Freedom Riders Research Paper

1572 Words7 Pages
The Freedom Riders The "Freedom Riders" movement began long before May 4, 1961. It started in 1944 when Irene Morgan Kirkaldy, a Black woman, was arrested in Middlesex County, Virginia for refusing to give up her seat on an interstate bus (Arsenault, 2006). She appealed her conviction to the United States Supreme Court (Arsenault, 2006). In 1946, the Supreme Court ruled that Virginia law was unconstitutional since the Commerce clause protected interstate traffic (Arsenault, 2006). The Freedom Riders, a group of Christian civil rights activist, were determined to change the world they lived in by challenging the Jim Crow laws in southern states (Arsenault, 2006). The Freedom Riders sought to test the new laws that had been put in place (Arsenault,…show more content…
The Journey of Reconciliation was a huge success (Arsenault, 2006). Members of CORE continued to fight against Jim Crow laws and planned another ride similar to the Journey of Reconciliation (Arsenault, 2006). This movement gained the attention of many from near and far. In 1961, CORE changed the name of the rides to the Freedom Ride (Arsenault, 2006). On May 4, 1961 the first Freedom Ride took place in Washington, DC on trailways and Greyhound buses (Arsenault, 2006). According to Arsenault (2006), the Freedom Ride included 13 riders, seven Blacks and six Whites. The Freedom Ride toured a number of cities and states, including Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. The first Freedom Ride ended in New Orleans with a large rally of supporters (Arsenault,…show more content…
Therefore, Nash organized a new group of Freedom Riders to continue the Freedom Rides. The new group consisted of 10 Blacks who were primarily students from Black colleges, such as Fisk University. The new group of Freedom Riders experienced the same type of violence as the first group. According to Bjornlund (2007), the bus drivers refused to drive the Freedom Riders because of the violence. John Patterson, Governor of Alabama, and Greyhound, Inc. “provided the Freedom Riders with a driver and police protection because of pressures from the Kennedy administration” (Bjornlund, 2007). Unfortunately, this solution did not ensure the safety of the Freedom Riders. When the bus reached Montgomery, Alabama the Alabama Highway Patrol abandoned the Freedom Riders (Arsenault,
Show More
Related

  • Freedom Riders Research Paper

    1230 Words  | 5 Pages

    The History of the Freedom Riders During the 1960s, the struggle for civil rights had become more defined than ever. Nearly 100 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, African Americans in Southern states still inhabited a starkly unequal world of disenfranchisement, segregation and various forms of oppression (Staff, History.com, 2009). African Americans were commonly known as Coloreds, they were up against hard laws and white people that thought Coloreds’ were second-class to their race. The

    Read More

  • Freedom Riders Research Paper

    693 Words  | 3 Pages

    Bravery, fearlessness, and determination are the words I would use to describe this film. “Freedom Riders” is truly an inspirational story from beginning to end. Despite two earlier Supreme Court decisions that ordered the desegregation of interstate travel facilities, black Americans in 1961 continued to endure hostility and racism while traveling through the South. In addition, it seemed that newly inaugurated President Kennedy did little to address the issue. The Congress of Racial Equality, CORE

    Read More

More about Freedom Riders Research Paper

Open Document