Review "'What does one take for a vacation in jail?' When one's destination is Mississippi's infamous Parchman Prison Farm, this is not an idle query. During the summer of 1961, more than 300 Freedom Riders, including 110 women, were incarcerated in Parchman after testing the Supreme Court's desegregation of interstate travel. Only one of these crusaders for civil equality managed to smuggle a diary out with her: Carol Ruth Silver, a twenty-two-year old Jewish New Yorker willing to put her liberty on the line in the spirit of Tikkun Olam--to heal the world. This vivid primary source allows an uncensored, unromanticized, and humbling view of the lived experience of young civil rights activists as they made the movement one day at a time, and of a foundational moment in what became Silver's lifelong commitment to social justice and the daily pursuit of a more perfect Union."--Jane Dailey, University of Chicago"Getting to know Carol Ruth Silver and other Freedom Riders has been an unforgettable experience. I am so pleased Carol Ruth Silver is sharing the personal diary she kept during that incredibly eventful and traumatic summer of 1961. It is never too late to hear more personal stories of individual acts of heroism. Her diary provides a first-person immediacy, which makes it such a page-turner. It's also a unique look at the hope and excitement of a young, single woman living in New York, and a window into the mundane yet terrifying unknown of being imprisoned in Mississippi in the 1960s. Her diary shows the bond between her cell mates and what the fiercely focused efforts of average citizens can do: not only did they bring down the ugly signs of Jim Crow segregation, but they also broke down barriers among people of different races and backgrounds to make our country better for all."--Laurens Grant, producer of Freedom Riders, recipient of a Peabody and three Primetime Emmy Awards"Carol Ruth Silver, thank you for making history as a Freedom Rider. Your courage and the courage of other Freedom Riders helped change American Society; no exclusions and freedom for all citizens."--John Taylor, 1961 Freedom Rider"Carol Ruth Silver's diary is a unique portrait of individual courage--a powerful story of idealism and hope, a reflection of a generation of young Americans who would no longer tolerate injustice and segregation. Her raw memories are a poignant reminder of a dark era of the past and of the need to continue our national ride to freedom, progress, and opportunity in our time."--Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives (D-California) Read more Book Description <p>One woman's harrowing, unforgettable account from the nadir of Jim Crow Mississippi</p>What does one take for a vacation in jail?' When one's destination is Mississippi's infamous Parchman Prison Farm, this is not an idle query. During the summer of 1961, more than 300 Freedom Riders, including 110 women, were incarcerated in Parchman after testing the Supreme Court's desegregation of interstate travel. Only one of these crusaders for civil equality managed to smuggle a diary out with her: Carol Ruth Silver, a twenty-two-year old Jewish New Yorker willing to put her liberty on the line in the spirit of tikkun olam--to heal the world. This vivid primary source allows an uncensored, unromanticized, and humbling view of the lived experience of young civil rights activists as they made the movement one day at a time, and of a foundational moment in what became Silver's lifelong commitment to social justice and the daily pursuit of a more perfect Union. (Jane Dailey, University of Chicago)Getting to know Carol Ruth Silver and other Freedom Riders has been an unforgettable experience. I am so pleased Carol Ruth Silver is sharing the personal diary she kept during that incredibly eventful and traumatic summer of 1961. It is never too late to hear more personal stories of individual acts of heroism. Her diary provides a first-person immediacy, which makes it such a page-turner. It's also a unique look at the hope and excitement of a young, single woman living in New York, and a window into the mundane yet terrifying unknown of being imprisoned in Mississippi in the 1960s. Her diary shows the bond between her cell mates and what the fiercely focused efforts of average citizens can do: not only did they bring down the ugly signs of Jim Crow segregation, but they also broke down barriers among people of different races and backgrounds to make our country better for all. (Laurens Grant, producer of Freedom Riders, recipient of a Peabody and three Primetime Emmy Awards)Carol Ruth Silver, thank you for making history as a Freedom Rider. Your courage and the courage of other Freedom Riders helped change American Society; no exclusions and freedom for all citizens. (John Taylor, 1961 Freedom Rider)Carol Ruth Silver's diary is a unique portrait of individual courage--a powerful story of idealism and hope, a reflection of a generation of young Americans who would no longer tolerate injustice and segregation. Her raw memories are a poignant reminder of a dark era of the past and of the need to continue our national ride to freedom, progress, and opportunity in our time. (Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives (D-California)) Read more From the Inside Flap One woman's harrowing, unforgettable account from the nadir of Jim Crow Mississippi Read more About the Author Carol Ruth Silver, San Francisco, California, is a retired lawyer, activist, and former elected official. She currently appears as a speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) opposing the U.S. policy of drug prohibition and has been working for many years to enhance education, particularly for women and girls, in Afghanistan. Read more
K**M
True-to-life "can't put it down" story!
I never knew much of anything about the Freedom Riders but was lured into reading "Freedom Rider Diary" on a friend's recommendation. The story is well-laid out, compelling, and exciting! It's unfathomable to think the Civil Rights movement only happened 50 years ago and even harder to imagine the sacrifice passionate and motivated individuals made to help advance equal rights in the US. Carol Ruth Silver's accounts of her experience as a Freedom Rider, are vivid, engaging, and relatable. As I read through the book, I found myself questioning what I believe in and what I would be willing to sacrifice so much for. This book is definitely worth reading even if you have no interest in the Civil Rights movement. If you enjoy good writing and good story-telling, then you will like this book!
T**G
Freedom Rider Diary
This book is one that once you start reading, you can't put the book down (which happened to me) until it is done. Once it was done, you wanted more. It was a good time capsule taking you back to a time we would never have thought existed. A great non-fiction book that is a must. I especially liked how the authoress detailed her biographical information in a non-sugar-coated manner.
S**E
The Freedom Riders Impact on the Civil Rights Movement
The book is as described: A freedom rider's diary. It provides first hand witness (by a white woman) to the abuses and violence the freedom riders endured at the beginning of the civil rights movement.
C**A
For people very interested in the Freedom Riders
This review is not about the Freedom Ride and Ms. Silver. The Freedom Riders were truly heroic people. This review of of the book and about how readable and how informative the book is. It is also about how well we get to know Ms. Silver who is a Freedom Rider.I think to read this book you have to have an interest in the history of the civil rights movement and the Freedom Ride. The diary itself is somewhat dry; Ms. Silver sticks mainly to the facts. Not much emotion comes through in the diary. I found it interesting that she wrote that there was a culture conflict between the Northern Freedom riders and those from the South; the Freedom Riders from the South, both Black and White, were extremely religious and spiritual. They believed that the power of love to overcome hate. In contrast the Northern Freedom riders were influenced by the ACLU and had a secular orientation.Ms. Silver providers some missing information regarding her background in the afterwards. However, I still wondered what the impact of being in the Freedom Rides had on her. I was also curious how her fellow law students saw her being in the Freedom Rides. Was she seen as a hero or eccentric? Her style of writing still is very much WHAT she did but there is not much emotion or introspection.However, I would give five starts to the afterword written by Cherie A Gaines who is a black female lawyer. She writes about how important it was to have white freedom riders and the impact of the civil rights movement on her. She was a woman lawyer in the 1960s at a time there weren't many women lawyers.The afterward written by Claude Liggins was also very good. He is a black man who took part in the Freedom Rights.I received an ARC copy of this book in turn for an honest review.
S**N
Fascinating account
Book fans wanting more fact than fiction in their summer reading material will enjoy "Freedom Rider Diary: Smuggled Notes from Parchman Prison" by Carol Ruth Silver.In 1961, the Jewish Northerner was arrested for violating Jim Crow laws and spent 40 days in Mississippi jails and Parchman after she joined the Freedom Riders. Hundreds of civil rights activists, black and white, rode buses into segregated Southern states, including Mississippi, to test the U.S. Supreme Court rulings banning segregation on buses and in terminals. Upon their arrival, they were arrested for trespassing, unlawful assembly and other alleged offenses or were attacked by white mobs while law enforcement officers looked on.“The Rides seem to be about the most direct ‘direct action’ that has yet been attempted on the civil rights front, primarily because they hit at the heart of the segregationist South,” Silver writes early in her book. The Freedom Ride was physical hard and emotional draining, but it was for a just cause. As she recounts in her memoir of the last 50 years, Silver’s fight for equality didn’t end with her arrest. She has continued as an activist, speaker and leader to benefit minorities, prisoners and others she felt were slighted by governmental and societal barricades.Silver’s detailed recollections and her passion for others make for a compelling read that lets readers feel the energy of the civil rights movement. It is one of the few books that feature a detailed diary, smuggled out on hidden scraps of paper, from an actual Rider. Silver’s personal perspective and involvement in CORE (Congress for Racial Equality) gives a glimpse of why someone would take on the law in pursuit of equality. She salutes those who tried to make a difference, particularly in Mississippi.The book includes photos ranging from arrest shots to long-after reunions, speaking engagements and memorial dedications. The book is published by the University Press of Mississippi as part of its Willie Morris Books in Memoir and Biography collection.As for Silver, the spunky retired lawyer continues to fight for others, including opposing U.S. drug policies and striving to educate women and girls in Afghanistan.
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