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This page was last updated
07/01/2004 11:35 AM
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THE CARAVAN HAS ENDED, BUT
OUR WORK HAS JUST BEGUN!
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On Thursday, June 10th,
a caravan of buses and other
vehicles left New York City on a historic journey throughout the
south. Led by Ben Chaney, the founder and President of the
James Earl Chaney Foundation, the Freedom Summer 2004 Ride For Justice
will visit sites of historical significance to the Civil Rights Movement
in such places as Philadelphia Pa, Washington DC, Raleigh, NC, Birmingham
AL, Philadelphia MS and other key venues (see itenarary).
The Freedom Summer 2004 Ride For Justice is sponsored by the Chaney
Goodman Schwerner Justice Coalition, a project of the James Earl Chaney
Foundation. |
* VIEW PHOTOS OF THE JOURNEY! *
* READ THE RIDER'S JOURNALS *
* NEED A RIDER TO SPEAK TO YOUR GROUP? * |
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"Our theme for the year's event will be 'Where is the
Justice'" says Ben, shown here with Freedom Summer 2004 participants
preparing to embark on their journey. "The Justice Coalition has
planned commemorative events to celebrate 40 years of civil and human
rights activism and to call for the State of Mississippi to prosecute the
murderers of Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner." According to Ben, even though there are confessions in these murders, the State of
Mississippi has never filed murder charges against the men involved in the
murder of the civil rights workers.
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The caravan seeks to achieve
several key objectives: |
Shevonna May and Nashawn Barrow - 2 youth riders |
- Bring pressure on the state of Mississippi to reopen
the Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner murders in order to prosecute the
surviving perpetrators and bring closure to the case;
- Conduct a vigorous voter registration drive,
especially targeting young adults between the ages of 18 - 30; and
- Educate young Americans about the Civil Rights
struggle and seek their active participation in working to improve human
rights, thus bettering the lives of all members of our society.
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In recent weeks, there has been increasing reporting
coverage of the possibility of the case being reopened. In addition,
Mississippi Congressman Bennie Thompson has conducted a poll (see
Bennie Thompson's
Poll) seeking public opinion on reopening the case. The poll
asks:
"Recently, the Department of Justice announced its
decision to reopen the murder investigation of Emmett Till. In
addition to the Till case, many Americans have expressed a desire to
see the murder investigation into the deaths of James Chaney, Michael
Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman - the three civil rights workers who
were killed in the summer of 1964 in Philadelphia, Mississippi. Should
the Justice Department reopen the case of Chaney, Schwerner, and
Goodman?"
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You can
listen to Ben Chaney's NPR Interview with Tavis
Smiley here!
If you are interested in the issues the Chaney Goodman Schwerner
Justice Coalition and the Freedom Summer 2004 Ride For Justice are trying
to address should join the caravan along its route when it reaches your
respective State Click for more
information. |
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Freedom Summer 2004 Ride For Justice
participants look forward to the chance to "make a difference in
the quality of life" |
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To see more photos of the caravan click here! |
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