This year marks the 43rd anniversary of the Freedom Rides tourthat left Washington D.C. on May 1961. A similar bus tour will kickoff this academic year to collect the untold stories of thathistorical ride from the northern to the southern UnitedStates.
This year's bus tour will start in Washington on Aug. 3,stopping at landmark cities were civil rights activity was strongin the '60s, and making its way to Memphis on Sept. 17 to collectcivil rights stories.
This will not be a true tour recreation, as this year's tourwill visit cities the Freedom Riders did not, said Marilyn Mapp, avolunteer and bus passenger.
Reporters, photographers and volunteers will ride the bus andcontribute to the Digital Front Porch, said Mamie Moore,spokesperson for Voices of the Civil Rights bus tour project thathopes to preserve oral and personal histories of the civil rightsactivist.
"The bus ride really hopes to inform the new generation of whatdid occur during the civil rights era," said Mapp, adding that itwill give participants of the era the opportunity to tell theirstories to be preserved for future generations.
The project intends to send all the stories and photos collectedto the Library of Congress and to the Web sitehttp://www.voicesofcivilrights.org.
There will be opportunities for anyone interested to ride thebus for certain periods of time, helping photographers andjournalists gather stories when the bus goes to their town, Mooresaid.
When the bus arrives in Memphis, it will have a two-day layoverat the National Civil Rights Museum.
Memphis "is such a cultural center," Mapp said. "With its music,and large black population and the crossroads of three southernstates," it is a crucial stop for the Voices of Civil Rightsproject.
The project's main goal is to educate younger people of civilrights era with the anecdotes and stories of their parents -- aliving history, "of this countries quiet revolution," Mapp said."The whole idea of (civil rights) gets confused into a massivemovement. It's sort of a way to break history down."
