Freedom Riders Recognition Resolution of 2026

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Chairman Phil Mendelson Councilmember Anita Bonds 4
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Councilmember Matthew Frumin Councilmember Brooke Pinto 9
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Councilmember Christina Henderson C ouncilmember Robert C. White, Jr. 14
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Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau C ouncilmember Janeese Lewis George 19
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A CEREMONIAL RESOLUTION 27
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 30
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To recognize and honor the Freedom Riders, civil rights activists who risked their lives to travel 34
to Southern states in protest of racial segregation. 35
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WHEREAS, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was founded in 1942 by James Farmer to 37
combat racial injustice and end discriminatory laws throughout the United States; 38
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WHEREAS, the mission of CORE was to bring equality for all, regardless of race, sex, age, 40
disability, sexual orientation, or religious or ethnic background; 41
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WHEREAS, Supreme Court rulings in Morgan v. Virginia in 1946, Gayle v. Browder in 1956, 43
and Boynton v. Virginia in 1960 overturned state laws permitting segregation on interstate buses and in 44
bus terminals; 45
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WHEREAS, these rulings proceeded to be openly and brazenly violated, with opponents 47
coordinating political strategies of massive resistance, enforcing Jim Crow laws, and attacking and 48
murdering those who resisted; 49

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WHEREAS, from April 9 th to April 23rd, 1947, sixteen members of CORE participated in the 51
Journey of Reconciliation, embarking on buses from Washington, D.C. and traveling through Virginia, 52
North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky in open defiance of state laws requiring passengers to sit in 53
designated areas according to their race; 54
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WHEREAS, Black and white participants who re fused to move faced assaults and arrests, with 56
three participants in the Journey of Reconciliation ultimately being sentenced to work in segregated chain 57
gangs; 58
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WHEREAS, in response to continued defiance of Supreme Court rulings, CORE organized the 60
Freedom Rides in 1961, with the first bus departing from Washington D.C. on May 4th and additional 61
trips planned through the end of the year; 62
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WHEREAS, the Freedom Riders faced violent mob attacks, often supported by the police, 64
including several attacks in which assailants threw firebombs into the buses in an attempt to burn 65
occupants alive; 66
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WHEREAS, international press coverage of the Freedom Rides led to criticism and 68
condemnation of the U.S., with countries including France, the Soviet Union, the People’s Republic of 69
China, and Mexico arguing that racism belied American claims of a free and democratic society; 70
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WHEREAS, organizers rejected the federal administration’s request for a “cooling off period,” 72
instead escalating the campaign with more than sixty rides organized throughout the summer months of 73
1961; 74
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WHEREAS, in the month of July, 1961, more than 300 Freedom Riders were incarcerated 76
simultaneously; 77
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WHEREAS, 75% of Freedom Riders ultimately were arrested for refusing to comply with 79
segregation laws; 80
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WHEREAS, amongst others, DC-area natives Joan Trumpauer Mulholland, Genevieve Hughes 82
Houghton, and Gwendolyn T. Britt participated in the Freedom Rides; 83
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WHEREAS, amongst others, Howard University students Hank Thomas, John Moody, Kwame 85
Ture, and Dion Diamond participated in the Freedom Rides; 86
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WHEREAS, the Freedom Singers amplified the messages of the civil rights movement through 88
gospel music and call-and-response spirituals, performing across the country and before a crowd of more 89
than 250,000 at the March on Washington in August 1963; 90
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WHEREAS, throughout the civil rights movement, CORE and other organizations, including the 92
Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and the 93
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, organized acts of civil disobedience in the 94
form of sit-ins, bus boycotts, and public marches and demonstrations; 95
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WHEREAS, Black Americans have continued to fight for racial equality, opposing state-imposed 97
voting laws, voter suppression efforts, segregation in public schools, educational discrimination, housing 98
discrimination, employment discrimination, and other forms of legal and illegal injustice; 99
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RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, that this resolution 101
may be cited as the “Freedom Riders Recognition Resolution of 2026”. 102
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Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columb ia hereby recognizes all of the Freedom Riders who 104
fought against racism and segregation, courageously facing violence and arrests, and risking their lives to 105
ensure a better, more equitable future. 106
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Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect im mediately upon the first date of publication in the 108
District of Columbia Register. 109