U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Montgomery) has refuted speculation that the Freedom Rides Museum, housed in the historic Montgomery Bus Station, is set to be closed by DOGE.
This came after the location was briefly included by the General Services Administration (GSA) last Tuesday on a list of properties owned by the federal government GSA deemed not to be essential to core government functions. This list, which GSA promptly took down and said is being revised before being republished, is referred to as the “non-core” list.
GSA has stated inclusion on this list does not mean a property will be sold.
However, that has not stopped Democrats from politicizing the situation or members of the media from claiming the museum is set to be sold.
The effort to drum up controversy was led Saturday by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, who turned an otherwise bipartisan weekend honoring the annual Selma Bridge Crossings Jubilee into a partisan rally filled with misinformation and demonization.
Yellowhammer News contacted Senator Britt, the only member of Alabama’s congressional delegation who lives in Montgomery, to get the truth about the situation.
“I have been in communication with the Administration and this has been resolved,” Britt said.
“The Montgomery Bus Station and Freedom Rides Museum will not be on GSA’s non-core list,” she confirmed.
The Senator’s statement came after she on Friday welcomed the Faith & Politics Institute’s Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage to Montgomery.
“Great to see friends from both sides of the aisle at this bipartisan and bicameral annual event,” reads Britt’s X post. The Senator was joined by her Senate colleagues Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) along with Representatives Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), and Shomari Figures (D-Ala.). Britt also welcomed Virginia’s Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earl-Sears to the event.
This continues a trend of Britt championing Alabama’s Civil Rights history and legacy.
Citing malicious compliance – which is also likely the cause of GSA naming the Freedom Rides Museum on the now-retracted list, Britt’s strong advocacy led to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ensuring the Tuskegee Airmen will still be taught in Air Force training.
“Their history and their lessons will continue to be taught—because their legacy is one of excellence, of success, and of unquestionable merit,” Britt remarked of the Tuskegee Airmen.
Last month, she spoke on the Senate floor to honor the Tuskegee Airmen. In her remarks, she highlighted the tremendous legacy of Lieutenant Colonel Harry Stewart, Jr., who recently passed away at the age of 100.
“Their courage and selflessness in the face of adversity both at home and at war are inspirational, and their legacies … deserve to be celebrated amongst the rest of our country’s heroes. Not just during Black History Month, but all throughout the year,” Britt stressed.
The Ripon Society also recently published a piece authored by Britt ahead of the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.
“The heroes of the Civil Rights Movement confronted the darkest demons of hatred, bigotry, and racism. They were humanity’s better angels and forever changed the course of our state’s and nation’s history. Courageous Alabamians like Rosa Parks and John Lewis truly did bend the moral arc of the universe,” she wrote.
Grayson Everett is the editor in chief of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.
