In 1892, thirteen people met at the Trinity AME Zion Church to discuss the formation of a new church. These pioneers formed a Christian fellowship based on love, trust, and hope: Shiloh Baptist Church. Years later, it stood at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement. The church hosted a reception for Freedom Riders in 1961. “The reception that night at Shiloh Baptist Church surpassed anything yet on our ride. A packed sanctuary filled us with encouragement.”

Brothers Robert and James Paschal ran the most popular restaurant in Atlanta serving black patrons in the ‘60s. Still a thriving business today, Paschal’s serves signature soul food dishes, like their classic fried chicken, which dates back to the 1940s. In 1961, the Freedom Riders met Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. here en route to their final destination in New Orleans. “Robert and James hosted us for dinner that night, once again demonstrating their commitment to the Movement.”

Established in 1968 by Coretta Scott King, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change upholds the values and causes for which MLK lived and died. Annually, nearly one million people travel to this National Historic Site to pay respect to his legacy. “Dr. King had led the Montgomery Bus Protest and communicated with President Eisenhower during the Little Rock Nine crisis in Arkansas. Already, he was a national and international figure whom we admired.”

Morehouse College is a historically black men’s college in Atlanta, GA. Since inception in 1867, Morehouse has produced extraordinary leaders, including MLK Jr. and Lonnie King. Lonnie King was integral in shifting change for the Black community, and Charles Person directly attributes King for inspiring him to become involved with the Freedom Rides. “My college marching began the first day of fall semester, 1960. It was not in protest of anything. It was to get to Morehouse.”

In 1961, Civil Rights activists on the Freedom Riders’ bus stopped at a bus station in Anniston, AL. Segregationists attacked them, breaking the windows and slashing the bus's tires. Today, the site features a mural of the bus and panels about the 1961 events. “In 1961, I got on a bus that was a comin’ my way. My bus brought about changes my parents’ generation hoped for in their dreams. Equal access in transportation [and] public facilities. It put me in dangers I never imagined.”

In 1961, Civil Rights activists on the Freedom Riders’ bus stopped at a bus station in Anniston, AL. Segregationists attacked them, breaking the windows and slashing the bus's tires. Today, the site features a mural of the bus and panels about the 1961 events. “In 1961, I got on a bus that was a comin’ my way. My bus brought about changes my parents’ generation hoped for in their dreams. Equal access in transportation [and] public facilities. It put me in dangers I never imagined.”

After the attack on the Freedom Riders’ bus, the bruised and beaten group went to the Anniston Memorial Hospital. Upon their arrival, they received no treatment and were confronted by an angry mob. Charles Person recounts hearing from his bus driver that a bus had been burned to the ground and fellow riders had been taken to the hospital. “We have received word that a Greyhound bus has been burned to the ground. Passengers are being taken to the hospital by carloads... Who made it?”

Before leaving for Birmingham, the Freedom Riders stopped at the Anniston Trailways Station where a mob of white men boarded and forced the Freedom Riders to segregate. Person was severely beaten, taking multiple punches to the face. “Picture a bus aisle. Narrow. Confined. Yet in that small space the hoodlums proceeded to punch, kick, shove, kick, club, kick, beat, kick, mug, and kick us toward where they thought we belonged. Where we always belonged in their minds. Back in the back.”

The Freedom Rides Museum honors the historic journey the Freedom Riders took in 1961. Through interactive exhibits, images of the protest, and voices of those involved, visitors get a sense of what it was to be a Rider. “In his most famous line President Kennedy challenged us: ‘And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.’ In 1961, we answered that challenge. We fulfilled that call. We did something for our country.”

The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute is a cultural and educational research center that shares the history of the Civil Rights Movement, documents the progress that has been made, and outlines how we can collaborate for a brighter future. “Well, we in the Movement--be it the Atlanta Student Movement or the Civil Rights Movement--had energy, had faith, had devotion. In abundance. We believed. We believed we could spark a fire that would be a light unto the country and the world.”

Bethel Baptist Church served as base for the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (ACMHR) in the Civil Rights Movement. The ACMHR's goal was to fight segregation using legal, non-violent means. The church was pastored by Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, who joined the fight for equality when all seemed lost, inspiring peaceful protest. “When the deacons couldn’t find a doctor to treat me, it was Bethel Baptist’s parsonage they headed for...Reverend Shuttlesworth came to my aid.”

Mississippi State Penitentiary is the oldest maximum-security prison in Mississippi. When they were jailed for civil disobedience in 1961, the Freedom Riders used songs to turn prison into a site for peaceful protest against segregation. Many freedom songs were improvised and adapted here. “They were imprisoned in the notorious Parchman Prison Farm. With no recourse left, with no way to continue, the Riders chose to sing. Their song began with a promise: "Buses are a comin’/Oh, yeah."

Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is the primary commercial airport for the urban hub. Commercial flights began in May 1946, and the Freedom Riders completed the last leg of their journey here, arriving at their final destination in New Orleans. “Entering the New Orleans airport felt like leaving Birmingham’s. White police officers, dressed in riot gear, greeted us in the same style Birmingham’s had bid us farewell. Sneers engraved their faces. Contempt gleamed from their eyes.”