The 2011-2012 RTIEL Essay Contest topic related to the Freedom Rides, and in order to write the essays, the RTIEL Scholars watched the documentary on the Freedom Rides.
On Day 1 of the Civil Rights Tour, the Scholars visited the Freedom Rides Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, and visited Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, where Dr. Martin Luther King served as pastor. The Scholars wrapped up the day by touring the Alabama State Capitol and visiting the F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald Museum. And to end the day, the Scholars sported their Freedom Ride Museum t-shirts at the bowling alley!
On Day 2 of the tour, the Scholars toured historic Selma, Alabama and attended the Freedom Flame Awards Banquet, where the Keynote Speaker was writer and civil rights activist, Mr. Dick Gregory. Two of the Scholars were able to have their picture taken with Mr. Gregory. And on Bloody Sunday, the Scholars were joined on the Edmund Pettus Bridge by several supporters of the RTIEL organization. As they crossed the bridge, the Scholars were honored to be marching with tens of thousands of other individuals commemorating Bloody Sunday!
