Max Pavesic wasnt sure what awaited him as the train rolled into the station in Jackson,Mississippi.

During the summer of 1961, Pavesic was a 21-year-old college student and one of 436 Freedom Riders activists committed to ending segregation on public transit in theSouth.

He was part of a group of 15 blacks and whites who had boarded the train together in New Orleans, in defiance of local segregation laws. They knew theyd be arrested in Jackson and possibly beaten. They expected an angry mob and police withdogs.

We were considered outside agitators, Pavesic recalled. I

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Max Pavesic, a retired Boise State University professor who shares his 1961 experience as a Freedom Rider, speaks Friday at the Human Rights Education Institute inCoeurdAlene. (Full-size photo)(All photos)

Max Pavesic will speak at 2 p.m. today at the Sandpoint Community Center, 204 S. FirstAve.

Max Pavesic wasnt sure what awaited him as the train rolled into the station in Jackson,Mississippi.

During the summer of 1961, Pavesic was a 21-year-old college student and one of 436 Freedom Riders activists committed to ending segregation on public transit in theSouth.

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Freedom Rider tells of 60s push for civil rights in South - Sat, 21 Mar 2015 PST