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Freedom Rides - Coggle Diagram
Freedom Rides
Rode into the Southern states where racism and segregation was frequent and normalised
States include Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, ending in New Orleans, Louisiana where the rally was planned on 17 May 1961
14th May 1961: arrived in Anniston, Al
encountered by 200 white protesters
mobs followed buses, threw bomb into the bus
those who escaped were viciously beaten
Birmingham, Alabama
Trailways bus attacked by white mob
Birmingham Public Safety Commissioner Bull Connor posted no police protection due to it being Mothers Day
Group travelled through Virginia and North Carolina, drawing minimal public attention, violence intensified in the deep South
First incidence of violence on May 12 in Rock Hill, South Carolina
John Lewis and two other African-Americans were viciously attacked when entering a whites only area
Civil disobedience through non-violent means
Began on 4th May 1961
13 activists set out from Washington D.C in two separate buses
Greyhound
Trailways
Wanted to protest segregation in bus terminals
Used "white only" and "black only" facilities such as restrooms and lunch counters at bus stations
Graphic images drew international attention to racial injustice in the U.S
Wished to test the Supreme Court's ruling in "Bonyton vs Virginia (1960), which declared bus segregation to be unconstitutional
U.S Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy negotiated with Alabama Governor John Patterson - Agreed to provide police protection to the Freedom Riders
Police abandoned the riders
Faced bloody violence in Montgomery, Alabama
Attacked with baseball bats by a white mob
Attorney General Kennedy sent 600 federal marshals to quell the violence
Wished to nullify States rights of segregation and enforce Federal laws on transport companies in the South
Black and white riders seated themselves across all three areas with:
a black and white couple next to each other in the 'white' section
a black also up the front in the 'white' section
other rides scattered throughout the bus
one black rider at the back of the bus
Violence encouraged by Alabama authorities, and perpetuated by Klu Klux Klan (KKK) members and white counter protesters
Media reporting of Freedom Rides and violence to the U.S government embaressed the U.S Government
Shined a light on the vicious and crude racism in the U.S, especially in the Southern States
Government tried to persuade them to stop protesting, so that things could 'cool off'
The protesters refused
In September, the ICC ordered bus companies to introduce desegregation
Companies had until 1 November 1961 to desegregate all their buses and the toilets, waiting rooms and eating areas at all their bus stations
Key figures/groups included
-Martin Luther King Jr
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
13 Freedom Riders
KKK/white mobs
Protesters consisted of activists from the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)