Diane Nash Plans the Freedom Rides of 1961

Diane Nash was twenty-three years old. She was brave and quiet and strong. She believed every person deserved to be treated with kindness. She believed that was worth fighting for. In 1961, buses rolled across America. But in the South, the rules were not fair. Black passengers had to sit in the back. They could not use the same waiting rooms. Diane knew this was wrong. Some brave riders called Freedom Riders had already tried to change things. They rode buses together, side by side. But angry mobs stopped them. The buses were burned. The riders were hurt. Many people wanted to stop. Diane would not stop. She sat at a wooden desk in Nashville. She picked up the phone. She called the leader of the Freedom Riders. Her voice was calm and clear. She said, "We will keep riding. We cannot let violence win." Her friends were afraid. Diane was afraid too. But she told them something important. "We knew we might not come back," she said softly. "But we knew it was right." New riders packed their bags. They stepped onto the buses. They rode through the hot Southern sun. They sat together, all colors side by side. Police waited. Crowds gathered. But the riders did not turn back. Their courage filled the whole country like morning light. The government finally listened. New rules came. The signs on the waiting rooms came down. The back-of-the-bus rule ended. Diane Nash had helped make America a little more free. Tonight, little one, close your eyes. The bus rolls quietly down a long road. The stars shine above it. Everyone on that bus was brave. You can be brave too. Goodnight.