To Write in the Light of Freedom

Mississippi's Freedom Summer is told as the story of a thousand idealistic white kids who braved racist violence to bring democracy to the Negro, and who were transformed in the process. The story we don't tell centers on a different revolution - a revolution of the mind. Black kids were the epicenter of America's most dynamic intellectual ferment in 1964, where the most astute visions of a democratic future and reconstructed past erupted from makeshift Freedom Schools, where a radical print culture came into being that changed the South and the country forever. William Sturkey and Jon Hale have made this rich body of work available for the first time. It is bound to change our story of 1964 and hopefully will change the way we think about the role of social movements, pedagogy, and thought in building a new future."" - Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination.

""Bossie Mae Harring wrote in the Drew Freedom Fighter, 'Someone has opened our eyes to freedom and we will walk in the light of freedom until we achieve our victory.' Ms. Harring was one of thousands of students attending Freedom Schools in Mississippi, opened in 1964's Freedom Summer to provide an alternative education to the mis-education Mississippi provided for black children. To Write in the Light of Freedom is a collection from the Freedom Schools' newspapers. In it, you will read the hopes and dreams of Mississippi's black youth. You will be entranced by their writing and interested in knowing more about Freedom Summer and the Freedom Schools. This is a largely unknown history of perseverance and triumph over great odds. Read on."" - Julian Bond, civil rights activist.

""The privilege of coordinating Mississippi Freedom Schools in summer 1964 was perhaps the most gratifying experience of my life. . . .What I remember most about the Freedom Schools is the atmosphere of hope. This extraordinary collection of newspapers suggests the spirit that came alive in the schools, and this introduction may be the best short history of the Freedom School adventure."" - Staughton Lynd, coordinator of the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Schools