The Freedom Waders

Chicago’s Struggle for the Right to Swim

Abstract

This essay examines the pivotal role of the Rainbow Beach wade-ins in challenging Chicago’s segregated swimming areas during the civil rights movement. Led by young activists, including NAACP Youth Council leader Velma Murphy Hill, these protests faced violent resistance but highlighted the city’s entrenched racism. The essay explores Chicago’s history of racial violence at beaches, beginning with the 1919 race riot, and argues that the wade-ins were instrumental in accelerating white flight and reshaping segregation tactics. Finally, it analyzes how de facto segregation at Chicago’s beaches continues today through policies like permitting, beach badges, and environmental barriers.