doi:10.7916/d8-tv64-m240Oral history interview with Frank Nelson, 1998Nelson, Frankoral historiesmixed materialCivil rights movements--History--20th century.--United StatesCivil rights demonstrations--United StatesCivil rights workers--History--20th century.--United StatesPeace movements--History--20th century.--United StatesImprisonment--United StatesUnited States Race relations 20th centuryNelson, FrankCongress of Racial EqualityFrank Nelson begins the interview explaining how he became involved with political activism, including how he decided to join the 1961 Freedom Rides through the Deep South. He recalls differences he observed between the civil rights efforts in the South and those in the North. In particular, Nelson describes the demographics of the New Orleans chapter of CORE as well as those he met along the Freedom Rides. Nelson shares the story of how he met his first wife, Pat Smith, a fellow Freedom Rider. He describes various encounters with the law, including: the reasons for his arrest, experiences of police brutality, the various prison environments he experienced, his rebellions within jail, and his lengthy hunger strike. He also describes a brush with an angry mob in the town in which Mack Charles Parker was murdered a year earlier. In addition to the Freedom Rides, Nelson describes other desegregation efforts he was involved in, such as an effort in Statesville, NC, focusing on Greyhound bus terminals, and one across the south to ensure the enforcement of recent rulings by the Interstate Commerce Commission. Nelson also describes his later life and work in both New York City and Los Angeles. He discusses his experience working at a union in New York; his leadership in the LA peace movements and its repercussions; and his involvement in the June 23, 1967 LA anti-war protest, which triggered a violent police response. Other topics of discussion include: Nelson's support of the Progressive Labor Party, his interactions with Floyd McKissick and his daughters, and his perceptions of Martin Luther King Jr., the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and what King could have done differently