Police in Birmingham, Alabama decided to use violence to stop the campaign when it reached their state and chose Anniston for their first battle. They met physical violence in Rock Hill, South Carolina, as well as arrests, and proceeded on to Georgia. The Riders encountered little resistance in Virginia, but some were arrested in North Carolina. As an interracial group their intention was to sit wherever they wanted on buses and trains as well as to demand unrestricted access to terminal restaurants and waiting rooms. Before leaving they got intensive training including role-plays. Most of the riders were in their 40s and 50s. Led by CORE Director James Farmer, the first team of thirteen volunteer Freedom Riders left Washington, D.C., on, heading south. Kennedy had just entered the White House and, even though he was preoccupied by the Cold War with the Soviet Union, CORE expected that he could be pressured by nonviolent direct action to enforce the civil rights of African Americans. Commonwealth of Virginia, which ruled that legally enforcing segregation on interstate buses and trains was unconstitutional.ĭespite these two Supreme Court rulings, in 1961 African Americans were still harassed on interstate buses and facilities were segregated. The ruling also extended an earlier case, Morgan vs. The Supreme Court overturned Boynton’s conviction and ruled that state laws mandating segregation in waiting rooms, lunch counters, and restroom facilities for interstate passengers were unconstitutional. Virginia was a court case from 1958 involving a Howard University law student who was arrested for attempting to desegregate the whites-only Trailways bus terminal restaurant in Richmond, Virginia. Civil Rights Movement.ĬORE’s strategy was to take advantage of two new Supreme Court rulings. Although this initial freedom ride campaign was not regarded as a great success during its time, it inspired the 1961 Freedom Rides that fueled the U.S. In 1947, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) conducted a “Journey of Reconciliation” to direct attention toward racial segregation in public transportation in the Southern U.S.A.
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