crow laws. They also objected to the South's
non-compliance with a U.S. Supreme Court decision that prohibited
segregation in all interstate public transportation
facilities. The group celebrated its 50th anniversary last
year.
Freedom Riders Kwame Lillard, Etta Simpson Ray and Allen Cason
are planning to attend the event and provide first-hand accounts of
their struggles during segregation. They were among Tennessee
State University students that led the Nashville Movement.
Lillard has been a lifelong advocate and civil rights activist,
Simpson Rae will bring a woman's perspective to the event and Cason
is an Orlando native who risked his reputation, career and life to
support others.
"We're hoping this event will help Rose-Hulman and the Wabash
Valley become more culturally aware, and allow us to thank these
dedicated people for setting an example for the civil rights and
liberties that Americans enjoy today," stated Grace Johnson-Bann,
NSBE chapter secretary. She is a sophomore biomedical
engineering student from Nashville, Tenn. "These are
remarkable people that we have heard about. They are a little
piece of living history about the civil rights movement."
Gilbert Holmes, executive director of ACLU Indiana, will also
discuss today's efforts to improve civil rights throughout the
state.
For more information, contact Johnson-Bann at johnsog4@rose-hulman.edu
or 615-310-5830.
Learn more about the Freedom Riders at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/freedomriders/.