Winchester Star
January 7, 2011
By Danielle Nadler
The Winchester Star
WINCHESTER
They were bright, ambitious college students willing to risk their
future.
Dion Diamond, Reginald Green, and Joan Mulholland stepped onto a bus in
the summer of 1961 not for the purpose of getting from one place to
another, but for the hope of change.
The three were some of the first men and women who volunteered to take
part in the Congress of Racial Equality's effort to desegregate public
transportation throughout the South.
The first Freedom Ride took place May 4, 1961, when seven blacks and six
whites left Washington, D.C., on two public buses bound for the South to
test the Supreme Court's ruling in Boynton v. Virginia (1960), which
declared segregation in interstate bus and rail stations
unconstitutional.
Many of the passengers were beaten and imprisoned, including Mulholland,
Green, and Dion.
Those brave enough to aboard the buses were dubbed Freedom Riders.
Diamond, Green, and Mulholland were guests of honor at a gala Thursday
evening that officially opened the Freedom Riders Exhibit in Handley's
James R. Wilkins Sr. Gallery of History and Art.
Handley is one of only 20 locations nationwide - and the only high
school - to play host for the major exhibit for the 50th anniversary of
the historic movement.
"Would you board that bus to defend your ideals?" Handley Principal Doug
Joyner asked the nearly packed Patsy Cline Theatre before introducing
the three guest speakers. "There comes a time when people must take a
stance not because it is safe or politic but because it is right. That's
what these men and women did."
At 19, Diamond was studying physics at Howard University in Washington,
D.C., when he boarded a bus for Jackson, Miss., as part of the Freedom
Riders, he told the audience.
"When I left, I thought I was going for a long weekend," said Diamond,
who went on to become one of the founding members of the Nonviolent
Action Group. "I surely didn't realize the true danger, that I really
might lose my life."
He was arrested upon his arrival on May 24, 1961.
Green was a 21-year-old student at Virginia Union University in Richmond
when he joined the movement.
"I felt it was my duty," said Green, now a retired reverend from
Washington, D.C. "Would I do it again? The answer is yes."
He was arrested in Jackson June 7, 1961.
Mulholland was a 19-year-old student at Duke University when she joined
friends from a church group on a ride to Jackson. She was one of several
white students who were part of the movement.
"I decided when my chance came to make my home - the South - a better
place, I would take it," said Mulholland, a retired teacher from
Arlington. "For me, it was the natural thing to do."
She was arrested June 8, 1961.
The three said they were quick to accept the invitation to speak at the
gala by Handley teacher Holly Sanders, who spearheaded the effort to
bring the exhibit to the school.
"Who else can tell my story but me?" Green said. "Young people need to
know that there's an unsung group of people that you may never know, but
they helped move the Civil Rights Movement along."
The closing statement from Handley High School teacher Tommy Dixon
brought the audience to their feet, many applauding and shouting.
"A lot of people look at actors and athletes as their heroes," Dixon
said. "These are our heroes."
The several hundred people attending the gala were invited to walk
through the exhibit and sample hors d'oeuvres after the 45-minute
presentation.
Carl Rush, 32, brought his 2- and 15-year-old children to see the
exhibit to give them an up-close view at one of the nation's relatively
recent historic movements.
"I don't think they get how big this (the Civil Rights Movement) was
quite yet," he said. "This is a way for us to show our appreciation for
the people who stood up and helped with the process of desegregation."
The three Freedom Riders were each given a framed collage created from
photos and newspaper clippings of the historic event as a gift. The
collage was designed by Handley freshman Martha Beitzel.
- Contact Danielle Nadler at
[email protected]
--
http://www.winchesterstar.com/articles/view/freedom_riders_speak_about_their_
1961_duty
Via InstaFetch
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Sixties-L" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en.
