Sample Collaborative Student Project

muted jostling, static noise

sudden increase in background/recorder noise

John Beecher

"It's very uh -- it's very much important that you became a political prisoner and this is what you were in many ways. Not that we say you should have thrown a brick [unclear] if you did. I don't know whether you did or you didn't.Maybe some of you did. This we shouldn't have done because we need discipline. We have to have far more discipline than the white man if we're gonna win this uh struggle."

sudden increase in background/recorder noise

"you became a political prisoner" - threw a brick

political prisoner

students accused of throwing a brick

jostling of recorder/background noise

decrease in background noise

"This [throwing a brick] we shouldn't have done, because we need discipline. We have to have far more discipline than the white man if we're gonna win this, uh, struggle."

pages rustling

"Because the Mississippian is fighting a fool's battle, a battle that he has to lose. And in winning it, we need control and restraint, so that when we strike we strike when we're on good grounds."..."

pages rustling, movement in environment

"Whether you threw a brick or didn't, the fact still remains that he used you as a tool, as an instrument. He made something of a thing of you. Because he was trying, by keeping you in jail, by setting a bond at 5/000 finally reducing it to 500, to strike fear in the hearts of your parents, and other people in the community."

"he used you as a tool, as an instrument, he made something of a thing of you because he was trying, by keeping you in jail...to strike fear into the hearts of your parents and others in the community"

sliding, scraping noise

using $5000 bond of high school children to divide community

horns/music in background

"He was trying to cut off one segment of the Negroes in McComb from another segment"

cough/sneeze

Freedom House

"to gain the kind of justice, the kind of right action and good living that is necessary if any of us are going to live in a free America, particularly in a free Mississippi."

justice

distant rush

"You were used. Some of you no doubt will be bitter about it. I know a lot of people were bitter the night that the [or our?] houses were bombed. Bitterness alone is not going to suffice. If you're angry, good. You have right to be angry. The question now is not whether you're angry or you dislike somebody, but whether or not you will take actions take steps to change the kind of city and county where people can be held in jail for things like this, where they can create a law to arrest any negro or any white person in the movement on just about any charge they want to and they you know, give it an nice sounding name. They say "syndicalism." Some of us [unclear] stumble over it [when we couldn't?] pronounce the word. But it still basically means that anyone who tries to work for justice in our society is doing something against the law. This is ironic, this is a mockery. You know. During the next few weeks, months, or years, everyone here, in Mississippi and in the south is going to be embroiled in a battle, and you're going to have to do something."

"know you were used. Some of you, no doubt, will be bitter about it."

cough

bitterness

"houses were bombed" - which houses?

vehicle in background

"if you're angry, good. I think you have a right to be angry."

"the question now is, not whether you're angry or if you like somebody, but whether you will take action take steps to change the kind of city and county where people can be held for things like this"

cough

anger vs. action

rustling

syndicalism

"They give it a nice sounding name-- they say 'syndicalism'" - the charge used to arrest the group of students

"syndicalism. some of us, you know, stumble over (when we gotta?) pronounce the word"

"[syndicalism] basically means that anyone who tries to work for justice in our society is doing something against the law - this is ironic, this is a mockery."

vehicles in background

horn

pages rustling

scraping

coming battle

"as students, you're going to have to speak in your community and perhaps out of your community to tell people what's happening to tell people why they must try and change this."

action items for students (tell people, how)

"those of you who are students are still at the same congregate (?) to have to be working very hard at your studies so that you're not losing ground there as we're trying to win it in another field."

recorder adjusted

cough

"You're going to have to be out canvasing, talking to people, doing something to bring about justice, unless you enjoyed being in jail" - this sounds threatening

exhale

If you didn't enjoy it then you must do something to change it and that's simply turn your back and say "it can't happen again" cause it can happen again and it might happen tomorrow.

"unless you enjoyed being in jail. If you didn't enjoy it, then you must do something to change it and not imply turning your back and saying 'it can't happen again,' because it can happen again and it might happen tomorrow unless you're ready to do something."

tapping

unless you're ready to do something

plus you, your friends and your parents are ready to band together as a united people seeking to bring about a full good free society and world in which to live

sudden increase in volume

banding together - united people

upcoming events

tapping

rally on sunday, freedom day on Monday - which events - in Magnolia?

pages rustling

working primarily with adults

voting

"you realize that if your parents, if you, were voters, this could not have happened to you."

recording device

sigh

pages rustling

cough

Sheriff Warren, Chief Guy, Mayor Burt

"He's in power, he's in office, because you don't vote. He treats you the way he does because you or your parents don't vote."

sigh

dog barking

Goodbye to Guy - slogan?

ducks?

people walking in?

rustling

background music

rally

coughing

Jesse?

cough

chair movement

chairs moving, scraping on floor

speaking

laughter?

"we want the people to see you, to know who you are, to know that you suffered something for them."

cough

"you'll be called on many times - be ready and be available."

chair movement

chairs moving, scraping on floor

conversation

people entering room?

Beecher coughs

Dunnis and Sepis?

introduction about questions about jail

more people entering the room?

Dunnis speaking

recorder

"I was out in a day" - one of the white protestors arrested

Dunnis discusses his treatment vs. students

"that was when I was in the cell downstairs but I was out in a day"

"I thought...what you must be thinking about and how it must make you feel to know that, you know, a white civil rights worker can be picked up and out of jail in a day when you have to stay in jail and stay in jail and say in jail. And, it's not fair, it's.. I don't know what to say about it, except that that's why we're down here, and we're not gonna leave, until such a time arrives that, you know, people aren't treated that way."

"how it must make you feel to know that a, you know, a white civil rights worker can be picked up and out of jail in a day, and you have to stay in jail and stay in jail and stay in jail" (mhmm heard in background)

horn

"mhmm" in background

rustling

cough/sneeze

AOS? LS?

Attorney Reaves

"I just want to apologize for the way that system works in that particular case and I know how you must feel and um that's really why y'know we're here."

apology

cough/sneeze

mention of getting an affidavit from LS about what Reaves said to him

"all I want to say is welcome back" (laughter)

unknown male speaker - Jesse?

group laughter, exclamation

welcome back from jail

multiple speakers

woman in audience - "yes, lord"

"right now everybody's y'know ready to uh fall back to into the normal uh procedures in like y'know living sort of as we did before but I hope not completely as we did before."

unknown male speaker

rustling

multiple speakers

cough

horn

"after you've had a chance to sleep on your own beds and uh eat at your own tabels among real friends."

multiple speakers

laughter/exclamation

unknown male speaker - Jesse?

question about coming back every day

unknown male speaker

pages rustling

multiple voices

"I didn't understand exactly what he means about coming back"

coughing

reference to the court case/date

"he said something about court on the 20th"

"That sounds huh absolutely stupid to me, but we will check with our lawyer, to make absolutely certain. We will, you know, find out, cause we don't want them to pulling you back in on a technicality. They would try and do something as asinine as that, but uh, we want to check that out"

inequality of court requirements

papers rustling

walking around, movement

microphone noises

"What were the conditions there, first in terms of the parents being able to get in and see the children? I know some were able, and some were not able to see their children."

conditions at prison

Mrs. Thomas

Willie - one of the arrested students

"It was a week before they let me even see Willie"

"It's according to how they feel whether they let you see their parents or not"

"the white people could come in"

"They wouldn't even let my father give me not clothes or nothing"

Louise Banks

"They wouldn't even let me talk to nobody"

"Louise Banks -- they wouldn't even let me talk to nobody, the whole 30 days"

"Louise Banks. They wouldn't even let me talk to nobody. In the whole thirty days."

lack of communication

"They let my uncle come one time and they told him to hurry up because they didn't have but a few seconds"

"They let my uncle come one time and told him to hurry up because they didn't have but a few seconds. And out of the thirty days they let me see nobody else"

isolation

tape restarted?

Christine Anderson

police stealing from those imprisoned

"...some days they were mean to us. They cursed at us."

mic noises and footsteps - microphone switch between speakers?

hygeine at prison

door opens and closes

police threatened students

mic noises - sounds like breathing (or wind?)

"they told us they were going to quit feeding us and quit letting our parents see us and quit letting them bring us anything"

"Wait, John. Wait. Let one talk" - Barbara Beecher (?)

police threatened isolation

" I would like to ask you about what recreation privileges did you have?"

lack of recreation privileges in prison

"None" and "None at all"

"Were you able to get out of the cell at all?"

"[unclear ] play cards"

"How about the food that they gave you there?"

inadequate food in prison

unanimous response that food was awful: "terrible," "it's cold," "cold beans," "cold pork and beans out of the can"

laughter

"potatoes mashed up with eggs"

"shhh" Barbara Beecher (?) shushes attendees (for better recording quality?)

Barbara Beecher (?)

tape paused and restarted?

outdoor noises (birds?)

slapping sounds

"about two weeks ago, they stopped giving us coffee"

"What did you have for breakfast?"

"grits," "bread," "little old small pieces of bacon"

breakfast in prison

"How about your singing? Have they discouraged your singing in the cells?"

singing discouraged

"They cursed us, so many times, every night"

cat meowing? Or children playing? Or birds?

children playing outside?

Explicit language

Explicit language

Racial Slur

Racial Slur

three police officers/jailers - Bagwell, Bates, Owen

Explicit language

Explicit language

Explicit language

Explicit language