![]() 3 Photographs of the bombing and mob violence comprise some of the most well-known visual records of the 1961 Freedom Rides: White mobs attacking riders in the cramped hallway of a bus station, riders fleeing a burning Greyhound, the charred skeleton of the bus, empty and foreboding, on the side of the road, and riders sprawled out on the grass in a state of shock. This followed brutal attacks in Birmingham and Montgomery, all of which were overlooked, if not encouraged, by law enforcement. Outside of Anniston, Alabama, White mobs chased down and firebombed the Freedom Riders’ bus, barricading the doors in an attempt to trap them inside and severely injuring several demonstrators. Departing from Washington, DC, on May 4, the group encountered hostility as they traveled south. In 1961, CORE recruited interracial activists, clergymen, and college students to integrate bus and train stations throughout the South. Kennedy, who had made promises to protect every American’s constitutional rights. Virginia and the recently elected John F. A pendant to the headline “Racial Scene is Quiet Once More in Jackson,” the caption reads “Tired of ‘riders’ and their pictures? How’s this one for relief?” 1 The riders in question were participants in the 1961 Freedom Rides, a summer demonstration organized by CORE, the Congress for Racial Equality, to test the Interstate Commerce Act the more recent 1960 Supreme Court decision, Boynton v. It is the kind of image that would elicit a noncommittal chuckle if, in fact, the caption was not a telling example of Mississippi’s long-standing resistance to integration and the casual ways in which this sentiment permeated visual culture. ![]() In the photograph, a White baby sports sunglasses and a white bonnet, propping up a book titled How to Retire Young between his chubby fingers (1961, AP Wirephoto). A small, unremarkable image appeared at the bottom right corner of the issue of the Jackson, Mississippi, daily newspaper, the Clarion Ledger.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |