freedom ride

noun

often capitalized F&R
: a ride made by civil rights workers through states of the southern U.S. to ascertain whether public facilities (such as bus terminals) are desegregated
freedom rider noun

Examples of freedom ride in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web This was the impulse that led tens of thousands of young people to join the Peace Corps, participate in sit-ins, freedom rides, marches against segregation and the denial of the vote. New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024 In 1961, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) launched the freedom rides, in which Black and white civil rights activists sought to integrate interstate buses. TIME, 21 Mar. 2024 As freedom ride buses originating in the North arrived in the Jim Crow South, the activists confronted extreme violence from white supremacists. TIME, 21 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'freedom ride.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of freedom ride was in 1961

Dictionary Entries Near freedom ride

Cite this Entry

“Freedom ride.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/freedom%20ride. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

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