THE GAME PLAN
FREEDOM RIDES
THE GOAL
MORE THAN VIOLENCE
ATTEMPTS TO STOP CHANGE
The CORE used their main goal to help organize their protests to fit the needs of the people around them. When it was discovered that most interstate bus stops and restaurants were not adhering to the new laws stating they must be integrated, the CORE, and many other Civil Rights Groups such as the SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) and SLCC, decided to protest the obvious disobedience of the law. In this way, the Freedom Rides were conceived.
“The goal of the CORE is to improve race relations and end discriminatory policies through direct-action projects.”
-- Congress of Racial Equality
The plan conceived was a simple one, have volunteers both white and colored seated on a bus and drive the bus south. The whites on the bus would sit in the back, while the blacks would sit in the front. When the bus reached an interstate bus stop, all would get off the bus and go inside. The whites would then use the facilities labeled “Colored” while the blacks would use those labeled “whites”. in this way, they would peacefully protest the segregation they were witnessing.
The Freedom rides started in April of 1961, and continued thru the end of the year. While on these rides, it was expected for Riders to be placed in jail, where they remained until released without posting bail.
As was to be expected throughout these rides, violence was encountered in many ways, but those involved, like James Farmer, felt that the need for change was far greater than the risk of personal injury. The destruction they encountered only made their goal more clear.
The violence they encounter was not always noted, however once it was clear the buses filled with protesters would not be able to go anywhere without the threat of more violence appearing to them, United State’s Attorney general Robert Kennedy ordered state officials to provide protection so the ride could continue. Many people, both black and white were brutally beaten, in some cases leading to death, or mysterious disappearances.