Calvin Trillin: Riding the First Bus into Jackson

The first Freedom Riders arrived in Jackson, MS, forty-seven years ago on May 24th of this year. Twelve Riders came on the first bus to the Trailways station. A second bus later the same day brought another fifteen Riders. The Mississippi segment of the Rides—with its emphasis on “jail no bail” and goal of overloading Jackson’s city and county jails—had begun. It would not end for another 113 days, when the last group of riders, 15 Episcopal priests, were arrested on September 13th.

In addition to the Riders, there were several reporters on the first bus, including Calvin Trillin, then a young reporter for Time. Breach of Peace author Eric Etheridge interviewed him recently about that experience. After the jump, a transcript of that interview.