Established in Alabama by Barrack Obama in 2017, Freedom Riders National Monument is a must-see monument for RV lovers interested in the Civil Rights Movement. The history of the Freedom Riders dates back to 1961 when interracial activists known as “Freedom Riders” challenged the non-enforcement of the United States Supreme Court decisions of Morgan v. Virginia and Boynton v. Virginia. These decisions ruled that segregated public buses were unconstitutional, however, in a lot of states racial segregation on public buses was still happening.
The actions of the Freedom Riders were not accepted by many of Americans and famously they were attacked via firebomb by white segregationists. These images appeared in hundreds of newspapers, shocked the wider American public, and spurred the Federal Government to issue regulations that finally banned segregation in interstate travel.
The Freedom Riders National Monument is located over two different sites in and around Anniston, Alabama that were historically significant to the events that unfolded. The first site is the old Greyhound Bus building where a group of segregationists attacked the bus carrying African American and white Freedom Riders. The second is located around six miles from the Greyhound station where the bus was burnt. While you are in Anniston also check out the Anniston Civil Rights and Heritage Trail. This trail includes nine sites associated with the struggle for civil rights in Anniston, including the Greyhound Bus Station.
While there are no RV-friendly campgrounds at the Freedom Riders National Monument there are many to choose from within the Talladega National Forest, including two "improved" campgrounds at Cheaha State Park. The Freedom Riders National Monument is open all year round and the visitor center is open Monday through Friday.