Freedom Riders Research Paper

Freedom Riders is the inspirational story of six-month period in 1961 that helped changed America forever. Starting in May of 1961, over 400 individuals of many different races, religion, and background risked their freedom and lives while attempting to travel on buses in the “Deep South.” Despite two earlier Supreme Court decisions, the Freedom Riders were met with racism and violence along their journey for equality.
Even though desegregation of interstate travel had begun, black Americans were continually treated with hostility when traveling in the South. At the time civil rights were the last thing on the minds if the Kennedy administration. With the threat of nuclear holocaust, the administration put the rights of our own citizen on the
I did know about the issue of segregation even after laws had been passed to end such things. Being from the south it is kind of a black mark on our history, but it is something that everyone should know about. Now like everyone, I know about Martin Luther King Jr. and all his work with the Civil Rights Movement, but was very surprised and a bit taken aback with his reluctance to participate in the Freedom Rides. The Congress of Racial Equality, also known as CORE, was new to me. I knew of the NAACP and SCLC organizations and what some of their goals and agendas were during the same time period, but was not aware until the video of CORE’s existence. I did know that at the time the base of the democrat party was the white south, which still makes me chuckle considering that the political parties have gone 180 degrees since then ( or have they). The lackluster attitude of the Kennedy administration during this time of civil unrest was a bit surprising. While I understand that the threat of nuclear holocaust is important, the civil liberties of your countries population should be somewhere near the top of your to-do list as well. The name Bull Connor was something that I had learned in a prior American history class, but was unaware of his authority and position in the Alabama government as well as his role in the impediment of the Civil Rights movement. The film was excellent in both quality and content with plenty of members of the freedom riders’ testimony, which was nice hearing from a first person perspective of the events that happened. I would recommend the film to anyone that wanted to learn more about the Civil Rights Movement and anyone that wanted to take a look into government