Documentary and Discussion: The Power of Our Convictions

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Date/Time:Tuesday, 29 Mar 2011 from 12:10 pm to 4:00 pm
Location:Pioneer Room, Memorial Union
Cost:Free
Contact:
Phone:515-294-9934
Channel:Lecture Series
Categories:Diversity Lectures
Actions:Download iCal/vCal | Email Reminder
A faculty forum with Freedom Rider Rip Patton will follow the 60-minute preview of Freedom Riders, a documentary premiering on PBS in May. The film chronicles the 1961 Freedom Rides, in which more than 400 black and white Americans risked their lives to travel together on buses and trains through the Deep South in protest of racial segregation. Students and staff are welcome to attend. Registration is required. Lunch provided.

To register, go to AccessPlus > Employee tab> HRS Training > Courses. Questions? Call CELT at 294-5357.

Ernest "Rip" Patton, Jr., Freedom Rider

The 21-year-old Tennessee State student was the drum major in the university marching band when in 1961 he became involved in the Nashville Movement. Patton arrived in Montgomery, Alabama, on Tuesday, May 23 to help reinforce the riders meeting at the home of Dr. Harris after the May 21 firebombing and siege of Montgomery's First Baptist Church.

Ernest "Rip" Patton, Jr., took part in the May 24, 1961, Greyhound Freedom Ride to Jackson, Mississippi, where he was arrested and later transferred to Mississippi's notorious Parchman State Prison Farm. Patton was one of fourteen Tennessee State University students expelled for participating in the rides. Following the Freedom Rides, he worked as a jazz musician and later as a long-distance truck driver and community leader. For the past three years, Patton has served as the Freedom Rider on an annual university sponsored Civil Rights tour of the Deep South.