Freedom Rides (may 19, 1961 – dec 10, 1961)

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The Freedom Rides started to test a 1960 Supreme Court decision that said segregation of interstate transit facilities, including bus terminals, and all facilities within, was unconstitutional. They started their ride in Washington DC and passed through Virginia and North Carolina with little public notice. In South Carolina three Freedom Riders, one of them a white WWII veteran, were attacked when attempting to enter a white-only waiting area. The next day the group split onto two different buses. when the original bus reached Anniston, Alabama it was surrounded by a white mob. The bus driver chose not to stop and the mob gave chase in automobiles. The tires on the bus blew out and someone threw a bomb in through the bus's window. When the Freedom Riders emerged they were viscously beaten by the mob. When the second bus reached Birmingham a similar scene repeated itself. Later attempts led to Freedom Riders being arrested and sent to maximum security prisons for trespassing. On some occasions the National Guard and Federal Marshalls had to get involved to stop the riots. The Interstate Commerce Commission didn't issue regulations in line with the law until 7 months after the Freedom Rides started and over a year after the Supreme Court decision that started them.

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