Photo: Library of Congress | Wikimedia Commons | Nathan Dumlao
In 1961, more than 400 people across the US traveled to the Deep South in an effort to desegregate bus stations. The Freedom Riders rode on buses using whites-only restrooms, lunch counters and waiting areas. Often the buses were met with angry mobs, and dozens of peaceful protestors were thrown in jail. Now in their 70s and 80s, six Freedom Riders share their responses to the Black Lives Movement. They speak of being inspired to see young people speaking out against racism, dismay at violent riots, the tipping point parallel of George Floyd to Emmett Till, the spirit of song, the core role of nonviolence and an unwavering faith in humanity. Charles Person, who rode on one of the first two Freedom Rides when he was 18 years old, says, "What I did carry with me, and always will carry with me, is that in the end, there were 436 Freedom Riders. Half of them were white and half of them were black. I know that no matter how rough things get, that in this world, there are a lot of good people."
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