Irene Morgan v. Virginia: Supreme Court Strikes Down Interstate Bus Segregation

On June 3, 1946, the Supreme Court rules in Morgan v. Virginia that Virginia cannot enforce bus segregation on interstate routes. Irene Morgan, who refused to give up her seat on a Greyhound bus in 1944, is vindicated. The decision is largely ignored by bus companies and Southern states. CORE tests compliance through the 1947 Journey of Reconciliation — a forerunner of the 1961 Freedom Rides — in which riders including Bayard Rustin are arrested in North Carolina and sentenced to a chain gang.