Freedom Riders The Freedom riders were a group of 13 African American and White civil right activists, the Supreme Court had abolished segregation in 1946 on the interstate buses and terminals, but African Americans in 1961 in the South were obligated to sit in the back of the buses, go to different ticket counters, use different restrooms, and eat at different restaurants (Infobase 1). This made them very irritated and even more determined to put an end to segregation, “in May 1961, CORE (Congress of Racial Equality), under the leadership of James Farmer, decided to send an interracial group of riders on buses starting in the District of Columbia and ending in New Orleans” (Infobase 1). The bus rides were very dangerous and many of the Freedom Riders got hurt. Many states were unaccepting of the Freedom Rides, “at several cities in Mississippi and Alabama, the riders were attacked by white mobs who brutally beat them using chains and baseball bats” (Infobase 2). In Alabama a bus was stopped, thrown at the bus were rocks, and bricks. People also slashed the tires, broke the windows, and through a firebomb in through one of the broken windows (The 1). Not only would people throw things they would also say very inappropriate things such …show more content…
Martin Luther King played a major role in the Freedom Rides, while in Springfield New Jersey he got the opportunity to speak at Jonathan Dayton Regional High School. The speech that he gave was titled “ Revolution In Religion” (Gold 2). During his speech he talked about the “three basic evils—racial injustice, poverty, and war” (Gold 3). Dr. Martin Luther King also vocalizes “ our organizations must take a stand, in a way they were not willing to do before, to make religion relevant to everyday life. At bottom, this is a moral issue. Who else can take a greater stand?” (Gold 4). What he is saying is organizations need to work to make a change in the community so that religion can be seen in everyday life without any