Again I’m posting this a few days late…I’ll catch up soon.
What to say about today? Well its Memorial Day so the majority of places we would have gone were closed, like the Rosa Parks Museum. We ended up having a great day though. We went to a place called the Interpretive Learning Center. It is located on Highway 80, which is where people marched from Selma, AL to Montgomery to fight for voter registration rights. There was an exhibit inside the building, as well as surrounding the building telling stories of the march. We also watched a video that gave different people’s perspectives of the march. When I say different perspectives I mean even white supremacists who felt that the black people injured or killed deserved it. It was really powerful to watch the video and see the different opinions and to learn more about the march. I think I take for granted the right to vote, because it is something I’ve been exposed to all my life and looking forward to for just as long.

I remember a time when I was younger, maybe 4 or 5 years old, I remember an adult in my life telling me that because we live in a free country she could say that she hates the president without getting in trouble. In addition she had the ability to vote for who she wanted and had some impact (even if it is minimal) on the outcome of an election. The right to vote, the ability to register to vote and the actual process of voting are something I never really considered. It became a second nature thought. My point in talking about that is that I never considered the idea of needing to fight for the right to register to vote. It was never an experience I had to deal with or encountered the thought of it on a very personal level. It was something we talked about in history class a couple times, but I wasn’t aware of the circumstances of it or the consequences. Going to the Interpretive Center forced me to recognize some of those things.

Later in the day, following reflections (which were interesting to say the least) we walked to the Dexter Ave Baptist Church where Martin Luther King Jr. had served as pastor for numerous years and to the capitol building. One of the monuments on the property of the capitol building was thoroughly disturbing to me. It was a monument commemorating the Confederate soldiers and the righteousness of the South. I think my favorite quote from the monument was this: “The knightliest of the knightly race who since the days of old, have kept the lamp of chivalry alight in hearts of gold.” Another good one came from around the corner on the monument. It read: “Fame’s temple boasts no higher name, no king is grander on his throne; no glory shines with brighter gleam, the name of ‘patriot’ stands alone.” Surrounded by the lovely monument were 4 versions of the Confederate flag, with plaques underneath them that alluded to the purity of the South in their fight for freedom. I can’t say that sat very well with me; especially with it sitting right next to the building for the capitol of Alabama.

As I mentioned previously reflections for the day were interesting. We discussed a piece entitled “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy McIntosh. It’s basically a list of daily things that whites tend to have more privilege in, but may go unrecognized by them. There was a long period of time during the reflection time when I was unable to talk, because Marcus asked that only the African-American students speak. It was really frustrating because there were so many times when I had something to say. Not that I could necessarily relate to things they said, but because I wanted to stand up for myself. I felt like some people were making huge generalizations and it was upsetting. I know that happens all the time and to all people. I don’t really want to go into that though.

Today was a very long day filled with a few different activities. We woke up bright and early this morning to check out of our hotel and walk to the Southern Poverty Law Center where we had an appointment at 9:00am. We actually went into the Civil Rights Memorial Center, which is across the street from the Southern Poverty Law Center, but associated with it. This gave yet another perspective on the civil rights movement, and gave more faces and names to those who were killed for fighting for their beliefs and freedom. While we have heard many stories from this movement, they never cease to amaze me and sadden me. My favorite part of the exhibit was the Wall of Tolerance. This wall records the names of people who have made a commitment to work in their daily lives for justice, equality and human rights. The wall is digital, and we were all able to put our names on the wall. It was really neat to see my name and the names of my classmates up there along with the names of many others who have dedicated their lives to this cause.

After the museum we got back on the bus and left Montgomery. We stopped in Selma, Alabama to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge and to walk through the George Washington Carver Projects. The bridge that we walked across was the bridge that the marchers crossed during their walk to Montgomery, but it was also the bridge that they were violently attacked on by police on March 7^th, 1965, also known as Bloody Sunday. It was incredible to trace these people’s steps as they began their journey, and it was also interesting to be on the bridge and realize that the marchers could have had no idea what brutality was awaiting them on the other side because you cannot see down to where the police were waiting for them. The George Washington Carter Housing Project was very interesting for a number of reasons. First of all, I had never been very close to any projects, and it was eye-opening to see the way the housing these people lived in. There was one little store within the projects that was completely different from anything I was expecting. Aside from the tiny size of the store, I was shocked to walk in and see that the person working the store and all the merchandise were behind bars. I had never seen a store with that type of security, and was very surprised at it. The other thing we saw that was probably the reason for the visit to the housing project was the Baptist church where the marchers congregated before beginning their journey to Montgomery. This church is located in the middle of the project, and has a famous monument to Martin Luther King Jr. with the words “I had a dream.” It was very strange to see this famous saying put in the past tense.

Following our visit to Selma, we drove to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The drive was kind of long, but not as bad as I thought it would be. We are staying in a casino/hotel for the next three nights, so I am anticipating a fun time. Of course, the main reason for our visit to this area is to work with the Hancock county library and to help these people record their Hurricane Katrina stories. We will meet with them tomorrow, which should be very different from all the other things we have done so far on this trip. Ok, off to the casino for me!!

This morning we went to the Civil Rights Memorial which is attached to the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery. We watched a movie on the purpose of the SPLC and walked around the museum. This is the only museum/memorial honoring the Civil Rights Movement in the entire country! I read over several stories about people who had been killed for deeds such as encouraging blacks to register to vote, but what stunned me was when I read about 5 individuals who have been killed in the last 10 years due to hate crimes. One man was killed after the September 11 attacks because he was wearing a turbin and “looked” like a terrorist. Another man was shot because of his sexual orientation. One young girl was killed because of her skin color and since she was MMR, she was an “easy target.” The SPLC addresses all of these issues and more; I had no idea how powerful it is. For example, the organization sued the United Klansmen of America a few years back and as a result, they had to give up their organization to the mother of a young African-American who was murdered. I would love to work for an organization so committed to social equity and the erasure of discrimination.

Afterwards, we drove an hour to Selma to see the bridge and the church where the famous walk began. The walk from Selma to Montgomery began at a church that MLK preached at, right beside the Carter Housing Projects. The area was obviously very poor and it was difficult for me to imagine living in that town today. Just at a glance, the town appeared to be exactly the same as it had been fifty years ago! We heard some stats on the bus, and proportionately this town has more crime and unemployment than even Montgomery and Birmingham, which are already way above the national average. This would make sense because crime seems to rise with poverty, and the town’s economy does not seem to be booming. The man at the SPLC said that these towns could make a lot of money in tourism if they made more memorials. I wonder if they are resisting that because of continuing racism or denial?