Freedom Riders Thesis

The American Freedom Rides were motivated by the ‘Journey of Reconciliation’ in 1947, “led by civil rights activists Bayard Rustin and George Houser”1. The Freedom Rides in America involved riding a bus opposing the segregation of black and whites riding together in buses2.

1. Members of the Catholic or non-Trinitarians would be excluded from toleration under Maryland Law.

Thesis Statement: In this paper, I’m going to explore how the Civil Rights Movement first started, and the brutal events and forms of protest during this monumental moment in history. Looking at first-hand accounts from pivotal figures such as the leaders of the social movement organizations, I can properly recount the conditions and struggles in the fight for equality for African Americans. Covering these topics, I can properly describe the effects that came from each movement and the change that subsequently followed. Brown v. Board:

A group of people risked their life to obtain equality for African Americans in the south. The Freedom Riders were a group of around 13 people. Most of them were African Americans but there were always a few white skinned people in the group as well. There was no set leader for the Freedom Riders. The Freedom Riders rode interstate buses into the Southern United States. The south was referred to as the most segregated part of the U.S. The main goal of the Freedom Riders was to desegregate and become “separate but equal.” They had also set out to defy the Jim Crow Laws. The Freedom Riders had a little bit of help from two court cases: Irene Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia and Boynton v. Virginia. These court cases ruled that it was

The African-American population was highly persecuted, although instead of being cast aside and thought to be useless they were kept as slaves. Many of the Black populous attempted to rise up against their white masters but they were easily cut down by the government and everyone else around them. To deal with this, the African-Americans turned to God and began following Christian practices in their homes and families. This created a massive Christian culture among them. Many people eventually rose up, and on December 1, 1955, a woman named Rosa Parks went against the government’s rule of black and white segregation in the bus system. Her act was the start of many non-violent protests which included; sitting in, marches and the Freedom Riders. The Freedom Riders were a group of people, of both black and white ethnicity who drove through the south of the United States to prove the point of racial equality. This proved effective, as did the other non violent protests, set up by Martin Luther King Jr. He was one of the few black ministers to rise up for his people. Although Martin Luther King Jr. was effective throughout his life, his death was the most influential part of his work. His death was a catalyst which eventually drew the government to allow basic civil rights, stopping the oppression of

During the early 1930’s through the mid 1960’s there were many different approaches African American’s took for achieving social changes, and the Civil rights they deserved. Many great African American leader’s such as Martin Luther King Jr, Malcom X, and James Baldwin contributed towards the betterment of blacks living in America. Aside from individual African American leaders there was also groups that fought for black civil rights such as The Black Power Movement, Black Panthers, and Civil Rights Activist. Other events that transpired during this time period had also effected the civil rights movement in America. For instance: The altercation with Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white male ultimately led to The Montgomery Bus boycott protest,

Following, on May 4, 1961, a mixed group of 13 African Americans and white civil rights activist led the Freedom Rides (Freedom Rides?). Similar, to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the Freedom Rides traveled to various cities in the south to protest against segregation of the bus terminals. History.com staff concurs “the Freedom Rides, a series of bus trips through the American South to protest segregation in interstate bus terminals.” The purpose of the freedom riders was to openly disobey the Jim Crow laws in the south in a nonviolent fashion. This was a dangerous journey, many of these people were beaten, arrested, and even the buses were destroyed. Yet, they persevered (“Freedom Riders: The Nashville Connection”). History.com staff, adds “The Freedom Riders, were recruited by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), a U.S. civil rights group, they departed from Washington D.C., and attempted to integrate facilities at bus terminals along the way in the Deep South.” African Americans would try to use the “whites only” bathrooms and counters, which attracted attention and violence (Freedom Rides). According to the history.com staff due to the efforts of the Freedom Rides, “in September 1961, the interstate Commerce Commission issued regulations prohibiting segregation in bus and train nationwide.” The

42. Freedom Riders tried to draw attention to the South’s refusal to integrate bus terminals.

In 1964 there was a protest outside the US consulate in Canberra that two thousand people had attended to protest about racial segregation and civil rights in the United States. Many people of the general public stated things such as if protesters are going to so much trouble why not protest about racial segregation within our own country. These comments had lead to the making of our own Australian Freedom Riders which were based on the American Freedom Riders who were making a difference with civil rights and discrimination in America. They travelled across America to raise awareness of the issues when it came to the African-American’s rights and they helped achieve equality. The Australian Freedom Riders helped in achieving freedom for

The Freedom rides were put together by Mr. Farmer and consisted of a mixed race of people. They all followed the rule: “Jail no bail.” This ride was non-violent and resulted in turmoil near the south. This smart idea made James Farmer a powerful leader in the Civil Rights movement. No one had the same amount of courage and fight inside as he did.

Stanley Nelson chronicles the journey of a group of individuals, known as the Freedom Riders, whom fought for the rights of African Americans to have the same amenities and access as the Caucasians. The purpose of the Freedom Rides was to deliberately violate the Jim Crow laws of the south that prohibited blacks and whites from mixing together on buses and trains. Expectedly, many of the Freedom Riders were beaten and the majority was imprisoned. This carried on for the majority of 1961 and culminated with the Interstate Commerce Commission issuing an order to end the segregation in bus and rail stations. Nelson encapsulates this entire movement in about two hours. At the end of the two hours, the viewer is emotionally tied to the

This documentary showed a very dark time of American history, but in the dark is where the heroes come along. The people who took a stand and took part in the Freedom Rider is truly brave, and fearless, they are the people who made the America. Originally the Freedom Riders started with 13 African-American and white civil rights activists, who were recruited by the Congress of Racial Equality, departed from Washington, D.C., and attempted to integrate facilities at bus terminals along the way into the Deep South.

“Freedom Riders” were a group of people, both black and white, who were civil rights activists from the North who “meant to demonstrate that segregated travel on interstate buses, even though banned by an I.C.C. Ruling, were still being enforced throughout much of the South” (The South 16). The Riders attempted to prove this by having a dozen or so white and black Freedom Riders board buses in the North and travel through Southern cities. This was all “a coldly calculated attempt to speed up integration by goading the South, forcing the Southern extremists to explode their tempers” ('Freedom Riders' 20). The author of the Newsweek article stated this as the Southern opinion of the reason for the Freedom Riders. The

The movie Freedom Riders was important to the civil rights movement, which occurred in the 1990s during time this movie took place. The aim of freedom rides “was to call attention to blatant violations of recent Supreme Court ruling against segregation in interstate commerce” (Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards, Self). The civil rights movement was a fight for equality and police mortality. Freedom Writers takes place in the 1900s during the Watt’s Riot (LA civil rights movement). Blacks were fighting for equality and to be treated as equally as whites; they wanted less police brutality and they rioted for what they believed in.

In the1960s there was a lot of racial tension so any group that touched the tension was hated and sometimes even beaten or killed. The Freedom Rides were no exception, they started in 1961 and had a lot of hate and violence directed at them. They had two objectives, one was to go to New Orleans, Louisiana on a mixed race bus and the other was to test the enforcement of segregation on interstate buses. The Freedom Rides grew quickly and had a bit of support, but they did encounter a lot of hate by the public and by the police.There was an “original group of 13 Freedom Riders...seven African Americans and six whites—left Washington, D.C.”(Freedom Riders, A&E Television) on a greyhound bus to New Orleans, Louisiana. This evidence is significant because it shows that the Freedom Rides started of as a very small movement and it tells us that they were trying to go deep into the south on a mixed race public bus. It is important to realize that the first ride was a “interracial group of student activists under the... Congres of Racial Equality” (“Freedom Rides”, Civil Rights Digital Library) which is also known as CORE. CORE was just started only nineteen years before the first freedom rides, so it was a new organization but they were a big factor in the Civil Rights Movement. Lastly because of the “violence and arrests”people were drawn to the Freedom Rides “and hundreds of new Freedom Riders (joined) the cause.”(“Freedom Riders”, A&E