► Freedom Rides 50th anniversary - what's on: To check out the the calendar of events for the Freedom Rides 50th anniversary in Moree, click here

► Freedom Ride documentary tells Moree story: Morethan 50 people gathered in the banquet hall on Tuesday night for the screening of ‘Blood Brothers: Freedom Rides’ in commemoration of 50 years since the events documented in the film took place. Click here

► Freedom Riders’ diary extracts on display: People gathered at the library on Monday to view the information displays erected by staff on the Freedom Ride. Click here

► Small steps led to big change for Moree: As locals commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Ride movement visiting Moree, Aboriginal Elder Lyall Munro Snr has reflected on how far the community has advanced. Click here

As a 15-year-old Aboriginal girl, Rhonda Gray could only dream of attending university when she jumped on a Freedom Ride bus in 1965 on a tour of NSW's deep north to expose discrimination and poor living conditions among Aboriginal Australians. 

On Wednesday morning, her grandson Kyol Blakeney, the second Indigenous president of Sydney University's Student Representative Council, will lead a group of 29 students in a recreation to mark the 50th anniversary of the original Freedom Ride, which was organised by Aboriginal activist and politician Charles Perkins.

"There is no way, absolutely no way, in the world that I ever dreamed of that," said Ms Gray of her grandson's achievements.

Now a co-ordinator of the Greater Sydney Aboriginal Tenants Service, Ms Gray completed an Aboriginal teacher's assistant training program at the university in 1979.

Back in 1965, Mr Perkins was one of two Aboriginal students at Sydney University, and had yet to make history as the first Aboriginal man to graduate from an Australian university.

At that time, as Mr Perkins' daughter Rachel pointed out in her film documenting the Freedom Ride, Aboriginal people couldn't swim in most local pools, couldn't have a beer in a pub, get married without permission or enter an RSL, although they were allowed to die for their country.  

And, back then, Ms Gray's dream of going to a university was closer to fantasy. "I had already been following things on the radio about this amazing Aboriginal man, Charles Perkins, attending uni," she said.

"I wanted to continue with schooling, and that wasn't the case, as I was the eldest of nine children."

So when Ms Gray heard that one of the Freedom Ride buses was coming through Lightning Ridge, she jumped on. She rode on to Moree.

t was there that the former Chief Justice of NSW Jim Spigelman, then 19 and one of the original Freedom Riders, was flattened in a skirmish that broke out when the students tried to get nine Aboriginal children admitted to the local swimming pool, which banned Indigenous schoolchildren after 3.30pm. 

Mr Blakeney said he wanted the 50th anniversary of the ride to be marked by something "non-tokenistic".

"It is a celebration, and it is something to be remembered, thought about and something to commemorate.

"But the fact is that we still have a lot of issues in these communities and all around Australia regarding the gap between Indigenous Australians in health, housing, welfare, life expectancy," he said. 

Over the next few days, the group – which will include many of the original freedom riders, plus musicians Paul Kelly and Troy Cassar-Daley – will retrace much of the original route, stopping in Wellington, Dubbo, Moree, Walgett and Kempsey.

Each day will include discussions with local Indigenous communities, fact-finding missions, community meetings and a nightly free concert. 

- Julie Power, smh.com.au