60th Anniversary of the Freedom Rides

In May 1961, an ethnically diverse group of young people set out by bus from Washington DC to New Orleans to test a Supreme Court decision banning racial discrimination in interstate travel. Calling themselves Freedom Riders, they were met by angry mobs in the Alabama cities of Anniston and Montgomery.

In my historical novel Night on Fire, you can mark the 60th anniversary of their journey by reading the story of 13-year-old Billie Sims and her friend Jarmaine Jones, fictional characters who witness the very real violence in Anniston and decide to take a Freedom Ride of their own.

Albert Whitman & Co., publisher of Night on Fire, is honoring the Freedom Riders this month. Here is part of their campaign:

Albert Whitman & Co. email about Night on Fire