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Freedom Riders (film)
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Wikipedia article
'Freedom Riders' is a 2010 American historical documentary film, produced by Firelight Media for PBS American Experience. The film is based in part on the book 'Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice' by historian Raymond Arsenault.[https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/freedomriders/about About the Film] PBS. Directed by Stanley Nelson, it marked the 50th anniversary of the first Freedom Ride in May 1961 and first aired on May 16, 2011.[http://www.democracynow.org/2011/5/4/50th_anniversary_of_the_first_freedom 50th Anniversary of the First Freedom Ride: New Documentary Recounts Historic 1961 Effort to Challenge Segregated Bus System in the Deep South - Democracy Now!] It was funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The film was also featured on 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' program titled, 'Freedom Riders: 50th Anniversary'.[http://www.oprah.com/packages/freedom-riders.html Freedom Rider] The Oprah Winfrey Show. Nelson was helped in the making of the documentary by Arsenault and Derek Catsam, an associate professor at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin.[http://www.chron.com/life/article/Freedom-Riders-documentary-explores-civil-rights-1587658.php Freedom Riders documentary explores civil rights events - Chron]
In 2020, 'Freedom Riders' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant", making it the seventh film designated in its first year of eligibility, the first in the 2010s, and the most recent film to receive the honor.
Summary
The film chronicles the story behind hundreds of civil rights activists called Freedom Riders that challenged racial segregation in American interstate transportation during the Civil Rights Movement. The activist traveled together in small interracial groups and sat wherever they chose on buses and trains to compel equal access to terminal restaurants and waiting rooms. They brought the ongoing practice of racial segregation in the southern United States to national attention.
Reception and legacy
'Freedom Riders' has received generally positive reviews from television critics and parents of young children. Michael Sragow of 'The Baltimore Sun' wrote, "One of the great social epics of our time."
In 2020, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". It is the most recent film and the first in the 2010s to be put in the registry.
Awards
* 2010: Official Selection, Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
* 2010: Official Selection, Maryland Film Festival
* 2010: Official Selection, Silverdocs Documentary Film Festival
* 2010: Official Selection, Sundance Film Festival
* 2011: Heartland Film Festival: Best Documentary Feature[http://www.trulymovingpictures.org/festival-years/2010/movie/freedom-riders/ Freedom Riders] Truly moving pictures, Heartland Film Festival
* 2011: Japan Prize: Welfare Category[http://www.nhk.or.jp/jp-prize/english/video_libr/bangumi.html Library List] Retrieved 2013-01-12
* 2012: Primetime Emmy Award: Exceptional Merit in Nonfiction Filmmaking[https://www.imdb.com/event/ev0000223/2011 IMDb: Emmy Awards for 2011] Retrieved 2012-11-04
* 2012: Primetime Emmy Award: Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming
* 2012: Primetime Emmy Award: Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming
* 2012: Eddie Award: Best Edited Documentary[https://www.imdb.com/event/ev0000017/2012 IMDb: Eddie Awards for 2011] Retrieved 2012-11-04
* 2012: Writers Guild of America Award: Best Documentary Screenplay: 'Nominated'[https://www.imdb.com/event/ev0000710/2011 IMDb: WGA Awards for 2011] Retrieved 2012-11-04
See also
* Civil rights movement in popular culture
* Freedom Riders National Monument
Further reading
*
* Catsam, Derek Charles. Freedom's Main Line: The Journey of Reconciliation and the Freedom Rides, 2009 University Press of Kentucky.
*
References
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