The City of Los Angeles recently recognized Ralph Fertig, a clinical professor at the USC School of Social Work, for his participation in the 1961 Freedom Rides, as part of a celebration to commemorate the historic journey's 50th anniversary.

Marking a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement, the trip brought together more than 400 activists who rode together on buses and trains across the South in non-violent protest of racial segregation in public transportation.

Fertig was one of several Freedom Riders who were honored by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the Los Angeles City Council last month. Fertig was one of the first to get on a bus to test a then-recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that outlawed racial segregation in terminals serving buses that crossed state lines.

"The Freedom Rides were a wonderful illustration of what Margaret Mead said – to never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world," Fertig said.

Fertig joined the Freedom Rides on June 1, 1961, when he boarded a bus in Atlanta, bound for Montgomery, Ala., with four other Freedom Riders. Known for his background in social justice, Fertig was hand picked by members of the movement, including Martin Luther King Jr., to help keep the momentum of the rides going until college students, who were finishing up their semesters, could join.

Fertig hesitated at first – he didn't want to be viewed as a "meddling outsider from up North," as he was living in Chicago at the time – but King convinced him by explaining that racial equality wasn't a matter limited to the South.

"No American is free anywhere in our country until all Americans can be free everywhere," King told him.

Fertig and fellow Freedom Riders quietly but forcibly integrated seating on their bus and tested the enforcement of separate-but-equal practices in bus stations. Fertig's experience was harrowing: not only was he verbally assaulted by people who didn't believe in the movement, he was also thrown in jail and physically beaten to near death by white inmates.

"We didn't know what we were facing," Fertig said. "We knew there was the possibility of being killed, but we decided that our little lives weren't as important as the cause."

Fertig and other Freedom Riders, including Rev. James M. Lawson Jr. and Helen Singleton, will relay their stories at this year's All School Day event, "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Equality," a tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Rides, on Feb. 14. Other participants include Raymond Arsenault, author of the book "Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice;" Cherry Short, USC School of Social Work assistant dean of global and community initiatives; and Varun Soni, USC dean of religious life.

Fertig hopes that by revisiting the experiences of the Freedom Rides that he'll be able to convey to students that one can defeat hatred with love, something he said is especially important for social workers to realize, and that violence can be defeated with nonviolence.

"I don't want to dwell on the nostalgia of 50 years ago – that's the past," Fertig said. "What's important now is what we do with that information and pass on our legacy. We changed the world; you can, too."