A firsthand exploration of the cost of boarding the bus of change to move America forward–written by one of the Civil Rights Movement’s pioneers. At 18, Charles Person was the youngest of the original Freedom Riders, key figures in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement who left Washington, D.C. by bus in 1961, headed for New Orleans. This purposeful mix of black and white, male and female … black and white, male and female activists–including future Congressman John Lewis, Congress of Racial Equality Director James Farmer, Reverend Benjamin Elton Cox, journalist and pacifist James Peck, and CORE field secretary Genevieve Hughes–set out to discover whether America would abide by a Supreme Court decision that ruled segregation unconstitutional in bus depots, waiting areas, restaurants, and restrooms nationwide.
Two buses proceeded through Virginia, North and South Carolina, to Georgia where they were greeted by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and finally to Alabama. There, the Freedom Riders found their answer: No. Southern states would continue to disregard federal law and use violence to enforce racial segregation. One bus was burned to a shell, its riders narrowly escaping; the second, which Charles rode, was set upon by a mob that beat several riders nearly to death.
Buses Are a Comin’ provides a front-row view of the struggle to belong in America, as Charles Person accompanies his colleagues off the bus, into the station, into the mob, and into history to help defeat segregation’s violent grip on African American lives. It is also a challenge from a teenager of a previous era to the young people of today: become agents of transformation. Stand firm. Create a more just and moral country where students have a voice, youth can make a difference, and everyone belongs.more
I was immediately drawn in by this enlightening and riveting read. Charles Person, one of the first (and youngest) Freedom Riders, writes so fluidly and naturally about his experiences during the Civil Rights movement that I felt as if I was actually there, witnessing the events.
Buses Are a Comin’ is a book that is open, honest, raw, and emotive. It is uplifting, in that it shows how an ordinary person can have a huge impact if they have the courage to stand up for what is right and fair; it also saddened, embarrassed, humbled, angered and horrified me. As a white person, it hurt my heart to read this first-hand account of the abominable treatment that persons of color have had to endure for too long.
It tells an important story and deserves to be read. It is especially relevant now when America is again very divided, and outcries and protests for equal rights and equal treatment for all continue to be heard across the nation.
“What are you going to do?” “What are YOU going to do?” When will we ever learn…
My thanks to the author for sharing his story with the world, and to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read a review copy of this memoir. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
This book should be required reading in High school. Most white folks in the US have no clue what is was like growing up and living in the South for a black person in the fifties and sixties. For a young person that might seem like centuries ago but it really wasn’t that long ago. Some of the people that have lived through that period of segregation are still alive today. Even when laws were made to enforce desegregation White folks ignored it and most Blacks where too afraid to enforce it. Thanks to some brave men and woman who risk bodily harm for them and their family that some of these changes have become part of our life. We no longer see signs defining certain areas for “Whites only” (Stores, Lunch counters, Toilet facilities, seats in busses on and on) but I’m afraid that even now in 2021 we still have a long way to go to be color blind to skin color and race. Charles Person was one of those people to take a stand and I’m so glad that he was willing to share with us his feelings and experiences from childhood to adult. Occasionally you might feel that the story gets repeated a bit but the book still deserves a solid five star. I want to thank Richard Rooker for getting Charles Memoir a reality for us to read. I think this story will not be forgotten by many that read it.
Buses Are a Comin’ is an amazing memoir by Charles Person with Richard Rooker. Charles Person is the youngest of the original Freedom Riders who traveled on a Greyhound bus from Washington in 1961. Their destination was to be New Orleans, but they did not make it there.
I sure wish that I was still teaching. I particularly liked the easy, conversational tone of Person’s story and feel the book would be well received by students. I felt like I was sitting in his living room listening to his story. The reader gets to meet Charles as a child. He tells stories about growing up in his family…how hard his Dad and Mom had to work to provide for his family. I particularly enjoyed how he brought something home from the neighborhood store and how his mom marched them back to the store to confess. Then when his father, a WWII veteran came home……..His father worked two jobs and did not have a lot of time to spend with the kids but the time he had was used to teach his children.
The book is filled with stories. I think they helped the reader really feel connected so that when he actually leaves on that bus, this reader felt like I was on that bus too. Thank you so much Mr. Person for sharing your story. Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The opinions in this review are my own.
Buses Are a Comin’ by Charles Person and with Richard Rooker is a stunning memoir and personal account of a brave and honorable young man, Charles Person whom joined and participated in a peaceful quest and journey within the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.
This young man was a part of the Original Freedom Riders group that selflessly placed themselves into the spotlight of the unjust segregation and disgusting practice of racism that was heavy and thick during this pivotal time. Shedding light on these practices in a peaceful and nonviolent manner, this young man was respectful and brave in what he did. It was awe inspiring and humbling to see what was done, not only to him and the above-mentioned group, but also to so many that were truly only asking for equal rights. I cannot imagine the inner fear and the outer struggles that he experienced and overcame during this time. His stories and experiences are laid out in this stunning memior and reflection of how far we have come, and yet how far we still have to go to achieve equality for every person.
I will forever remember and be changed from his story. A must read for every human being.
5/5 stars enthusiastically
Thank you NG and St Martin’s Press for this stunning ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.
I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication.