American Experience

The Pioneers: A Short Film from Freedom Riders

Clip: Season 23 Episode 11 | 3m 4s

Watch Full Length

In April 1947 sixteen men - eight black and eight white - boarded a bus in Washington, DC to test compliance with a recent Supreme Court ruling that outlawed segregation on interstate bus travel. Their effort blazed a trail for the Freedom Riders who followed in their footsteps nearly fifteen years later.

Aired: 11/28/10

Rating: NR

Buy Now:

Problems Playing Video? | Closed Captioning

Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Support provided by:

American Experience.

Explore Free Resources
The Chinese Six Companies

Short

The Chinese Six Companies

On May 28, 1900, San Francisco policemen formed a perimeter around Chinatown as officials diagnosed bubonic plague in the neighborhood and wanted to quarantine the nearly 20,000 residents. As tensions flared, an influential group of merchants known as the Chinese Six Companies sprang into action.

Watch

More History Shows