Freedom Riders Challenge
Interracial activists rode buses throughout the South to test desegregation laws in 1961, knowing violence awaited them. White mobs attacked them with baseball bats and metal pipes at multiple stops. One bus was firebombed outside Anniston, Alabama, nearly killing everyone aboard. Local police often cooperated with attackers rather than providing protection. The riders refused to stop despite severe beatings. Their persistence forced the Interstate Commerce Commission to enforce desegregation rules.
