| Early Saturday morning, the Freedom Bus pulled into a parking lot near the Clarksdale public housing projects in Louisville, Kentucky. We were met by Pam McMichael and others from Southerners On New Ground (SONG), !
an anti-poverty group that played a key role in organizing our visit. All the freedom riders were fed a wonderful breakfast at the Velvet Rose, a local supper club that let us sleep in their parking lot. After setting up the tents, stretching our legs after the overnight bus ride, and showering at a nearby homeless shelter, we gathered at Wayside Christian Mission for a productive lunch discussion with local organizers. After lunch we collected in East Louisville Community Park, which is surrounded by Clarksdale public housing, for the main event of our visit. The Speak-Out on Poverty lasted all afternoon, giving the freedom riders time off the bus, which has become our de-facto home. (One free!
dom rider recently referred to his bus seat as "my room"!) The weather was beautiful, and the sun shone brightly as organizers and testifiers shared the stage with activist folk singers and the Freedom Bus Choir. Bob Cunningham, of the Kentucky Alliance Against Racism and Political Repression, was the M.C. for the event. He welcomed us, to much applause: "I think it is very moral -- it is very just -- for you to be here today. You are the heroes and she-roes of our generation. [...] Our cause today is not to manage poverty but to get rid of poverty. We have to ask fundamental questions about our society." Two members of the Clarksdale resident council spoke on behalf of the poor in the housing projects, expressing!
solidarity and encouragement for the bus riders. We heard testimony from a representative from the Coalition of the Homeless that in Louisville, 1,200 men, women, and children are in shelters on any given night, and 8,300 people in total spent at least a night in shelters in the past year. We also met many currently and previously homeless people; we collected their stories to take to the United Nations, and shared our stories with them. After a community dinner with residents of the neighborhood, bus riders prepared for the Urban Goatherder Coffeehouse, a monthly Louisville event that luckily coincided with our visit. We joined other poor and homeless people for a night of cultur!
al and culinary sharing. Freedom Bus riders sang, read poetry, and even freestyle rap, alongside poor brothers and sisters from Louisville.
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