Commemorating the Journey of Reconciliation

Last year, I blogged about the proposal to create a state historic marker at the site in Chapel Hill, North Carolina where members of the first freedom ride were arrested in in 1947. The marker has been approved and is being unveiled next week! FOR is organizing and supporting several events in support of the marker.

The Journey of Reconciliation began on April 9, 1947. It was organized by the Congress of Racial Equality with the leadership of FOR staffers Bayard Rustin and George Houser. Like many other great institutions, CORE was born at FOR. To learn more about this historic event, do read this short history by Dr. Yonni Chapman.

If you are anywhere near central North Carolina, I hope you will join us at one or more of the events below. If not, perhaps you can show your support by making a donation to FOR in honor of the first freedom ride. Click the titles below to learn more and RSVP for these events.

• Thursday 2/26, 7pm: Screening & discussion: "You Don’t have to Ride Jim Crow."
  Watch the documentary and discuss Chapel Hill’s civil rights history with filmmaker Robin Washington.
  Sponsored by FOR, the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill, and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP.
• Friday 2/27, time TBA: Nonviolent direct action organizing, then and now.
  A discussion of old tactics and new frontiers with Robin Washington.
  Sponsored by FOR.
• Saturday 2/28, noon: Day of Commemoration and Re-dedication.
  Freedom Riders in Chapel Hill 1947-2009: The Struggle for Racial Justice Continues.
  Sponsored by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP and the Community Church, with support from the Town of Chapel Hill.