Freedom Rides of 1961

Freedom Rides of 1961 were a series of interstate bus trips organized by black and white activists from CORE and SNCC, launched on 4th of May 1961 in Washington, DC, with the aim of travelling through the segregated southern states of Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and lastly, Alabama.

Purpose of Freedom Rides
The purpose of Freedom Rides was to attract national attention to the non-enforcement of the Supreme Court’s rulings which outlawed racial segregation on all interstate forms of transport as well as the facilities(Boynton v. Virginia 1960, Keys v. Carolina Coach 1955, and Morgan v. Virginia 1946), and cause the newly formed government to take action against it.

First Ride
The First Ride consisted of a group of 13 activists who were placed on Trailways or Greyhound buses, in a specific pattern: a black Rider was seated in the front area of the bus, traditionally reserved for white passengers according to the governing Jim Crow laws, and at least one interracial pair in adjoining seats. The rest of the Riders were positioned throughout the vehicle, one of them in the back of the bus following the rules, and therefore serving as a “safety guarantee”, to be able to inform CORE about the current situation and arrange bail if needed.

While the ride through Virginia and the Carolina was rather peaceful, the activists encountered severe aggression from whites in the racist Alabama, where Birmingham Police Commissioner “Bull” Connor allowed a mob to violently harass them for 15 minutes without police intervention, in an attempt to shut down the Freedom Ride. The Riders were attacked in Birmingham by the local Ku Klux Klan and at Montgomery bus terminal, and were refused medical help. On May 21st, a white mob assembled around Reverend Ralph Abernathy’s First Baptist Church in Montgomery, and due to fear of a possible bloodbath, the black leaders of the community asked John F. Kennedy for assistance, who in turn ordered the state governor to use National Guard to disperse the crowd.

Consequences
The aftermath of Freedom Rides was the attention the issue of segregation in USA got, both on a national as well as international level, throwing light on the Southern states’ racism, as well as the violence executed by the opponents of the Civil Rights Movement, due to the publicity given by the media. It was the final blow to the racial segregation present in the public transport, as the government addressed the issue, and changes followed - for example, signs directing to “black areas” and “white areas” were taken down.

Significance
The significance of Freedom Rides is mostly seen in their impact on the Civil Rights Movement, as the activists participating in the direct actions gained respect and credibility among black and white people, especially in the South, which shaped the future of the movement as it inspired and motivated others to join it. The Freedom Rides also helped the further “development” of the three major organizations fighting for civil rights: CORE, SNCC and SCLC, as they supported the direct approach, of which the Rides were a good example.