Raymond Arsenault

Raymond Arsenault
Born (1948-01-06) January 6, 1948 (age 76)
Hyannis, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma materPrinceton University
Brandeis University
Occupation(s)Academic, historian
EmployerUniversity of South Florida
Known forFreedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice (2006)
SpouseKathleen Hardee Arsenault
Children2 daughters
WebsiteRaymond Arsenault

Raymond Ostby Arsenault (born January 6, 1948) is an American historian and academic in Florida, United States of America. He has taught at the University of South Florida, St. Petersburg campus since 1980, co-founding the Florida Studies Program (with Gary Mormino).[1][2] Arsenault is a specialist in the political, social, and environmental history of the American South.

Arsenault wrote about the 1961 Freedom Rides in a 2006 book, Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice. His work on this critical period in the civil rights movement became the basis of a two-hour 2010 television documentary film, Freedom Riders.[3] He appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in an episode dedicated to Freedom Riders.[4][5] He has been awarded the Frank L. and Harriet C. Owsley Award of the Southern Historical Association and the 2006 PSP Award for Excellence Honorable Mention History & American Studies.[6]

  1. ^ Program Faculty, University of South Florida St. Petersburg.
  2. ^ "Faculty: RAYMOND O. ARSENAULT, PH.D., John Hope Franklin Professor of Southern History | Florida Studies Program Cofounder and Senior Scholar". University of South Florida.
  3. ^ Freedom Riders, About the Film, PBS, April 1, 2023.
  4. ^ Mitchell, Stephanie, "Q&A with Southern Historian Raymond Arsenault", The Oprah Winfrey Show, May 4, 2011.
  5. ^ "Freedom Riders get their due | Raymond Arsenault '69 shines spotlight on activists' courage". Princeton Alumni Weekly. May 11, 2011.
  6. ^ "Raymond Ostby Arsenault", Vita2012.