One day, Hall traveled along with her sisters to visit their grandparents in the South; it was the first time that Hall encountered racism.

Hall left Temple in August of 1962 to become a Freedom Rider with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, eventually becoming one of the first female field leaders of the organization.

During a visit to Terrell County, Georgia, in 1962, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. heard Hall, a young college student at the time, speak at Mt. Olive Baptist Church.

Dr. King was very impressed with Hall’s prayer.

Dr. King is quoted as saying, “Prathia Hall is the one platform speaker I would prefer not to follow.”