A History of the Civil Rights Movement

SIT-IN S AND FREEDOM RIDES

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Right: Members of the “Washington Freedom Riders Committee,” enroute to Washington, D.C., hang signs from bus side windows to protest segregation as they travel through New York City, 1961. Below: A map that was reproduced in newspapers showing the bus routes of the 1961 Freedom Rides through the South.

buses. New regulations were drafted that went into effect in November 1961. They over ruled local segregation ordi nances. Passengers were allowed to sit wherever they wanted on interstate buses and trains. The regulations also called for removal of “White” and “Colored” signs from ter minals. Drinking fountains,

restrooms, and waiting rooms were to be shared by everyone, regardless of skin color. This was an important victory for the Civil Rights Movement, although it would take years before facilities in the South were fully inte grated.