#29: Freedom Schools (Jim Gregory)

Posted on by Dr. Joel Ying, MD

“That’s not going to happen, it hurt too much just to tell this one, I would never be able to tell the rest of the story.” 

Jim Gregory began to unravel his painful stories with the support of the oral Storytelling community, and he did manage to tell the rest of the story. As a young white man during the 1960’s, he traveled into the South with a team of eight in their teens and twenties to champion the cause of Freedom. Only two of them survived. The Race Wars would later come to be known as the Civil Rights Movement.

In his CD, The Hanging of Tom Brown, Jim Gregory gives a first-hand account of people who sacrificed for the cause of Freedom. With masterful storytelling, he brings those times alive and honors those that did not survive to tell their stories. Through the crafting of the stories, he has found healing and catharsis. As a storytelling performer, he often visits schools and communities to bring history back alive, to ensure that it is not forgotten, and bring us hope it will not be repeated.

“If you can take one or two logs out of a beaver dam, the dam collapses … maybe you just need to reach one or two people,” he says.

In this interview …

  • First-hand account of the Freedom Schools of the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960’s
  • Telling and healing from difficult stories
  • About his CD, The Hanging of Tom Brown

Find Jim Gregory online at JimGregoryStoryteller.com. Read more about his storytelling CD at HangingTomBrown.com. Contact him at [email protected].

Living the Present Moment – the Podcast Interview Series

“People of Passion and Purpose, Doing Interesting Things, Living the Present Moment”

Recorded: Fri Mar 29, 2019

Background Music: (public domain) Happy African Village by John Bartmann

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4 thoughts on “#29: Freedom Schools (Jim Gregory)”

  1. Jim Gregory says:

    Dr. Ying, Thank you for giving me the opportunity to talk about “The Hanging of Tom Brown” I am honored to have had the chance to speak with you. I am sorry about the dogs barking and the birds chirping but my wife and I love them and they won’t obey when they are told to hush.

    Reply
    • Dr. Joel Ying, MD says:

      Hi Jim, thank you for the gift of sharing your story, and reminding us of the sacrifices that many have made for freedom. The singing dogs and birds just add to the background music. Thank you again.

      Reply
  2. MONICA C. DUNKLEY says:

    What a BEAUTIFUL purple flower you have on your post this a.m.! Is it a lilly? Surely it is not an orchid! (my favorite).
    Pray, do tell. Peace all day, every day.

    Reply
    • Dr. Joel Ying, MD says:

      Taking root in the the mud and muck, to rise above the waters, reaching towards the air and opening up to the sun, the water lily is a beautiful gift to behold. I have heard the Buddhists describe it as an allegory for life.

      Reply

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