Slideshow: Freedom Rider delivers evocative address to capacity crowd

Freedom Rider Hank Thomas wowed a large crowd Wednesday evening (Feb. 15), delivering an evocative address that offered reflections on his own story, as well as thoughts on the present and future state of race relations in this country. Just 19 years old when he first boarded an integrated bus headed for the Deep South, Thomas, 70, is one of only four of the original 13 Freedom Riders still alive today. His address, which packed the Union’s Phoenix Room, was part of the University’s long-running Historical Perspectives Lecture Series, and also served as the keynote event for Black History Month on campus. Story and photos.