Deep in Our Hearts is a one-hour radio documentary. It’s a powerful collection of stories that take us into the lives of a group of young, white women who came of age in the era of the civil rights movement, participated actively in it and were, in many ways, transformed by it. The diversity of their voices belies any simple one-dimensional profile of whites in the movement. They were not all upper-class students from the east coast, as the participants of Freedom Summer are sometimes portrayed. They are Irish, Jewish, and southern. Some grew up in poverty and some in the suburbs. They came from families that openly treated blacks as subordinates, and from families that worked for social justice. 

These first person accounts by four white women activists- Connie Curry, Elaine DeLott Baker, Joan Browning, and Penny Patch, represent voices that are not often heard from. As the Black Power phase of the freedom movement emerged, many white participants were reluctant to speak about their experiences. This story breaks that silence, But it does more than that. It’s a story, not just of the events in the 1960s, but also of how people choose to live their ideals. It’s a story that transcends time and speaks to all of us about morality, and conviction, and continued commitment to values we believe in.  More about the show...

Historian Charles Hardy says of the documentary:

“This is a truly under-reported part of the history of the Civil Rights movement that Public Radio's audience should find absolutely fascinating. It is a timeless story about courage and change, and the unintended consequences of committing oneself to a great cause.  And about the complexity that lurks beneath the surface of things we think we know but do not.”

The project producer is award-winning journalist, Sandra Sleight-Brennan . The documentary won:

First Place- Mid-Length Documentary, Gracie Allen Awards,
              American Women in Radio & TV. 2005

            First Place - Radio Documentary, Ohio Excellence in Journalism Award,
            The Press Club of Cleveland. 2005

            First Place - Public Radio Documentary, Clarion Award, The Association of Women
            In Communication. 2005

            Third Place - Feature or Human Interest Story, National Headliner Awards. 2005

  Listen to an MP3 sample of the program                                                    
 

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