Touching history is a powerful thing. It forms an indelible impression that helps to shape who we are and who we can be. Freedom’s Ride is a documentary film that follows the journey of forty honors history students from two very different worlds — a legendary all-minority high school in Harlem and a nearly all-white rural high school from an affluent New Jersey county — as they retrace the path of the civil rights Freedom Rides of the 1960’s. With a five-day bus journey from Washington to Birmingham, each member of this diverse student group discovers the real meaning behind the notion that all men are created equal and, in doing so, uncovers the fundamental truth about personal freedom.
This was a personal project that I started in 2001 and continued with it through 2004. I tell myself that it will never be complete. My goal – to document and archive the stories of the Delta Blues musicians – their music – but also their cultural stories and what gave birth to their music.
Sadly many of the musicians that I interviewed have passed away including Sam Carr who died September 21, 2009.
Sam told me:
“I lived a rich man’s life in a poor man’s shoes”
Mother/daughter filmmakers, circle the globe on a 99-day journey around the world, seeking people who are making a positive difference in our world.
They discover the power of the individual – the power within each of us. The global power of “one”.
It was life changing.