For sophomore Wil Keenan, Freedom Ride 2007 was more than just a rolling history tour down Interstate 65 with six of the 1961 Freedom Riders.
Rather, for Keenan, the Freedom Ride on Jan. 27 and 28 provided him with the inspiration needed to institutionalize the Freedom Riders' idea of nonviolence at Vanderbilt.
"When you hear (the Rev. James) Lawson and all these other people talk, you hear all the possibilities for conflict resolution without violence," Keenan said. "We can hear about it and study it all we want, but if no one is practicing it, nothing will change."
Of the 126 evaluations completed, 108 participants gave the program the highest possible rating, according to a survey done by the Office of Active Citizenship and Service and the Office of Student Life.
While OACS Director Mark Dalhouse said all the feedback he has received has been very positive, he thinks students such as Keenan left dissatisfied.
"They came away thinking, ‘It was a wonderful program, but now what?'" he said.
But just a week after the program, Dalhouse said he has already seen students respond.
"The fact that they have ideas - I think that the Freedom Ride crystallized a lot of this for them," he said. "We have to expect that students will be more assertive and more challenging of the status quo, and that's a good thing."
Keenan said he also saw students beginning to question how they could bring the messages they heard about nonviolence to campus.
"All the questions that people were asking were aimed at, ‘What can we do now?'" Keenan said. "My main concern was how are you going to build social movement when effects aren't as explicit as civil rights. People wanted to go home and start doing something, but they didn't know what to do."
Keenan, along with a few other participants from the trip, has proposed to create either an interdisciplinary major or a Center for Nonviolence at Vanderbilt.
"This has huge implications," Keenan said. "It would institutionalize the study and practice of nonviolence at Vanderbilt to honor and continue the legacy of nonviolent, social justice struggle in Nashville, the cradle of one of the most successful nonviolent movements in the world."
Senior Stacy Tolos, who participated in the Freedom Rides trip, is helping Keenan form the proposal.
"We looked at the other top-20 schools, because you know Vandy is really concerned with its ranking, and at least 10 (universities) have some kind of conflict center or program, so we are kind of behind on the times," Tolos said. "And you know Nashville is the cradle of the civil rights movement, so it would be really appropriate to have this sort of nonviolent program here."
In addition to Keenan's efforts, sophomore Elias Feghali said he is in the process of starting a new organization, Vanderbilt Students for Nonviolence, which aims to be both educational and communitarian.
"I want to teach and learn about nonviolence while simultaneously looking for opportunities to apply nonviolence as a means for social change in Nashville," Feghali said in an e-mail to Keenan.
Junior Corey Sullivan, another participant in the program, was motivated and encouraged by the Freedom Riders' stories and is excited about the prospect of a center on campus to promote the principles of nonviolence.
"I have been discouraged by the current state of world affairs, and hearing the Freedom Riders' stories renewed my belief in people's ability to make change," Sullivan said. "I would love for Vanderbilt to open a center on campus to promote nonviolent protest. A lot of students feel strongly about social and global issues, and the principles of nonviolence give us an outlet to make our voices heard."
Dalhouse said he is very excited about the kind of initiative students are taking in response to their Freedom Ride 2007 experience.
"I hope that the Freedom Rides will continue to act as a catalyst in individuals' lives for people to reflect and think about their own lives and the legacy we've been left with, and how best to be active citizens and active learners," he said.
