Stanley Nelson (1) (1951–)

I was inspired to read this book by Greg Iles' Natchez Burning. It is definitely true that truth is sadder than fiction. This novel gives a clear account of tragic, maddening murders happening in an indifferent society not so removed geographically or temporarily from where I live today. Although all of the disparate facts can get a little confusing at times, the theme is absolutely clear: while making so much progress, we have so long to go in treating black lives as if they matter. An important read, especially for those in and from the Miss-Lou area.… (meer)

A documentary that chronicles a crucial, devastating episode of the civil rights movement, an episode whose gruesome visuals impinged on the perception of American liberty around the world. Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the freedom rides, the film (to be shown Monday on PBS) is a story of ennobled youth and noxious hatred, of decided courage and inexplicable brutality. In May 1961 the Congress of Racial Equality sought to challenge the segregation of interstate travel on public transport and sent forth activists, both black and white, and many of them students, on a bus journey through the South, where they were received with violence that law enforcers refused to tame.… (meer)

El atleta afroamericano Jesse Owens se convirtió en un símbolo contra las teorías nazis de la supremacía aria cuando en 1936, con 22 años, logró cuatro medallas de oro en los Juegos Olímpicos de Berlín. Pero al volver a Estados Unidos se encontró con que nada había cambiado con su victoria y la segregación racial no se había debilitado lo más mínimo. Pese a que la prensa le encumbró como un héroe nacional, en la noche de su regreso al país no encontró ni un solo hotel en el centro de Nueva York dispuesto a alojar a clientes negros; las lucrativas ofertas que le habían llovido en Berlín se quedaron en promesas vacías; y para mantener a su familia se vio obligado a participar en la carrera más humillante de su vida, corriendo contra caballos. Cuando había caído en el olvido, ya en plena Guerra Fría, el presidente Dwight Eisenhower le nombró "Embajador de Buena Voluntad" en 1955 para promocionar la imagen de Estados Unidos en el mundo.… (meer)

From May until December 1961, more than 400 black and white Americans risked their lives many endured savage beatings and imprisonment for simply traveling together on buses as they journeyed through the Deep South. Determined to test and challenge segregated travel facilities, the Freedom Riders were greeted with mob violence and bitter racism, sorely testing their belief in non-violent activism. From award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson, Freedom Riders features testimony from a fascinating cast of central characters; the Riders themselves, state and federal government officials, and journalists who witnessed the rides firsthand. Based on Raymond Arsenault's acclaimed book Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice, the two-hour documentary comes to PBS in May 2011, marking the 50th anniversary of the historic Rides.… (meer)