So I'm wrapping up Black History Month with an extraordinary read. Buses Are a Comin' is a book every American should pick up and is one that would be an excellent addition to any high school curriculum. Although it will not be published until April 27th, mark your calendars for this very important release.
This first-hand account of the Freedom Ride is so incredibly eye-opening and heartbreaking. I thought I knew the story. I thought I understood their plight. Oh, but I knew so little... so little about the sacrifices made, about the human dignity they put on the line, and about the deeply ingrained ignorance those poor souls were up against.
Honestly, to think that our nation was at a place that we would treat human beings with such utter disrespect is unfathomable to me. After reading the memoir, I continued to research and the discovery that saddened me most of all was the fact that the ignorance was perpetuated by all southerners including Christians who based their bigoted attitudes on "Biblical truths". As a Christian myself, I find this incomprehensible and abhorrent.
Charles Person, the author of this book, is undoubtedly an American Hero, as are the other brave Freedom Riders that boarded the public buses in 1961. The strength, tenacity, and selflessness it took to board those buses is beyond commendable. It is extraordinary. If it weren't for the Freedom Riders taking this step to test the validity of the Supreme Court landmark decision, Boynton vs. Virginia, our progress to equality would have been impeded that much longer. It saddens me to no end to think that such things had to be done to overcome obstacles that never should have been in place to begin with.
Thank you, Mr. Person, for sharing your story with us. I am better for having learned what you endured to better our nation. Although we have so far to go, this is a testament to the power of conviction and pacifism.
Read 2/28/21
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