Imagine living in a time when it was considered illegal to marry the person you loved. Imagine knowing that your wedding ceremony could be followed by a trial, conviction, and imprisonment for the simple act of tying the knot. Sixty years ago, Richard and Mildred Loving changed history when they said “I do” in defiance of the law against inter-racial marriage and faced prosecution and jail-time in a state penitentiary, culminating in the landmark Supreme Court Case, Loving v. Virginia.
Join us this Thursday, April 10th, for the screening of the documentary film, The Loving Story, at 7:00 p.m. in Ross Pendergraft Library and Technology Center, room 300 south. Following the film, Dr. James Moses, professor of history at Arkansas Tech University, will lead a discussion about this pivotal Supreme Court decision. Admission is free and open to the public.
This film is presented as part of the Created Equal: America’s Civil Rights Struggle series, which represents a special initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities to mark the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Loving Story represents the third part of a four-film series documenting the Civil Rights struggle in America, ending with the screening of The Freedom Riders on April 22nd at 7:00 p.m.
If you can’t make it to Thursday’s event, never fear—you can always come by the library and check out the film for home viewing.
For more information about this film or the film series, give us a call at 479-964-0569 or email us at askalibrarian@atu.edu.