Eleven years before, students studying advertising, journalism and public relations at San Jose State University applied for a life-changing experience. Shortly after Barack Obama was elected president of the United States, the Journalism School selected ten students to travel by van to his 2009 inauguration via the landmarks of the Civil Rights movement in The South. The goal of this "education on wheels" project was to show a young generation just what it took for America to elect its first African-American president. This group of strangers from diverse Bay Area cultural communities, returned very emotional saying they were "bonded for life." Their eyes were forever opened by the cruelty, hardships and painful realities from hundreds of years of blatant acts of prejudice and cruelty in America. Each student vowed to keep these powerful "Lessons Learned" forefront in their minds, as they pursued once forbidden careers in media and other professions. Inauguration Trip organizers, Dr. D. Michael Cheers and Professor Bob Rucker decided to bring the group back together again in 2020 for their unique perspectives on the brutal police killing of George Floyd. Due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, this reunion had to be restricted, for health safety reasons, to teleconference interactions. Nevertheless, their passion for social justice continued to burn bright and deep in their lives. Juan Serna, SJSU Journalism Digital Media Manager, served as video editor, special projects co-producer and witness to these distinguished alumni's profound recollections connecting a new global protest movement against racism, with mankind's 400 year history of inhumane and unspeakable treatment of people of color.
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