This is the third day on our trip and it is our final day in Birmingham Alabama. We went to 16^th street Baptist church for a Sunday service so I was fortunate to go inside the church even though I didn’t get a chance to yesterday. The service was more like my church service at home but it took me a little while to get comfortable there. I think because I spent some time thinking about the history of the church and what took place in the church but if I were to live in Birmingham I would probably attend the church.

Today had to be an emotional personal experience for me. Today we went to 16^th street where the civil rights movement took place. We were on the grounds of racial discrimination and the standing as one in another race. While on 16^th street we were at the park that separated the blacks from the whites, 16^th street from 17^th street and it was a strong vibe and a burden that came over me when I was there. In the park there are statues that reflect some of the things that happened on 16^th street and they were touching. I called up my grandfather and he was explaining to me the things that happened that day and he also told me that it was great that I was here to learn and experience something of the things that people before me did to make my life comfortable today. I was hoping that I could get a chance to go into church where the bombing happened and it killed 4 little girls but it was closed. In addition we had several people to talk about their experience during the time of the civil rights movement.

Today was our entrance to the Deep South and I must say it took us a long journey to get here. We traveled from Winston-Salem North Carolina to Birmingham Alabama. It was a 15 hour bus ride I think and traffic in Atlanta was very bad. While on the bus we had class discussion and it turned out to be a great class discussion. We had a lot of time to bond on the bus with one another and a lot laughter and serious moments with one another between the 15 hour bus trip. When we made it to Birmingham Alabama, I must say that it was almost everything that I imagined it to be. It looks like a nice old country town with a little twist of a city flavor. It wasn’t until we got to diner where I was convinced that I was really in the Deep South.

Today was very encouraging and informative. Every experience from walking in the park to our guest speakers had an impact on me. After watching the film about the history of Birmingham and being in the exact place where majority of the events occurred made is easier to understand the experiences of the residents. I think it is important to realize that although I felt like I could put myself in the victim’s shoes, and share the same experience, there is no possible way that I could experience the events that occurred.

My experience today also made me appreciate how far society has come, and how easy I have it compared to the past. We were fortunate to have three beautiful women share their experience with us, and each testimony was touching in its own way.

Afterwards we went on a tour of Birmingham and saw Angela Davis’ childhood home, and most importantly we were able to see the stadium where Paul “Bear” Bryant, one of the best college football coaches ever, coached his final football game. So far this was my most emotional and thoughtful days, but I am sure that there will plenty to come.

Today we attended 16^th Baptist Church. It is a blessing that this church is still up and running after its brutal past. The first characteristic of the congregation that I noticed was that it was a little more elderly than I expected. I questioned this at first, but once I thought about the history of the church and learned more about the role of the church in black communities. I had a better understanding after taking this information into consideration.

The pastor’s message was good and the people were welcoming, but I do not know if I would attend the church again because it was not my personal church and I feel like I would not be as comfortable as I was at my church at home. But the overall experience was heart-warming and it just adds to the excellence of the trip.

Today was the first day of our DEEP SOUTH trip and although majority of our time was spent on the bus ride to Alabama we still managed to accomplish a great amount. Along the way we discussed the differences and similarities of stratification theories between Davis and Moore and Eric Wright. We then discussed the demographics of the South and explained values and stereotypes of the South.

Our lunch at the “Varsity” in Gwinnett County, GA was a first time experience for many of the students. Before we entered to eat I warned many of the students about the over use of the statement “what do you have.” For many students this was definitely a culture change, and it was obvious because everyone chose to stay towards the back after entering the restaurant. After eating at the Varsity I believe that many were satisfied with the taste of the food although many were unsure of what to order. I stuck with my regular order of 2 chili cheese dogs and a chili cheese burger and as usual it was delicious.

We arrived in Birmingham, AL three or four hours after leaving the varsity and checked into our hotel. We had dinner at a local restaurant, Irondale Cafe, which was popular for “soul food.” This was not a problem for me considering that soul food is one of my favorite foods. One problem that I did encounter with a couple of my classmates was once we entered the restaurant there was an older man that gave my classmates and I a disguised look. Once we all realized what was going on we immediately confronted each other of what was going on, and Antonio turned the entire situation into a joke which made things a lot easier to handle.

Day three started out pretty interesting, as a group we went to have church service in the historical church on 16^th street where the four little girls were bombed and killed by the four white men. Church service for me was a little typical and normal. I enjoyed the loud preaching and the song singing by the singers. The only odd thoughts I had about church was, it was very little teenagers in church. My church back home is very similar, but we have more of a younger crowd of people trying to learn the bible than elder people. Another thing I thought about, was this place is really known for what happen to the kids on that street and in that area, but I barely saw young people there. I did see kids the first day and that was only because they were having something like a get together at the park.

Day two was very interesting, I could not believe that we as a group were standing directly on the same grounds of the kids that were sprayed down and beating and whip by blackjacks by officers. It was so touching because it had statues up that gave clues of what happen that day. It just felt like I was there watching the whole thing. Than directly across the streets on 16^th street was the church where the four little girls were killed in Sunday school, the church was bomb by four men who attach more than 100 sticks of dynamite to the church windows in the basement.

This is a couple days late, but here it is. The experience from May 27.

As I mentioned earlier, today we went to the 16^th Street Baptist Church for the Sunday service. I’d never been to a Baptist church like that, but I’ve been to similar services. I really enjoyed it for the most part, but there are some things that didn’t sit very well with me. Some comments made by the pastor seemed out of line to me, but after a little reflection have some justification based on a perspective slightly different from my own. The Baptist church is historically a conservative church and I suppose this one is particular was very traditional in the sense that they interpreted the text of the Bible very literally and took the words at face value. At least that was my understanding when the pastor made the comment, “Don’t ask me what I think about shacking up or same sex marriage, because it’s all right here.” At that point he referred to his Bible. I had been enjoying the service up until that point in time, but after that I had difficultly paying attention in the same way. That isn’t to say that overall I didn’t enjoy it, but that’s something I felt was inappropriate.

At lunch I had a discussion with Marcus, Kendra, Benny and Jaymi about how that comment made us feel and why we think the pastor made that specific reference. All of us were bothered by the comment, but the other brought up some things I hadn’t thought of before. Kendra said that she could justify his statement better, because following it he said that God hates the sin, not the sinner. I can see how that may justify it somewhat, BUT that means that same sex marriage is a sin. That isn’t something I believe, but it was interesting to think about.

After the service we spent the rest of the afternoon traveling from Birmingham to Montgomery. We had time to reflect on the bus about the church service. We talked as a group, but we’d already talked so much at lunch that I didn’t really have much to say. I’d been to similar church services before, so it wasn’t a new experience for me like it was for other people.

We had a chance to relax and just hang out as a group when we got to Montgomery. Complimentary happy hour = a good time. Don’t worry mom, we didn’t overindulge. We also played in the pool for like 2 hours after that. We’ve had a good mix of work, learning and play. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the trip!!

David and Me After Church

I have more journals to come, but I need to get ready to go to the Hancock County library. Have a great day!

Day 3

Today was a very interesting day that was completely different from the first two days of the trip. We went to the Sunday morning service at the 16^th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. I was really looking forward to going to this Church because of the history behind it, and also because I knew that it would be a completely different worship experience from what I am used to. The service definitely did not disappoint. Almost everything about the service was different from the Catholic masses I am used to attending, and I knew I was in for quite a treat when two of the choir members warmed up the crowd with an enthusiastic rendition of “God is Awesome.” The singing and music during were very upbeat, with the congregation standing up, clapping, dancing, and singing along to it. This was one of the more enjoyable aspects of church, and while I am not particularly expressive like that, I found myself clapping along a little bit, and know that I would certainly be more involved if I had been raised in a similar church. The lady sitting next to me was particularly enthusiastic and vocal throughout the service, not hesitating to proclaim “yes, yes!” whenever she agreed with the preacher. This was mostly entertaining to me, but it was also nice to see someone who was so expressive with their spirituality. The final aspect of the service that was extremely different from what I’m used to was the sermon. The preacher spoke very passionately for what was a rather long sermon, I would guess around 30 minutes, but it may have been longer. When I say that he was passionate, I mean that he was yelling at points, waiving his arms, and sweating a lot. I felt like I could really identify with and understand most of his message, as it could be preached to most Christians; it was just the delivery of the message that was rather different. The whole experience was a lot of fun, and it is definitely something I would do again.

After church we said goodbye to Birmingham and drove to Montgomery, where we got settled into out hotel and ready for the next day. It was really nice to have some downtime to enjoy happy hour and swim in the pool. Tomorrow should be another interesting day in our newest city.

Day 4

Today was an incredible day that really surprised me in many ways. Because it is Memorial Day and not much was expected to be open, we decided to go to a park between Montgomery and Selma and then have a cookout. I’m not sure anybody really knew what to expect when we got this “park,” but it ended up basically being a museum dedicated to the march from Selma to Montgomery for voting rights in 1965. I did not know anything about this march until we arrived in Montgomery and started hearing about it in presentations, and still can’t believe that so many people walked 50 miles from one city to the next. The museum dedicated to this and other aspects of the civil rights movement was absolutely beautiful and very moving. We started out by watching a short film about the event and the brutality and force that police exerted on the marchers in order to halt their movement. People were killed while participating in a peaceful protest and trying to ensure a right that I was given the second I turned 18. This thought really hit me hard because at the end of the video they showed a statistic about the small percentage of 18-24 year olds who voted in the last election, and I am sorry to say that I was not included in that percentage. I just registered to vote a couple of months ago and am planning to vote in the next election, but it was always something that I just didn’t really pay attention to. I have never been so ashamed to have been given something like the right to vote and completely ignored it. Knowing that people died so that they could have what I was given and have not used puts a completely different perspective on things. It just goes to prove once again that you shouldn’t take anything for granted. Voting is a part of being American. It is a constitutional right that was unjustly denied to so many people, and I need to realize how easy I have it and important it is that I vote. Even if I never become truly interested in politics, I will always vote in the future because what I learned today made it have importance on a personal level, regardless of political interest.

After that heavy portion of the afternoon spent inside we all went outside to a picnic area and had a great cookout. Ronnie made hamburgers and hot dogs while we were pursuing our academic endeavors, and we all returned to a lovely picnic complete with watermelon for dessert. One more thing about the picnic and walking around outside: it was HOT.

The day was completed by a powerful group reflection and then the class walked around and explored the historic district of Montgomery. We walked around the place where the slave market used to be, explored the outside of the state house, passed Martin Luther King Jr.’s church, and stopped by the Civil Rights Memorial. It was nice to walk around the city, but was strange because it was completely deserted. It seemed we were the only people out there. The whole state house area was very interesting because there was a demonstrated appreciation for the confederacy. There were statues of Jefferson Davis, the president of the confederacy, as well as a monument displaying all the flags of the confederacy that had a quote about the “knightliest race.” It is clear that Alabama is not willing to forget its past, and seems to be quite proud of it. This is particularly interesting when considering the fact that we went immediately from the state house to the civil rights memorial. It is easy to see how so much tension existed in a city and state that was so divided and still bears the marks from this division.

As previously mentioned, we had a group reflection before we walked around the city, and I just wanted to talk about the reflection a little bit. These are quickly becoming one of my favorite parts of the day, as it is just a time to think about the day and discuss various issues we encountered. These sessions really make me think, and I can only begin to put down some of the thought that I have resulting from them here, but there is one thing I wanted to mention. First of all, our group dynamic is very interesting because it is very racially diverse, and especially because there are no white males on the trip. I think this diversity is invaluable during our reflection time, especially because we talk a lot about race during this time. The specific thing we addressed tonight was white privilege, and I cannot even begin to describe my feelings here, but it is so frustrating to see how unfair this world is. My final thought is that I really believe that the biggest white privilege of them all is that most white people don’t even realize they have a white privilege because they do not have to deal with racism on a daily basis.