In the spring of 1961, civil rights activists rode on buses into southern states to challenge the segregation of interstate buses and bus stations. In 1960, the Supreme Court had ruled in Boynton v. Virginia that segregation of bus stations was illegal. This followed the Court’s 1946 ruling in Morgan v. Virginia that prohibited segregation on interstate buses. However, the federal government had not enforced these rulings. In response, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) organized a Freedom Ride to draw attention to the issue. An interracial group of Freedom Riders departed from Washington, D.C., in two buses on May 4, 1961. Their ultimate destination was New Orleans. However, the ride took a violent turn in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where future Congressman John Lewis and another rider were attacked. The Riders continued on to Anniston, Alabama, where one of the buses was set on fire on May 14, 1961. The attackers in Anniston included members of the Ku Klux Klan. The violence attracted widespread attention and ultimately led the federal government to intervene to end segregation on interstate buses. The Freedom Rides helped to shape future activism in the Civil Rights Movement.
Freedom Riders
- Created By
Joel Breakstone, Stanford History Education Group
- Subjects
- Post-WWII Domestic Confidence and Unrest, 1945–1968: The Rise of Civil Rights, 1945–1965
Introduction & Context
Sources
Content Advisory: These archival materials may reference content that could be sensitive for some audiences. It is recommended that teachers and faculty preview these media sources to determine their appropriateness before sharing with students.
Interview With Diane Nash, Coordinator of the Nashville Freedom Riders (2009)
Interview With John Lewis (2009)
Interview With Delores Boyd (2009)
Interview With Historian Derek Charles Catsam (2009)
Interview With John Lewis (2009)
Interview With Freedom Rider Genevieve Hughes Houston (2009)
Reporter Moses Newson Describes Bus Attack (2009)
Interview With John Seigenthaler, Special Assistant to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (2009)
Interview With Catherine Burks-Brooks, a Student at Tennessee State University (2009)
Interview With Catherine Burks-Brooks, a Student at Tennessee State University (2009)
Teaching Tips Download PDF
This source set features a series of interviews about the Freedom Rides of 1961. Freedom Riders describe their motivations for participating and their experiences during the rides. Several of the interviews feature participants’ recollections of the attack on their bus in Anniston, Alabama, in 1961. These suggested activities provide opportunities to consider similarities and differences across sources and to identify the goals of the Freedom Riders.
Background Information
Before engaging with this resource set, students should be familiar with the following:
- Jim Crow laws
- The African American Civil Rights Movement
- The Montgomery Bus Boycott
- Student sit-in movement
Essential Question
What motivated the Freedom Riders?
General Discussion Questions
- What were the goals of the Freedom Rides?
- What happened to the Freedom Riders in Anniston, Alabama? How were the accounts of the events in Anniston similar? How did they differ?
- What were reactions to the attack in Anniston?
Classroom Activities
1) Topic: The role of the press
Ask students to watch the following sources:
- Interview With Diane Nash, Coordinator of the Nashville Freedom Riders (2009)
- Interview With Delores Boyd (2009)
- Interview With Historian Derek Charles Catsam (2009)
According to these sources, how did civil rights organizers support the Freedom Rides? What role did the press play in the Freedom Rides?
2) Comparing accounts of the attack
Ask students to watch the following sources:
- Interview With Freedom Rider Genevieve Hughes Houston (2009)
- Interview With Catherine Burks-Brooks, a Student at Tennessee State University (2009)
- Interview With John Seigenthaler, Special Assistant to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (2009)
- Reporter Moses Newson Describes Bus Attack (2009)
All of these sources address the attack on the Freedom Riders’ bus in Anniston, Alabama. How are the accounts similar? How are they different? How might the backgrounds of the speakers have influenced what they said about the attack?
3) Topic: Goals of the Freedom Riders
Ask students to watch the following sources:
- Interview With Diane Nash, Coordinator of the Nashville Freedom Riders (2009)
- Interview with John Lewis (2009)
- Interview With Catherine Burks-Brooks, a Student at Tennessee State University (2009)
What motivated these Freedom Riders to participate? How did they hope to enact change? How did these goals connect to the broader Civil Rights Movement?
Additional Resources
Citation
Breakstone, Joel. "Freedom Riders" WGBH and the Library of Congress. https://americanarchive.org/primary_source_sets/freedom-riders.
