On this day, November 13, in 1956

The US Supreme Court ruled that segregation on city buses was indeed unconstitutional. This court case was a reaction to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, in which the cities' black population fiercely resisted Alabama's segregation laws. The boycott was one of the most effective displays of community organization that occurred around the Civil Rights era. An elaborate system of 300 vehicles was turned into a carpool that catered to anyone in the community in need of transportation. Although the carpool was a constant target of police harassment, the boycotters successfully stayed off the cities' buses for an entire year. Interestingly, public transportation is still highly racialized and continues to be a site for community organizing.