Dr. James Garrett - Student Interview

1961 Freedom Rider, SNCC staff member in Mississippi and director of the Los Angeles SNCC office.

Oral history interview conducted by students in the senior class at Stuart Hall and Convent of the Sacred Heart high schools in San Francisco, April 2020.

Dr. James Garrett was born December 31st, 1942 in Dallas, Texas. He grew up in Texas and Louisiana until age 12 when his family moved to Los Angeles, California in 1956. While in high school he became involved in the Civil Rights Movement and has been involved in progressive movements all his life. He joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee as staff, serving as director of the Los Angeles office for a year. He rode on one of the final Freedom Rider buses in 1961, participated in multiple civil rights actions in Los Angeles and throughout the South. Dr. Garrett holds dual Ph.Ds in Political Philosophy and Sociology of Education. He has taught at Howard University, Harvard University and American University. He also worked for the United Nations on various projects. He is currently working with the Land Trust Movement the San Francisco Bay Area as well as continuing international work with the Sam Nujoma Foundation to build a world-class medical facility in Namibia.

Transcripts and more information about the project: https://www.ohpcrm.org/2020-interviews/james-garrett