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The Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-1968 makes its West Coast debut today at the Skirball Center. It features more than 160 images that were taken by professional and amateur photographers and social activists to chronicle the injustice in America and helped build the momentum for the civil rights movement.
In addition to notable historical figures like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., the Skirball has also assembled photos from Los Angeles civil rights history—including the picketing of the Kress Store in Pasadena in 1960 and the Watts Riots of 1965—and a documentary on the role of Jewish Americans in the movement.
Accompanying the Road to Freedom is the Breach of Peace exhibit, which displays 40 contemporary portraits by photographer Eric Etheridge of Freedom Riders, who, in 1961, converged on Jackson, Mississippi to challenge state segregation laws. Etheridge's shots are displayed alongside the Freedom Riders' original mug shots.
The Road to Freedom runs through March 7, 2010. The Breach of Peace exhibit runs through April 11, 2010. Admission to the Skirball: $10 General; $7 Seniors and Full-Time Students; $5 Children 2-12; Free to Skirball Members and Children under 2; Free to all visitors on Thursdays
