Sixty years ago this month, in May 1961, Black and white people known as the Freedom Riders put their bodies and lives on the line for racial justice. They tested a 1960 Supreme Court decision (Boynton v. Virginia) that banned segregation in interstate transportation facilities by having interracial groups ride interstate buses in the South and attempt to integrate bus station facilities that continued to illegally practice segregation. This simple act was met with great resistance and violence. In Anniston, AL a Greyhound bus filled with Freedom Riders was fire bombed (see photo above). In both Birmingham and Montgomery, AL local law enforcement officials allowed white mobs to brutally beat any rider they could put their hands on (see photo of John Lewis and Jim Zwerg above). In Jackson, MS Freedom Riders were arrested and sent to the notorious maximum security prison known as Parchman. They were ironically charged with the crime “Breach of Peace” (see photo of some Freedom Riders’ mug shots above). Yet even in the face of this state sanctioned oppression, their faith and commitment to racial justice finally led to the desegregation of interstate bus facilities by the end of 1961. For a brief overview of the Freedom Rides, watch the short video posted below. It comes from an excellent documentary called “Freedom Riders” by PBS which is available as part of the American Experience series.
During the past decade in general and this past year in particular, it is painfully clear that the struggle for racial justice is far from over. As we continue to reveal and resist systemic racism in our time, the witness of the Freedom Riders remains a powerful model of interracial solidarity and partnership. They were ordinary people who accomplished extraordinary things in the face of overwhelming odds. Their witness and legacy remind me of these words from the Biblical book of Hebrews in chapter 12:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us…