The Free Men

by John Ehle

This moving narrative by John Ehle describes the experiences of a handful of dedicated young students, both black and white, during the 1963-64 civil rights protests in Chapel Hill, NC. The movement began through the efforts of three young two white UNC-CHapel Hill students, John Dunne, a gifted Morehead Scholar, and Pat Cusick, the grandson of the founder of the Ku Klux Klan in Alabama, and one student from the all-black North Carolina College in Durham, Quinton Baker. First published in 1965 by Harper & Row, 'The Free Men' was controversial but won the Mayflower Award for Nonfiction. It is now back in print by Press 53 with a new Afterword by the former UNC-Chapel Hill student, 'Daily Tar Heel' editor, and Pulitzer Prize-Winning journalist Wayne King.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

376 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2007

About the author

John Ehle (1925-2018) grew up the eldest of five children in the mountains of North Carolina, which would become the setting for many of his novels and several works of nonfiction. Following service in World War II, Ehle received his BA and MA at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he met the playwright Paul Green and began writing plays for the NBC radio series American Adventure. He taught at the university for ten years before joining the staff of the North Carolina governor Terry Sanford, where Ehle was a “one-man think tank,” the governor’s “idea man” from 1962 to 1964. (Sanford once said of Ehle: “If I were to write a guidebook for new governors, one of my main suggestions would be that he find a novelist and put him on his staff.”) Ehle was the author of eleven novels, seven of which constitute his celebrated Mountain Novels cycle, and six works of nonfiction. He had one daughter, actress Jennifer Ehle, with his wife Rosemary Harris, also an actress.

Reviews

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreaking at points - it is time we got this 1965 gem off the shelves and read it in 2024. Well written and researched, reported with a lot of heart from Mr Ehle.

[Athina Hinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an excellent, informative, historical read about an area local to me. Reading about the struggle for civil rights and access to public accommodations is so important as the fight for racial equity continues today. I would describe this book as inspiring and it led me to question what I myself was doing to be anti-racist.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another amazing, local history (to my area) book. John Ehle writes a good account of the events surrounding the Civil rights protests that took place in Chapel Hill, NC, in the early 1960s. (I read the original 1965 edition.)

[Sheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess I shouldn't rate all our books 5 stars. I may appear insincere, like I'm only peddling our wares. Okay, fine. You read it. I'll leave it to you. 5 stars, I'm telling you.