FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 20, 2024
MARTA HONORS ATLANTA CIVIL RIGHTS ICONS DURING YEARLONG CELEBRATION OF BLACK HISTORY
ATLANTA – The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) honored Atlanta Civil Rights icons in 2024 with a series of specially designed buses as part of a yearlong celebration of Black History.
“MARTA history is Black history,” said MARTA General Manager and CEO Collie Greenwood. “This yearlong celebration was an opportunity to celebrate the profound contributions the Black community has made to our transit agency, Atlanta, and the world. As we honor the past, we remain committed to ensuring transit is a place where all are welcome, and much like the Civil Rights movement, where inclusion and equality serve as the foundation for opportunity.”
Throughout 2024, MARTA celebrated Atlanta’s Civil Rights leaders and their role in our history with specially designed buses. These icons include Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, Juanita Jones Abernathy, Congressman John Lewis and Lillian Miles Lewis, Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery and Evelyn Gibson Lowery, and Ambassador Andrew Young.
MARTA unveiled the Dr. King and Coretta Scott King bus at the King Center on Jan. 4 as part of the King Holiday observance. The bus was also featured in the Martin Luther King Jr. parade and celebration on Jan. 15.
A bus celebrating Juanita Jones Abernathy was dedicated in early April at the conclusion of Women’s History Month. Abernathy served on the MARTA Board of Directors for more than 16 years, advocating for transit equality and helping shape the Authority’s goals, especially with respect to customer experience.
MARTA dedicated a bus to Congressman John Lewis and Lillian Miles Lewis on Sept. 12 with a celebration at College Park Station. Lewis was one of the original Freedom Riders who fought to desegregate the interstate bus system and was a tireless advocate for MARTA, understanding the important role public transportation plays in providing opportunity for all.
The Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery and Evelyn Gibson Lowery bus was unveiled on Oct. 6, at the Joseph and Evelyn Lowery Institute for Justice & Human Rights. Rev. Dr. Lowery served on the MARTA Board of Directors for 24 years, four as Chairman, and played a significant role in bringing life to MARTA’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program, ensuring minority businesses had a chance to proposer from the region’s investment in transit.
The Civil Rights icons bus series concluded in late November with an unveiling and celebration for Ambassador Andrew Young, and featured Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and former Atlanta Mayors Keisha Lance Bottoms, Kasim Reed, Shirley Franklin, and Bill Campbell. As a member of the House of Representatives, Ambassador Young helped win federal funding for MARTA and supported the system throughout his time as Mayor of Atlanta from 1982 to 1990.
All five specially designed buses have served neighborhoods throughout MARTA’s service area this year and been featured in community and MARTA events. A newly designed Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King bus will be unveiled in January 2025 to mark the King holiday. The Abernathy, Lewis, Lowery, and Young buses will remain in service.
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