David Healey and Les Lamon

Dr. Les Lamon was a long-time history Professor at IU South Bend. In 2000, he started the Freedom Summer class that brought students on a bus tour through the civil rights movement in the U.S. South. David Healey was a student in that class. Inspired by his experience, he became an early founding member of the Civil Rights Heritage Center on campus and led the early Oral History program. His efforts preserved the life stories of dozens of local people— the very stories we’ve shared on this podcast.

David passed away in March 2010—two months too soon to see the results of his research and organizing to transform the former Engman Public Natatorium.

In May 2009, Les and David were on a road trip to Fort Wayne—and Les turned on the tape recorder. He and David talked about their inspirations as white men to study the African American civil rights movement, and about forming and leading the early days of the Civil Rights Heritage Center.

This episode was produced by Jweetu Pangani from the Ernestine M. Raclin School of the Arts at IU South Bend, and by George Garner from the Civil Rights Heritage Center.

Full transcript of this episode available here.

We’re going to take a two-month break from releasing episodes so our IU South Bend student producers can concentrate on finishing their semester’s classes. Look for a new year of local stories beginning January 26, 2022, with longtime firefighter, police officer, and Mayoral staffer Jack Reed.

Want to learn more about South Bend’s history? View the photographs and documents that helped create it. Visit Michiana Memory at http://michianamemory.sjcpl.org/.

Title music, “History Explains Itself,” from Josh Spacek. Visit his page on the Free Music Archive, http://www.freemusicarchive.org/.