Spanning nearly 15 years and over 80 hours of footage, The Hill Country Project's Oral History Collection began with the simple idea to record the stories of Benton County resident's lives before and during the civil rights movement.
Initiated in 1995 by civil rights volunteers Aviva Futorian and Gloria Clark, along with Roy DeBerry, (once a Freedom School student of Aviva's), and Wil Colom, 10 residents were interviewed at first.
The project continued again in 2003 during a civil rights reunion in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Joining Aviva Futorian in Mississippi was John Lyons, a Chicago filmmaker who had edited the original 10 interviews into a one hour film for the reunion called My Mind Stayed on Freedom. Along with Roy DeBerry, they continued interviewing residents about their life experiences in Benton County. Invariably, the topic of Benton County's current condition was raised, both on camera and off, by residents who felt the county could and should be more prosperous. From these discussions, the idea for founding the Hill Country Project was born.
To date, over 40 residents of Benton County have been interviewed, from the 101 year old Emmerline Robinson to current high school students. Also included are veterans of the local Civil Rights movement and their children (many of whom integrated the Benton County school system).
An archive on both DVD and transcripts is currently being built. Many interviews are available in transcripts and DVDs. Contact the Hill Country Project for more details.
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"Being in it was so good. I guess I didn't think about pulling out because being in it was so good."
-90 year-old Sarah Robinson when asked if she had ever considered leaving the civil rights movement in Benton County.
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