What were sit-ins and Freedom Rides? How did these tactics help the civil rights movement? What opposition did they encounter?
Because white Southern supporters of segregation were angered by the Brown decision, desegregation of public schools became a highly controversial issue. Governor Orval Faubus of Arkansas tried to prevent black students from enrolling in Little Rock High School. President Dwight Eisenhower ultimately had to send American troops to force the desegregation of the school and protect black students from threats of violence.
In 1960, black college students in Greensboro, North Carolina tried to order meals at a lunch counter in a local store. When they were refused service, they in turn refused to leave and "sat in." Such sit-ins were considered a form of "direct action" against segregation, which gained publicity for the civil rights movement and put pressure on businesses that supported segregation. Soon, students at many Southern colleges began sit-ins. Students also formed the Student Nonviolent Co-ordinating Committee (SNCC) in 1960. This organization became central to the civil rights movement. Indeed, for many young people SNCC (pronounced "Snick") was "the movement."
In 1961, black and white "Freedom Riders" tried to gain the right to ride buses that traveled from state to state. The buses on which they rode were sometimes attacked by angry supporters of segregation. The Freedom Rides were organized by SNCC.