The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) in 1961 sponsored the first” freedom rides” to desegregate interstate bus travel. Despite pleads to the White House and FBI, for government protection, the riders encountered white violence. Their first integrated bus was overturned, and burned near Anniston, Alabama. In Birmingham, a second buzz was met by the Ku Klux Klan. As police chief Bull Connor passively watched clan members savagely attack the freedom riders with bats and chains, leaving one permanently brain damaged. But the rides continued later under the auspices of the SNCC. Buttons are. 1 3/4 and 1 1/2” in diameter. Please review all photos for condition and ask any questions prior to bidding. Thank you.