Many people will argue that public transportation played a major part in the civil rights movement and before I watched Freedom Riders, I most likely would have disapproved of such an idea and not thought about it again. However, my perspective has changed dramatically. Public transportation is an essential piece of society and acts as a vital role in discrimination as well as equality. It has been used in the past at a social and political tool, directing the public’s attention towards a cause and acting as a symbol to the rest of society. Public transportation is still active in affecting the community and civil rights today in a larger way than may people may realize. And it can still be used as a political tool just as it was used in the past.
During the height of the civil rights movement in America, a plan was devised to attract the attention of the public and the government to the increasing issue of inequality and discrimination. This plan revolved around public transportation and was called the Freedom Rides. Public transportation at this time was separate but certainly not equal, reflecting the reality of society. As seen in Freedom Riders, various civil rights activists fought for their right to sit on a bus yet this simple act was really a protest on the ideals of the world around them. This is a perfect example for how essential public transportation was during this period. It represented the segregation and discrimination that were present and was a very effective tool in catching the attention of the nation. However, the buses that the were used in the Freedom Rides and other civil rights protests also came to represent equality, or rather the fight for equality. Public transportation today can be seen as a representation of social problems still, but can also be seen as the cause for many of these issues.
Public transportation directly affects the surrounding community. People are segregated due to the construction of interstates as well as the scarcity of trains and buses in more suburban areas. Though the discrimination is not primarily due to race, it is still an issue of civil rights. In “Dismantling Transportation Apartheid”, the authors discuss the equality of transport: “Some communities accrue benefits from transportation development projects, while other communities bear a disproportionate burden” (Bullard 45). Here they are talking about how separate areas receive varying amounts of attention from the public, including the government. This type of public problem is eerily similar to the kind that the Freedom Riders were drawing attention to half a century ago. Today, the issue is slightly different since it is no longer about race but economic standing and accessibility to public transport, which unfortunately can still be directly related to racial dilemmas. Public transportation is meant as a way for people to mix equally and often yet it has acted as a separation between different populations instead.
In the end, it is clear that public transportation is extremely important in determining and embodying the views of society at the time. It can be used as a tool to help change the way the world works or how people may see the world. Or it can be used as a wall put up between different economic classes and preventing true equality in cities and suburbs. Either way, public transportation shapes the society in which it is encompassed and has the power to make the difference and change that people want.
Citations:
Freedom Riders. 2010. PBS. Web.
Bullard, Robert D., Glenn S. Johnson, and Angel O. Torres. "Dismantling Transportation Apartheid." Sprawl City: Race, Politics, and Planning in Atlanta. Washington, D.C.: Island, 2000. Print.
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