Tom Bouyer of Greenburgh is one of the survivors of the Alabama Sit-In.  Tom showed courage and leadership and played a vital role in our nation’s history.  He is a real hero; Tom's efforts during a time when the Ku Klux Klan was powerful created the foundation for positive changes to come in the Civil Rights Movement. 

For the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, NBC News interviewed after 50 years later a handful of his surviving friends at the site of their Alabama sit-in, where they were beaten for their activism. Bouyer shared his story from his White Plains home. Read and watch more here. 

Civil Rights Act Anniversary: Survivors Recall Attack During Alabama Sit-In

Days after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a group of black boys in Alabama tested out their new freedoms and were met by men with bats.

“I was determined to get out of there,” said Tommy Bouyer, who’d been seated at the counter and ended up on the floor, crawling for daylight as bats crashed on his body. “I was thinking, ‘I’m just not going to die here.’”