The Freedom Writers named themselves after the Freedom Riders, who were black and white college students who determined that they were going to attack segregation in the South during the Civil Rights Movement of the sixties. They all rode together on the bus, which was illegal in the South, since public transportation of all forms was segregated, with black people being required to sit in the back of the bus and white people in the...
The Freedom Writers named themselves after the Freedom Riders, who were black and white college students who determined that they were going to attack segregation in the South during the Civil Rights Movement of the sixties. They all rode together on the bus, which was illegal in the South, since public transportation of all forms was segregated, with black people being required to sit in the back of the bus and white people in the front section. They were attacked for riding together like this, and at least one person was badly injured.
As Erin Gruwell and her class were getting started on a writing project to fight injustice, one of the students was inspired to name their group after the Freedom Riders, since it was a great play on words and both groups had the same mission. In the student's diary, the student says,
I feel that I finally have a purpose in this class and in life. That purpose is to make a difference and stand up for a cause (154).
For this group of students, this was a meaningful and powerful name, evoking the history of civil rights and the power of the pen.
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