After Boynton v. Virginia (1960) banned segregated accommodations in interstate travel, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) initiated Freedom Rides to test compliance with that Supreme Court decision.

On May 4, 1961, boarding two Greyhound buses from Washington, DC, fifteen black and white riders hoped to integrate waiting rooms, restaurants, and restrooms along the route to New Orleans, Louisiana. Near Anniston, Alabama a white mob attacked, burned one bus, and brutally beat a number of Freedom Riders. The attack made international news, embarrassed America, and forced the attorney general to order police protection. Riders also were assaulted, arrested, and sometimes incarcerated in Birmingham, Montgomery, and Jackson, Mississippi, where many others, particularly college students, joined them. The rides continued through the summer and energized the civil rights struggle.