Henry James Thomas

Henry "Hank" James Thomas (born August 29, 1941) is an African American civil rights activist and entrepreneur. Thomas was one of the original 13 Freedom Riders who traveled on Greyhound and Trailways buses through the South in 1961 to protest racial segregation, holding demonstrations at bus stops along the way.

Thomas' role in the Civil Rights Movement continued as he became one of the founders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and participated in multiple Freedom Rides. In 1965, he served in the Vietnam War as a medic. He was injured in battle and subsequently received a Purple Heart.

He is featured in the National Park Service's International Civil Rights Walk of Fame at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site.

Early life and education

Thomas was born August 29, 1941, in Jacksonville, Florida. He learned to read at the age of four from his mother, Tina R. Heggs, who had only a sixth grade education. Never knowing his biological father, Thomas was raised by an abusive stepfather. Thomas spent most of his childhood in St. Augustine, Florida. He started protesting racial injustices early in life. In the book Breach of Peace, Thomas explains that "rebellion came natural" to him. At age 9 or 10, he corrected a white insurance man who addressed his aunt using her first name only. Later on, when blacks were not allowed to check out books in the library, Thomas would take his own books there to read. As he grew up, he participated in sit-ins, and sat in white seats on local buses.

"My first arrest came in the Hyattsville, MD. There's a movie theater there that, of course, we could not go in. And we went there to buy tickets, prearranging we wouldn't move out of the way for other people to buy tickets. That's when I was arrested. That was the beginning." Hank Thomas experienced a strange feeling as the bus arrived at the Anniston station shortly after 1 PM of that day. Before he knew it, the bus was being overrun by a mob of about 50 led by Klan leader William Chappell. the U.S. Supreme Court reversed in 1965.

After the Freedom Rides and the Vietnam War, Hank Thomas moved to Atlanta, which he thought was the best place for black middle-class at the time. Here, he became an entrepreneur, opening up a laundromat with his friend. Afterward, he worked his way up through the franchise business. First, he became the franchisee of a Burger King and two Dairy Queens, and eventually became the franchisee of six McDonald's restaurants. He currently owns four Marriott Hotels, two Fairfield Inns, and two TownePlace Suites.

Achievements and recognition

Hank Thomas was honored at a Freedom Fighters Appreciation Banquet at the Willie Galimore Community Center in 1992. He is President of the Hayon Inc. Group, which owns three McDonald's franchises in Atlanta, and of Victoria Hospitality Properties Inc., which runs the four Marriott Hotels.

Thomas has served on the boards of the APEX Museum, the Butler Street YMCA, the Atlanta Youth Academy, and Atlanta's Boys and Girls Club. He was formerly a Vice Chair of the Piney Woods School in Jackson, Mississippi. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Talladega College and Morehouse Medical School. He is also part of the Mississippi Freedom Riders 50th Reunion Foundation, serving as the National Chair.

Hank Thomas received the "Buffalo Soldier" Award from Howard University in 2006. In 2011, he was inducted into the International Civil Rights "Walk of Fame", receiving the "For my People" Award. He also received the Rabbi Perry Nausbaum Civil Justice Award. In addition, Thomas has received the 365Black Award given by McDonald's Inc.

Thomas is still an activist engaged in his community. He is a lifetime member of the NAACP, and he and his wife Yvonne are parents of two and grandparents of four.