Freedom Rider to speak at HREI Friday at noon

The Human Rights Education Institute will host a Freedom Riders presentation Friday from noon to 1 p.m. Max Pavesic will share about his experience in the Freedom Rides of the early 1960s.

Pavesic, a student at UCLA, became a “Freedom Rider” in July 1961. He was part of the last Congress of Racial Equality group that traveled to Jackson, Mississippi. The group consisted of 13 students, one teacher, and one postal worker. Of those, 13 were male, two were female, six were black, and nine were white. They flew to New Orleans and from there they boarded an Illinois Central train to Jackson. They were arrested in the “Whites Only” waiting room, and later they were convicted of a misdemeanor, and eventually placed in the maximum-security block at the state penitentiary.

“Freedom Riders” were civil rights activists in the 1960s who rode interstate buses into the segregated South to challenge the segregation laws of waiting rooms and restaurants in bus terminals that had stayed in place, despite federal rulings against such laws. These non-violent protests bolstered the credibility of America’s Civil Rights movement.

Pavesic holds a doctorate degree and is a retired professor of archeology from Boise State University. He is the former chair of the Board of Directors for the Idaho State Historical Society. He currently resides in Portland, Ore.

The event will be held at the Human Rights Education Institute Center, 414 W Mullan Road, Coeur d’Alene — the northeast corner of Coeur d’Alene City Park, across from Memorial Field.

It is free and open to the public.

Info: (208) 292-2359