So we have had an interesting and enlightening beginning. We arrived at the Minneapolis airport after a long turbulent plane ride hoping to get some sleep sooner than later. But we would be sleeping without any of our luggages because our bags were not loaded onto the plane we would be taking. 9 am on Monday morning we began our introductions and preliminary learning about the Civil Rights Movement. Our luggage arrived in the mid-afternoon and most of us were anxious to take a shower (I know I was!). We ended our first day with dinner in the dining hall. During our second day of class we met a group of middle school students from the Southside Family Charter School (SFCS). They shared with us their experiences and photos from their trip to the south with a program similar to HECUA’s program. The students gave us advice on traveling on the bus, they said not to use the bathroom on the bus or sit in any of the rear seats because of the smell. I was envious of the SFCS students because they had the opportunity to visit places and meet people will not be able to go and meet, I am happy to have been able to hear about their experience and all they took away from their trip. Also during our second day of class we had the opportunity to meet with Arthur R. McCoy. He discussed with us the different legal cases that were significant to the Civil Rights Movement and the flexibility of a law degree. Mr. McCoy also explained to us the importance of strategic movements when it came to matters of the law. We were appreciative of Mr. McCoy’s insight and his willingness to come out and speak to us. Our third day in class we welcome yet another special guest, Claire O’Connor, one of seven Minnesotans who willingly participated in the Freedom Rides in 1961. Ms. O’Connor spoke with us about the importance of young people’s involvement with the Movement. She was just a college student when she agreed to become a part of history. Ms. O’Connor said joining the Movement was not as some people may assume it was, some of the students who joined did so on a whim; granted the students understood all that they were getting themselves into, they never stopped to think that they could be changing history with their actions. During the evening on our third day we had the pleasure of meeting Coral Garner, cousin to Denise McNair, the youngest girl murdered in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing of 1963. Mrs. Garner described to use what it was like for her as a child living in the south during the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. She said she didn’t remember a whole bunch but she did remember certain instances and events that had occurred. She talked about the Children’s Crusade of 1963 and how she was too young to participate, but how she remembered her older sister being detained at a local football field. Mrs. Garner went onto explain why children were used in the first place, she said children had less to loose, in a sense, they didn’t own property and they weren’t employed, so having the children march and demonstrate was actually a very good strategy. Mrs. Garner also disclosed her memories of the bombing at the church and its affects on her family. What Mr. Garner described was so vivid that in my mind I could see everything she said as if I were there. She described being late for Sunday School that morning because she had over slept and that her older sister had gone ahead to the church. She said she remembers her mother getting a phone call after they heard a loud ‘boom’ outside. She remembered getting in the car and riding down the street and seeing the police perimeters set up around the church. Mrs. Garner described her sister’s dress, which was white, being covered in blood from cuts she had sustained from glass that had been broken by the force of the explosion. She said her family never really spoke of that tragic day because it had been so traumatic for them. We appreciated Mrs. Garner taking the time to share with us her memories and personal connection to Civil Rights Movement.
Our fourth day we had the honor of meeting two fabulous people Brittany Perry and Dr. Josie Johnson. Brittany Perry is a Hamline University alum who stopped by to share her experiences with us regarding her participation in the HECUA program in 2005. She addressed some tensions that she had felt in the south due to a miscommunication she witnessed between the organizer and the students regarding a dinner that was held for a civil rights activist. One of the most important things we got from all she had to share was that there is still a lot of ignorance in the south. People who aren’t able to see from the perspective of the oppressed don’t fully understand the struggle(s) and overlook certain actions due to their lack of knowledge. She was kind enough to give us some advice on how to be mentally prepared when traveling and to leave any outside problems that might potentially distract or take away from the experience. Along side the advices she was kind enough to answer our questions and expressed great interest and support. Dr. Josie Johnson spoke about some very complex issues that seemed to be unsolvable at least for the moment. We had a very powerful and engaging dialogue where we expressed our interests and concerns for the black community. She stressed how important it was for everyone to be vigilant and pay attention to the ways in which the media and other oppressive tools hinder the progress of justice in the Black community. She also sympathized with us and reminded us that the struggle has been going on since the beginning of slavery and that it changes ever so slightly with time. “The Struggle never ends.” she said, hinting to the fact that although it can become emotionally stressful at times we must persevere. More than ever we need to be aware of the subtle ways in which racism is expressed and not become content with the small successes we may achieve. Dr. Johnson also placed a strong importance on the youth, because it is through us that the struggle and the legacy of the Civil Rights is continued, which is why education is important. The activists who fought for desegregation believed that through education they could uplift their race because knowledge is powerful; it had the capacity to emancipate a people. With all the questions we were asking her she asked us how would we answer our questions first, pleased with the responses she told us “We are the Civil Rights movement.” With some humble and peaceful authority she said when she comes back she hopes that we’ve made some progress in coming to a conclusion regarding our answers. We are very excited and humbled by the experiences of those who came before us and are willing to impart their knowledge with us. As we begin our journey we can only hope that we continually grow as individuals and as a collective working as agents on the behalf of social justice and Civil Rights.
We woke up in the morning and had to be at the bus at 9am, which in college time, is 10am, so we left at 9:30. We sat on the bus for about an hour before we started class. We watched the eyes on the prize the Little Rock 9.
After watching the movie we had a discussion led by Colleen. We talked about the importance of education given how hard teenagers in the 60's worked with eachother to integrate schools. We imagined what it would have been like to be in their shoes.
The next video we watched was Little Rock High: 50 Years Later. This was a documentary film following students in white and black communities and their exeriences in the same high school today. Many of us could relate the stories of the students to our own high school experiences. Wendy facilitated a discussion after the film about the social issues at the school. Some topics that came up in our heated discussion were teen pregnancy, ageism, classism, and AP track list. We talked about how AP classes are majority white in most public high schools.
The conversation eventually turned into a debate and discussion about where the motivation comes from to appreciate education and success. We came up with various sources of motivation including family, ourselves, community leaders, etc.
After the movie, we all had a chance to sit with ourselves and think about what we had just witnessed. After thinking, we were able to come together and talk in a more informal way at dinner.
We ate at an all you can eat buffet, and the waiters were so great! Later we checked into the hotel and explored.
A few of us finished the evening with Colleen's former professor Terry. He was full of energy and entertained us with his stories. He talked about working in the South as a psychology student. He also explained the complicated racial connotations of sheet music.
We learned so much on the first day, after nine hours of traveling through three states. We haven't even reached the south yet,
Coming into this program we thought we were going to learn about the south and the civil rights movement, now we're starting to have feelings that this is going to be a journey of self reflection and realizations.
The morning of June 13th 2009, our team of twenty individuals embarked on a long six hour ride to Nashville, Tennessee. During the bus ride, we were given a reading assignment which granted us access to the courageous life of Ella Baker. We learned that Ella Baker was a strong community activist who motivated and inspired young adults, like ourselves, to take control of their community and their organization for if they allowed other community leaders to take charge, SNCC would no longer be the organization that they know and worked hard to create. Second on our list of assignments, we watched a documentary entitled Eyes on the Prize which was about the sit-ins of the 1960s. The documentary highlighted the proper non-violent techniques the protesters learned prior to the first sit-in on February 13th 1960. Protestors, like Diane Nash, reminiscence about their first sit-in experience and their surprise to the white people’s reaction. Nash recalls a specific waitress who dropped “about $2,000 worth” of plates as a reaction to the defying of the segregation laws, which designated a specific area for the whites and for the blacks. Despite the waitress’ reaction, Nash recalls that no other people addressed their presence. She assumed that they were believed to be “outside agitators” from the North and did not know the proper ways to behave. Later Nash addresses her famous encounter with Mayor Ben West. Sparked by the arrest after the sit-ins, thousands of protestors silently marched to city hall where Nash provocatively asked the Mayor, "Do you feel it is wrong to discriminate against a person solely on the basis of their race or color?" Mayor West honestly answered yes and three weeks after the Mayor’s response, it was the first time blacks were served at restaurant counters in Nashville, Tennessee. We knew we had finally arrived in Nashville when the scorched heat…. When we finally arrived at Nashville, we were greeted by a community organizer Kwame Lillard, and two Freedom Riders Allen Cason and Etta Ray. They led us to The Garden House, where we indulged in authentic southern meals. From omelets to fluffy pancakes to turkey sandwiches, we were all very satisfied with the cooking, and even more appreciative when we met the chef behind our pans.
We, including the three civil rights leaders, boarded the bus and went for a historic tour of Nashville. Our first stop was Fisk University where we stood in front of a statue of W.E.B. DuBois. There Kwame discussed the origins of NAACP, SNCC, and other Black led organizations that fought for civil rights. Kwame provided us with an analogy to help us better understand the significance of the Civil Rights Movement. He stated that the Civil Rights Movement was like a tree trunk and due to its success, it paved the way for other branch like organizations, such as The Women’s Suffrage Movement. In addition, Kwame taught us that oppression is a man made construct and because of it, we cannot get mad at the wrong people. For instance, Ms. Ray told us a story about her expulsion from Tennessee State University because of her involvement in the Freedom Rides. Puzzled, Ms. Ray wanted to blame the university’s Black president as reason of her expulsion, but she later learned that it was the board of region and the governor of the state that gave the president orders to expel her or else his position as president would be in jeopardy. Continuing our tour, we drove by many different historic sites such as, the oldest Black bank in America, which survived the Great Depression and the house where James Weldon Johnson wrote the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing”. Among one of our favorite stops was the surprise visit to meet Oprah’s father, Vernon Winfrey, at his local barbershop. He welcomed us with much enthusiasm and was excited to share his experiences, including his honorary hall of fame title for being one of the eight oldest Black barbers in Nashville. Our final stop of the tour was Tennessee National Cemetery, where we saw the tombstones of the Union Army’s Colored Troops. At the center stood an intricately sculpted statue of a black soldier, which is the first and only one created and dedicated to the black men who fought for our freedom during the Civil War. After the tour, we gathered our thoughts and relocated to Kwame’s office. Once there, Kwame facilitated a question-and-answer session, where we had the opportunity to talk and pose pressing questions about the movement, their lives and the future consequences of the current generation of black youth. All in all, we absorbed an abundant amount of information in reference to an illusion that is created by white supremacy; an illusion supporting the belief that Whites are superior to all “other” races. Kwame challenged us with several questions that caused to question our society like “why white is always affiliated with good and black with bad”. In fact, Kwame stated that “superior is how to think and reason”. Like many great leaders, Kwame stated that the education of all cultures is a fundamental element to bring about social change within our national community. He believes that during the Civil Rights Movement, “we [black people] gave up everything we had for the right to be integrated” which ultimately caused blacks to lose their sense of community. As a community, it is up to the current generation “to decide what will happen with the next generation”. As leaders, we must return back to our community, ready, to educate the next generation and bring forth a new movement whose mission is to recollect what we lost during the strive for integration.
Greetings from Nashville, Tennessee!!!! My name is Daphne, and my partner's name is CJ. The past week has been absolutely amazing. On Saturday morning, we began our journey to the South. Our first stop was in Nashville, TN. Today, we had the privilege of visiting the Nashville Public Library. Before we left for the library, however, CJ and I had lunch and discussed some socio-economical issues about the Civil Rights Movement. This is CJ here! Today was an amazing day for numerous reasons, the most significant may have been the ability to sleep in and not have anything on our itinerary until 1:00 P.M. We did our regular routine and got on the bus, and headed over to the Nashville Public Library to explore its expanse Civil Rights Movement archives. At the Nashville Public Library, we were greeted by Andrea Blackman, who was chosen to be the Archivist of the Civil Rights Movement. We were also greeted by two of our new friends, Ms. Etta and Allan, who both participated in the Freedom Rides from Nashville. We arrived at the Nashville Public Library, which is an amazing 3 story brick building, with marble finishing on the interior. The Civil Rights section of the Library has its own unique flare to it. When walking into the Civil Rights Movement Archive, the first thing you see is a frosted glass monument donning a Martin Luther King quote. The room is surrounded with a number from photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, from the Nashville Banner newspaper, which is no longer in publication. We spoke with Andrea Blackman extensively about a number of issues. We discussed issues including but not limited to: media's roll in history, lack of information discussed about Diane Nash covered within the Banner, and student led nonviolent moments in Nashville and other cities. After our discussion with Dr.Blackman, Ms. Etta and Allan, we watched a video that focused on Nashville students nonviolent movements. We also perused different information within the library, including desegregation and sit-in photographs, newspaper clips, personal letters, and an extensive collection of Civil Rights Movement books. After leaving the library, we went to dinner in Nashville at a restaurant called Swett's which had delicious looking chicken, ribs, corn, mash potatoes and my personal favorite from the meal, pumpkin pie. As a stanch vegetarian, I felt like I was missing out on something. After getting back from our intriguing day, we will have some relaxation time before heading to Atlanta in the morning.
Greetings from Atlanta, Georgia! It is our fourth day on the road and our group has learned so much already. We had about a four hour drive from Nashville to Atlanta. On our bus/traveling classroom we tried to accomplish two specific learning goals. The first goal was to understand how popular culture is used to reinforce racism. We watched a film called, “Ethnic Notions” that explored the evolution of racist portrayals of African-American people starting with slavery all the way to current day in the media. The film represented various depictions of African-American people as domesticated, savage, and childlike creatures. From our perspective this was shocking but unfortunately not surprising.
The groups response to the video during discussion lead to reflecting on the consequences of the images today and also sharing personal experiences that are related to how popular culture reinforces racism in society. The consensus of the group was that trying to educate or change the perception of black people is an exhausting and difficult road to travel because racism exists among our everyday lives and interactions. So discussing matters of race and ethnicity and explaining why people do what they do is a burden to any minority or any white student because one of us benefited from racism and one of us suffered due to racism.
The second goal of the day was for us to understand the true role of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Everyone found out that MLK was a true human being like each of us and made a powerful impact on the civil rights movement even while dealing with personal struggles. Dr. King’s energy and commitment to non-violence persuaded others to follow and not question the tactic. MLK’S enthusiasm for Christianity and brotherhood allowed him to sacrifice his life for the movement.
After learning more about Dr. King’s history and contributions to the movement, we visited the Martin Luther King Jr. Historical District. While there we spent the afternoon visiting the different sites that are dedicated to his lasting legacy. It was amazing to walk around the area on a regular Monday afternoon and see the hundreds of people exploring and supporting the history.
Tonight Dr. Beverley Wallace blessed our time in the ATL with her presence and insightfully asked the group some tough but meaningful questions about our trip and how the trip has given us access to understanding why we experience what we do at out respective institutions.
This blog was brought to you by the Lovely Sara Kettering and the Intellectual David Brade.
Stay tuned for the following days of this historic adventure.
Today, or should we say yesterday... [because we were so exhausted last night we did not get a chance to write] or because there was no internet connection... you take your pick.
This morning we had the privilege of viewing the archives of the Civil Rights Movement at the Emery University Library of Rare Books. As we walked into the library we read the timeline of Alice Walker and even saw copies [posted on the wall with the timeline... but NOT the original transcript] of her novel, The Color Purple, which won the Pulitzer Prize for literature.
After looking at the timeline we met with two women who were employed by the library to archive documents written after 1968 by the SCLC [Southern Christian Leadership Conference]. These archives are rare books that were purchased by the library; our group found this to be rather controversial. What we found most unusual was how uneasy the women were when asked if there were any African-American people on the staff. In fact, they became so flustered that they failed to answer the question directly. We also found it peculiar that while members of this movement are still living, apart of the local community and within reach were not included in archiving the documents or in how they were presented. Again, we experienced another aspect of inequality and misrepresentation in how history is documented and recorded. One of the women responded by saying that the job demanded masters degrees, but in all reality, the people they are "documenting" and "studying" made history without masters degrees. If these people who are the history are alive and well.... shouldn't they be included?
After this rather intense dialogue we left for a town meeting which included a range of ages.. from six years old and up to the late seventies. This particular town meeting seemed to be focused around organizing for upcoming events within the city and its surrounding areas. During the meeting we happened to meet someone who attended Hamline, Brenda Scott. She offered to volunteer some of her time to show us around which was great.
After the meeting we went to eat at a locally owned establishment whose food and company were equally appreciated and celebrated. Tyronne Brooks, who lead part of the town meeting, took time out of his day to speak with us and answer any questions that we had.
Shortly afterwards we went on a tour with Colin Dube who is a graduate student at John Hopkins. He is employed by the Auburn Avenue Research Library, which we toured. Finally we left for a tour of Atlantic Station and the surrounding areas.
we ended at the mall........and at last we got some shut eye
June 17, 2009 Today marked our third day in Georgia. On the bus ride, we watched a segment from the 1961-1963 Eyes on the Prize documentary. The film focused on the history of Albany Georgia, which was where we were headed to meet Mr. and Mrs. Sherrod in their work office. From the documentary, we learned that Albany was perceived to be a major failure in The Civil Rights Movement. After Martin Luther King surrendered to Albany’s strategic planning to prevent desegregation, many begun to doubt Albany’s chances of becoming an integrated town. Meanwhile the SNCC branch in Albany opposed that notion and stated that King’s presence attracted more people due to the publicity. We later learned from Charles and Shirley Sherrod, members and community organizers of SNCC, that the publicity not only attracted more outside people, but it inspired people from the local community to find value in the work of SNCC. When Mr. Sherrod was asked to express his opinion about the “outside agitators” controversy, he stated that outside people should not come to communities in hopes of saving the people. Instead, he continued, outsiders should attempt to become members of the organization to understand the foundational structure. If outsiders try to be savors, than the structure will not succeed whereas a collectivist organization allows everyone to be involved and dedicated to the cause.
June 17 continued: As the conversation developed, Mrs. Sherrod went on expressing that the struggle of the movement was fought for integration but most importantly to free the minds of Black people. Ironically, she believes that integration of schools is one of “the worst things that happened to Black people”. She argued that black people gave up a well-rounded community that supported black businesses and supplied dedicated teachers. Mr. Sherrod later added that we should have a learning process where teachers are able to learn from students just as students learn from teachers. The highlight and most detailed portion of our discussion was the use of plantations in Georgia. According to Mrs. Sherrod, manufacturing corporations and foundations such as Coca-Cola, Victoria’s Secret, Hanes, and The Olin Foundation, own plantations in Albany that are currently used as entertainment sites for wealthy White people. These Whites pay a substantial amount of money to come to these plantations to go hunting. To our surprise The Olin Foundation, owners of the Nilo plantation, supplies many different colleges and universities, like Denison and Hamline University, with mathematics and science buildings. After leaving Mr. and Mrs. Sherrod in Albany, we all boarded the bus and headed north to Americus, Georgia where Carol Barner Sheay and Sandra Mansfield met us at the Koinonia Farm. Mrs. Sheay and Mrs. Mansfield, two of the original fifteen Stolen Girls, welcomed us by having us sing freedom songs. Following, they began telling us about their involvement in The Civil Rights Movement and how it led to their multiple arrests. Their most memorable prison experience was the Leesburg Stockade. Contained in a hot concrete cell with bars on the windows for 45 days, the women recalled several memories like when a guard purposely released a rattlesnake into the cell because they were singing and praying. Mrs. Sheay continued her story by talking about the day Danny Lyon came to the stockade to take photos of the girls and their inhumane treatment. Mrs. Sheay explained that they were smiling in the photos because they knew Lyons came to help. Lyons informed the girls that he would do his best to get them out of the stockade by publishing the photos, which eventually succeed when the president saw the pictures and ordered the immediate released of the girls. Mrs. Sheay and Mrs. Mansfield supplied us with much information and even took us to go see the stockade. In the mist of their information was a great deal of heartwarming and satisfying advice. Mrs. Sheay’s greatest advice was her explanation about being a striver for change. She explained that she was not a survivor of the stockade and the Civil Rights Movement but a striver. She stated that anyone can be a survivor but strivers are those who are able to look past the normative and continue to fight the struggle.
Hello blog readers! My name is Carol David and I am a student at the University of Minnesota studying Geography. I am really enjoying my trip to the south! Today was another HOT day at the Koinonia farm in Americus, Georgia. It was a rough night for sleeping because the house is not air conditioned and we did not have a fan in our bedroom. I can’t even tell you how hot it is here! You do not need an alarm clock to wake up because just before the sun rises the roosters are crowing! There was no hitting the snooze button today! At 9:00 this morning we all walked over to the museum on the farm where Sara, a member of the Koinonia community showed us a video about the start of the farm community. The documentary was called “Briars in the Cotton Patch, The Story of Koinonia”. It was started in 1942 by Clarence Jordan as a Christian community where blacks and whites could live together and work together. When people on the outside found out what was going on they became outraged. The Ku Klux Klan came to the farm shooting their guns and setting a house on fire. Today the farm continues to be a Christian community where about 30 people live. They make money by selling pecans that they harvest on their farms. Sara showed us the bakery where they make delicious chocolates and cakes with their pecans. They also sell fair trade coffee and chocolate. The community grows all of their own fruits and vegetables. Sara took us on a tour of the farm and taught us about Permaculture and how they irrigate their crops. Permaculture is a word that mixes the words permanent and agriculture. It is the idea of growing enough food to feed the community without damaging the land so it will always be able to support the community. In their gardens they do not use pesticides. It is very interesting the way they keep out pests. Sara said that they put down cardboard boxes as mulch. On top of the cardboard boxes they put a mixture of different organic materials and keep piling it on. She said the mixture confuses the pests because of the different smells and tastes and eventually they leave the area. The geographic region is very dry so irrigation is an issue. The community built a pond which collects runoff water. Water is also collected from the roof tops of buildings where it runs down the gutters and into a holding tank. The community works hard in order to assure that they do not have to buy new building materials. An example Sara gave us was that of a fence that is around the garden. They have planted cactus and other plants to make a natural fence so when the old fence falls down, they won’t have to buy materials to build a new one. The farm also has animals. There are goats, chickens, and a cute puppy that protects the chickens from fox in the area. There are also bulls and cows. Sara told us that chickens are great for the farm because they provide eggs, fertilizer, meat and they aerate the soil. After taking a tour of the farm, we had a few minutes to hang out while we waited for lunch. Every day at noon someone rings a bell to let everyone know that lunch is ready. Every day the families that live in the community have lunch together. Before eating they say a prayer and then the buffet style lunch is served. I enjoyed the meal. I ate spaghetti, my favorite, and a salad that was made entirely from their garden along with some Georgia peaches. After lunch we had an hour and a half before we would have class. A lot of us took naps while some of us played games or did homework. Class was held in the air conditioned museum on the farm. During class we had an activity where we discussed things that we want to learn more about, what has surprised us so far, what has been uplifting, and what we look forward to. After class we went to yet another buffet for dinner. I don’t think I will ever eat at a buffet again after this trip! After dinner we went to Wal-Mart so we could pick up some things that we needed. Today was a great day! As I blog the guys are shaving each others head! Friday morning we are heading to Alabama.
Today was possibly the most intense experience we have had thus far. We reached Selma, Alabama, our destination for the day… thinking we would be going on a traditional museum tour. However, we did not realize that the museum is catered towards transporting the visitors back to the Middle Passage [the horrific journey native Africans experienced in enslaved ships from West Africa to the West Indies].
As soon as we stepped off the bus we were abruptly submerged into the life of a slave on the Middle Passage. We were told to stand against the wall, separated by male and female. Then we had to hold out our hands and open our mouths while being called n***** and other humiliating words. This was an essential part of the experience, as it quickly carried us into the lives of those before us. It did not take long for us all to become a part of the experience, as the women leading the tour were brutally graphic and realistic. Shortly after we were commanded to squeeze into a confined room. We were then taken to a small ship where we were rocked back and forth while tightly constraining ourselves into a fetal position.
Throughout a sequence of events many of us felt a powerful wave of emotions flooding over us. In particular, Leonel and I both felt the most frightened when we had to choose who among our friends was to live or die. In order to save ourselves we had to choose one person, or if we didn’t as I, [Katherine did not], two people were sacrificed. The decision was both heartbreaking and terrifying. Though we realized that it was a mere simulation, the rawness of the incident was a taste of the horror people went through.
The episode was in fact so real for us that when the women told us we could relax and that it was over, many of us who were standing against poles with our arms raised up [in a tied position] did not relax. The women had to ask us twice in order for us all to realize that the experience was indeed concluded. Thankfully we were given time to debrief after this overpowering adventure. The women who led the tour opened up the conversation by asking how we felt when we were called the n word. One of our friends mentioned how he realized the gravity of the word even more after this; that it is not just a word that should be thrown around carelessly. The white students also had a reaction to the word since the n word is typically directed towards African-Americans. They had a moment of clarity and a moment of shock by being placed in the subordinate position rather than the dominant race. Throughout our discussion we concluded that the n word is not a term of endearment since it was never a good word to begin with, and in addition it holds a weight of history many cannot comprehend. We ended our discussion with hope in that there is forgiveness and that it is possible to love again and move on.
After the museum tour we walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, which was where “Bloody Sunday” [March 7th, 1965] took place. “Bloody Sunday” was a nonviolent march led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that resulted in the State patrol releasing water hoses, tear gas, nightclubs, numerous injuries and even death after the march. As we [Leonel and Katherine] walked across the bridge we expected to feel more emotional and connected. Unfortunately, the bridge did not evoke the same emotional reaction as the museum did. Nonetheless, walking across the bridge was an important experience as it is a monumental point in the Civil Rights Movement and in America’s history.
These two events together packed into one day were extremely overwhelming to handle emotionally, mentally and even physically. Some more debriefing and discussion could have helped us all process the day, hopefully we can return to this experience when all of us are ready to talk about it.
We left the University of Alabama this morning and made our way to Philadelphia, Mississippi. While on the bus we decided to have a conversation about what happened during the trip to the museum, with the activity where we were all treated like slaves. Some of us felt like the ten minute debriefing after we were done with the activity wasn’t enough time to process what had happened. Each of us, including the instructors spoke about how we felt after what happened and how we were processing it now. Most of us know that it is going to take a lot longer for us to process everything so we have decided to have more of these talks, as a group. In preparation for our day in Philadelphia, we watched a segment of “Eyes on the Prize” about the murder of Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman, all young college age civil rights activists. When we got to Philadelphia, we arrived at Mount Zion United Methodist Church where we attended the 45th Anniversary of the murder of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman. We learned that Schwerner and Goodman risked their lives promoting voter registration for African Americans in Mississippi. They later met up with Chaney to investigate the burning of Mt. Zion United Methodist. Little did they know, the Ku Klux Klan was following them. The police while leaving the church stopped the three men. They were arrested for speeding while they were stopped fixing a flat tire. They were arrested at 4:30 pm and released from jail at 10:30 pm. They reason the police released them at this time was so that the Klan had time enough to plan an ambush for the three men. Sure enough the Klan kidnapped the three and drove them into a ditch on an abandoned road. During the service we sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and “We Shall Overcome.” Hollis Watkins, a Civil Rights activist spoke about having worked directly with Goodman, Chaney, Schwerner. Hollis Watkins generously thanked our group for attending the service. The keynote speaker was a candidate for mayor of Philadelphia, MS. His main message was that “civil rights are not a black thing, civil rights are the right thing.” After the service was done, we visited the site of the murder and learned the gruesome truth of how they were actually killed. We compared and contrasted the real story to the fictional account of what happened in the movie Mississippi Burning. However, one thing that we have learned on this trip is that it takes more than one person to tell us what really happened, because of the many interpretations that people have of each event in history. We drove to Jackson and had a late dinner at a southern buffet. Stuffed with sweet tea and mac n’ cheese, we pulled into the hotel for a good night sleep.
I think the group might be blogging incorrectly. To add photos and links, etc. everyone writing has to be an administrator. Anyone visiting your blog (like me) can also post comments. Is it too late to change up the process a bit?
Wish you could bring back some of that amazing food to share!!!
Hello everyone. My name is Everett and I will be telling you about the first day of our last week together on our Civil Rights Tour. Today, we boarded the bus at 9am and headed for Jackson, Mississippi’s city hall. We spoke with the current mayor and a representative who has had a seat for over 10 years. They both gave us advice on working towards a greater society and working together, with all people, in order to create whatever change we see necessary. Here we also met Hollis Watkins, who is a veteran of the Civil Rights movement. Although we saw him yesterday we did not get to spend too much time with him because of the church service. Hollis hopped on the bus with all of us and we traveled to a historical Ferris Street. Here on this street there were historical restaurants, jazz clubs, and theatres. Unfortunately, all of the buildings are abandoned and have fallen apart. I have seen abandoned buildings before but never have I seen so many consecutively. I thought that it was sad that all of these historical places were, apparently, no longer remembered or cared for, due to the condition that they were in. We traveled by foot for about 5 blocks and we then boarded the bus. Once back on the bus we went to Medgar Evers home, which is now a museum. Here we saw Medgar Evers neighborhood, his home, and the driveway where he was shot down. Afterwards we drove to see a statue of Medgar Evers. Here we sung a song that was written about Medgar Evers and his death. The statue was beautiful and read the words: Medgar Wiley Evers July 2, 1925 – June 12, 1963 Dedicated to Everyone Who Believes in Peace, Love and Non-Violence; Let’s Keep the Torch Burning
Wife: Myrlie Beasley Evers, Sons: Darrell Kenyatta & James Van Dyke, Daughter: Reena Denise Evers This part of the day was a bit emotional but not too much. Once we left the memorial we went to the office of Hollis Watkins. Upon entering we were fed. We had bread, spaghetti, blue berry cobbler, and sweet tea. I drank sweet tea (a drink that I have been sticking with since I started this tour). Lunch was delicious and after lunch we met Hollis’ closest friends, Jimmy Travis. He and Hollis met in 1961 and they have been friends since. They have NEVER been in an argument or any form of dispute. Jimmy was also apart of the Civil Rights movement and he spoke on his involvement, his difficulties in life, and his relationship with Hollis. After listening to Jimmy Travis, we spoke with Hollis for about 3 hours. Needless to say, we learned a lot about him. Hollis Watkins is the youngest of 12 children. His parents were sharecroppers who made less than $700 in a year. When Hollis graduated high school he went on to attend Tugaloo College where Hollis found out how poor he actually was. Hollis is a smart man and when he was at Tugaloo, he found ways to get free meals. He noticed that the track team would get one free meal a day. So he joined the track team. He also noticed that the choir team received a free meal a day, so he joined the choir. Hollis did not necessarily want to do both, he just wanted to eat. However, he was great at both. Later in life, Hollis joined the freedom riders, African Americans who fought to integrate the buses that traveled from state to state. The reason why Hollis joined them was that he could not understand why the God that he and White people supposedly shared would allow the Whites to treat the Blacks so badly. He said that he was told that the answer he was looking for would be found if he were to go on the freedom rides, so he went.
Hollis joined SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) in 1961. While with SNCC Hollis was beaten, jailed, and threatened. Hollis had some terrible stories about the movement. He told us that the worst beatings would happen on Sunday mornings on the steps of the White people’s churches. The White people used to viciously beat them when they would try to attend their church. There were also times when Hollis would be arrested for protesting and there would often be threats on his life, even as far as having guns pointed in his gut. The words of a police officer to other police officers while he had his gun on Hollis:
“Yes, this the nigga I’m gonna kill. Question is whether I’m gonna blow his guts out or his brains out. “ There were also threats made on Hollis’ life while in prison. Hollis was arrested for trying to register Blacks to vote. He was sent to a maximum-security prison and sent to death row for 55 days. He once was put into solitary confinement, a room 6 by 6, with 14 other prisoners. The only air in that space was a small crack between the bottom of the door and the floor. Another threat on Hollis’ life occurred when guards took Hollis out of his cell and sat him in a chair. They showed Hollis a noose, which had a ribbon tied on it. They said: “Get up nigga. We gonna have a hanging party and you gonna be first.” When Hollis told us what his response was, I thought he was crazy. He said, “I would just sit back in my chair and chill, and look them dead in the eye. And I would laugh.” I looked at Hollis in amazement and somewhat in confusion because I did not understand how I was sitting in his presence. He then said that it was revealed to him by God, that he would not die during the civil rights movement and because he knew he was not going to be killed he used to laugh at the officers. After Hollis said this I was in awe and understood why he was so important to the movement. Hollis is definitely a Civil Rights icon. All in all, the day was another good day to add to our Civil Rights Tour. We learned so much about Hollis Watkins, his family, his childhood, and his role in the movement. Tomorrow we will be in the Mississippi Delta with Hollis again.
We are in Birmingham, Alabama also known as "Bombingham" to many people that have lived here during the movement. We started our day today at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. We were introduced to Horace Huntley, an archivist who specializes in oral history. He was the first to get a BA in African American Studies at the University of Minnesota. He had been hoping to travel the world so he enlisted into the Air Force. He ended up at North Dakota, not exactly where he wanted to be. He told us about a time he was on the bus and a lady refused to sit behind him because of how he looked. He is involved with an oral history project that involves transcribing over 400 interviews. It was then time for us to tour the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. We briefly met a beautiful lady named Mrs. Jackson. She was taking her time off to meet us and gracefully spent the day with us. We entered and began the tour with an eight-minute movie. It was cool because the screen just rises and we can begin the tour. This has been one of the most detailed museums I have ever been at. It talked about all the things we have been learning on our trip. It is a self -guided tour that deals with the Civil Rights Movement and the present struggles being faced today. The first section is the barriers gallery. This section displayed the segregated classrooms and churches. The class for ìwhiteî students had the best materials and classroom. The other class had outdated books and the classroom was really crammed. The section after barriers was the confrontation gallery. This section displayed much of the havoc and violence geared toward the black community. This is the time when Birmingham was known as ìBombinghamî. We then entered an area known as the movement gallery. It spans from the Freedom Rides to the March on Washington. There was a milestone gallery that is pretty self-explanatory. It highlighted the achievements of the struggling people. The last section was the human rights gallery and I did not get to spend so much time in this one because we had to leave. But this gallery dealt with current issues. We were then headed to lunch.
We then went to the historic 16th Street Baptist church, where we participated in a tour. We were given a brief overview of the history of the church by a member. She brought out how important the church was to the movement in Birmingham. She also spoke about the four girls (Addie Mae Collins (aged 14), Denise McNair (aged 11), Carole Robertson (aged 14), and Cynthia Wesley (aged 14)) who were killed in the church bombing on September 15, 1963. The members of the church also take great pride in the fact the church was built by T.S. Window a black architect who was in charge of the church project. She asks us to give a round of applause for black men to show appreciation for the work black men do. We then watched a video about the bombing of the church, and the four girls who lost their lives in the church. It examined the case that took place after the bombing and those who were finally convicted years after the bombing. The film also brought out some of the mysterious things that were noticed after the bombing such as the face of Christ being the part of the picture that was damaged. The tour guide also spoke about Dr. Martin Luther Kingís speeches on having a non-violent movement that were given at the church and those members who felt they could not refrain from violence if they were hit. She said those members helped the movement in other ways by, donating what money they had to the cause. John Pitts of Wales donated the stained glass window of a black Jesus on cross with one hand facing outwards: signifying the rejection of oppression and one hand facing inward: symbolizing forgiveness. After the church we took a tour of the Charles Sherrod Civil Rights Park with Ms. Jackson, the vice president of the NAACP chapter in Birmingham. The park included sculptures that depicted the police dogs that attacked those who participated in the childrenís march. It also had sculptures of the water hoses that sprayed the children that day during their peaceful march. After browsing the park, we sat down with Ms. Jackson, and she spoke with her experiences in Birmingham during the movement. She shared her story of segregation and the rules she and others of the black race were forced by law to live by. Ms. Jackson helped us to understand that the movement consisted of fighting for integration but more importantly it was fighting for equal access and she is still fighting for that today. Mrs. Jackson is extremely funny, both Fiona and Colleen came into our study room and laughed their heads off, literally they came in and fell on the floor laughing and crying because they were laughing so much. They had dinner with Mrs. Jackson and had a blast! It made us all wish that we were there with them. We were blogging while they just burst into the common room like they were possessed.
Greetings from Tunica, Mississippi! As we approach the final last couple days of our journey through the deep south we continue to learn and reflect on so much.
Today we started out leaving Jackson, Mississippi following our leader for the last couple of days, Mr. Hollace Watkins. Mr. Watkins took us to an organic herb garden a good hour away from Jackson. The garden is family owned and operated and strives to produce quality, healthy, and all natural products. The family has owned the land that we toured for five generations. Ms. Ciné gave us a tour throughout the garden explaining the functioning of the land as well as an overview of the herbs and things produced. We learned that developing our own products allows us the luxury to become healthy in our diets, our hygiene and just more independent. Ms. Ciné told us that farming was and still is necessary for not just the black community but everyone to become aware of because natural organic produce, and herbs and minerals help rid our bodies of potential diseases that have spread through each ethnicity. Ms. Ciné shared the history behind the marketing of shea tutter in the United States. Shea Butter’s production is rooted in Africa, over the years the product has been morphed into something that has been taken for granted. Ms. Ciné actively supports business women in Africa who raise a more healthy, natural, and conscious shea butter product. At the end of our time at the garden, many of us purchased some of Ms. Ciné’s natural skin and hair care products. After leaving the farm Hollace Watkins lead us to the memorial grave site of Fannie Lou Hamer and her husband Perry “Pap” Hamer. Fannie was known for being in the Mississippi Democratic Freedom Party. Fannie’s famous quote was “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” because of the cruel and unjust laws that impeded the equality of Mississippians back in the sixties. We then continued to celebrate her contribution to the empowerment of black people. Hollace lead us in songs from his new album such as: “Stayed on Freedom”, “Which side are you on”, “I want my freedom” and “Freedom come and it won’t be long”. Singing these freedom songs with Hollace brought vibrant smiles to the group and the realization that singing played a major role in the movement. We then moved on to Tunica, Mississippi where we were welcomed by multiple different community organizers and leaders. The leaders joined us on the bus and gave us a tour of the town. Overall Tunica County is home to about 9,000 people. During the tour we witnessed first hand the role that racism still plays in some parts of the south. The racism is very real and visible in Tunica. We were told that within the county, segregation still plays a very big role in housing, the school system, and the overall functioning of the county. For many of us, the stories and descriptions of the inequalities that face Tunica were both shocking and unbelievable. After our tour, our hosts made us a delicious soul fool meal! Our group is both very humbled and appreciative to the hard work that the community members we met today are doing for the movement and we appreciate their gracious hospitality.
Greetings from Chicago!!!! This is CJ and Daphne. Today is the last day before we head back to the Twin Cities. This trip has been filled with a rollercoaster of emotions. We have also learned so much about the history and the consequences of the Civil Rights Movement. This morning, we departed from Mt. Vernon, IL and traveled to Chicago for a tour of the Bronzeville area in Chicago. Our tour guide gave us a clear picture of the history of Chicago. Since I currently reside in Chicago, this news was not as new for me, but it was still interesting. We went dowtown and looked at the new renovations all around Chicago. Our tour guide expressed his discontent with the option of having the 2016 Olympics in Chicago. After our tour, we had the opportunity to visit the historic DuSable Museum. Before we stopped at the Museum, we drove past President Obama's abode in Chicago. The home itself was shrouded with trees, so we didn't get a good view of the home. Around the Presidents home, numerous police squad cars were parked monitoring the home, and a side street that would have provided a good view of the home was blocked off. So we just drove past it a couple of times to tried to get a good photo-op. When we arrived at the DuSable, our docent asked us some provocative questions about the civil rights movement and black history, such as who the first people of African decent in America were. Our docent debunked the notion that the first black people came to America in chains in 1492, but rather that Africans arrived in America in roughly 1311 on their own boats according to Ivan Van Sertima. After an impressive welcome to DuSable, we moved on to look at a few of the exhibits. A couple of the exhibits that peeked my interests were an area of Museum dedicated to Harold Washington, who was Chicago's first black mayor. Our docent pointed out that their would not have been a Barack Obama without a Harold Washington. Another exhibit of interest for myself was dedicated to Blues and Jazz scene in Chicago, that migrated north with southern blues and jazz musicians, such as Muddy Waters. Within DuSable, there was also a section that our docent pointed out to us that focused on the Black Panthers. Earlier in the day, we had spent some time focusing on The Black Panther Party for Self- Defense that was based in Chicago. We also focused on the brutal death of Fred Hampton, who was gunned down in his bedroom asleep at the age of 21. He was one of the Chicago Black Panther Party's leaders. After we moved out from the DuSable museum, we continued our tour throughout Bronzeville and heard of such atrocities as public housing money in Chicago being used to build condos to gentrify certain neighborhoods. After finishing of our studies of Chicago and its significants to the civil rights movement, we drove past Chicago to our hotel in Elk Grove Village, IL and found some dinner at an Italian Restaurant.
The beginning of the end has started. We are on way back to our starting point of this trip, St. Paul Minnesota. We left this morning from Chicago to start our long drive back to Hamline University. There was a feeling of exhaustion on the bus after what we have been through these last two weeks. On board the bus we discussed an article called ‘The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism” by Andre which discussed racism and how it promotes hatred among oppressed women of color. We as a group discussed how the article relates to us, and how it relates to the civil rights movement. After we stopped for lunch we had a conversation about groups that were oppressed and the similarities of the oppression and the differences. The lengthiest of the conversations was about some of the group members arguing the homosexual community would often try compare there struggle with that of black people. Some believe that oppression is the same for all groups, and others believed that homosexuals could not say their oppression was the same as black people because they are different in many ways. We soon shifted to another topic which had to do with a movie, Two Towns of Jasper, about a town in Jasper, Indiana. It was shocking for all of us to find out that James Byrd Jr. was brutally murdered by white supremacist in the year 1998. No one could believe that things like that still happened. It was obvious to point out that in some places like Jasper things have not gotten better. The Black and White people do not mingle at all; it is very upsetting for us to see places like this. It points out that race in America is still a big issue. It was an intense video but one that all people should see. Especially people who think that struggle is over. We made our way towards Hamline University and said goodbye to the best bus driver in the world, Darv.
Civil rights are rights that all people in the same country should have. The civil rights of one country apply to all its citizens within the borders of the country. The rights are given by the laws of the country. Civil rights are not the same as human rights.
So we have had an interesting and enlightening beginning. We arrived at the Minneapolis airport after a long turbulent plane ride hoping to get some sleep sooner than later. But we would be sleeping without any of our luggages because our bags were not loaded onto the plane we would be taking.
ReplyDelete9 am on Monday morning we began our introductions and preliminary learning about the Civil Rights Movement. Our luggage arrived in the mid-afternoon and most of us were anxious to take a shower (I know I was!). We ended our first day with dinner in the dining hall.
During our second day of class we met a group of middle school students from the Southside Family Charter School (SFCS). They shared with us their experiences and photos from their trip to the south with a program similar to HECUA’s program. The students gave us advice on traveling on the bus, they said not to use the bathroom on the bus or sit in any of the rear seats because of the smell. I was envious of the SFCS students because they had the opportunity to visit places and meet people will not be able to go and meet, I am happy to have been able to hear about their experience and all they took away from their trip.
Also during our second day of class we had the opportunity to meet with Arthur R. McCoy. He discussed with us the different legal cases that were significant to the Civil Rights Movement and the flexibility of a law degree. Mr. McCoy also explained to us the importance of strategic movements when it came to matters of the law. We were appreciative of Mr. McCoy’s insight and his willingness to come out and speak to us.
Our third day in class we welcome yet another special guest, Claire O’Connor, one of seven Minnesotans who willingly participated in the Freedom Rides in 1961. Ms. O’Connor spoke with us about the importance of young people’s involvement with the Movement. She was just a college student when she agreed to become a part of history. Ms. O’Connor said joining the Movement was not as some people may assume it was, some of the students who joined did so on a whim; granted the students understood all that they were getting themselves into, they never stopped to think that they could be changing history with their actions.
During the evening on our third day we had the pleasure of meeting Coral Garner, cousin to Denise McNair, the youngest girl murdered in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing of 1963. Mrs. Garner described to use what it was like for her as a child living in the south during the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. She said she didn’t remember a whole bunch but she did remember certain instances and events that had occurred. She talked about the Children’s Crusade of 1963 and how she was too young to participate, but how she remembered her older sister being detained at a local football field. Mrs. Garner went onto explain why children were used in the first place, she said children had less to loose, in a sense, they didn’t own property and they weren’t employed, so having the children march and demonstrate was actually a very good strategy. Mrs. Garner also disclosed her memories of the bombing at the church and its affects on her family. What Mr. Garner described was so vivid that in my mind I could see everything she said as if I were there. She described being late for Sunday School that morning because she had over slept and that her older sister had gone ahead to the church. She said she remembers her mother getting a phone call after they heard a loud ‘boom’ outside. She remembered getting in the car and riding down the street and seeing the police perimeters set up around the church. Mrs. Garner described her sister’s dress, which was white, being covered in blood from cuts she had sustained from glass that had been broken by the force of the explosion. She said her family never really spoke of that tragic day because it had been so traumatic for them. We appreciated Mrs. Garner taking the time to share with us her memories and personal connection to Civil Rights Movement.
Our fourth day we had the honor of meeting two fabulous people Brittany Perry and Dr. Josie Johnson.
ReplyDeleteBrittany Perry is a Hamline University alum who stopped by to share her experiences with us regarding her participation in the HECUA program in 2005. She addressed some tensions that she had felt in the south due to a miscommunication she witnessed between the organizer and the students regarding a dinner that was held for a civil rights activist. One of the most important things we got from all she had to share was that there is still a lot of ignorance in the south. People who aren’t able to see from the perspective of the oppressed don’t fully understand the struggle(s) and overlook certain actions due to their lack of knowledge. She was kind enough to give us some advice on how to be mentally prepared when traveling and to leave any outside problems that might potentially distract or take away from the experience. Along side the advices she was kind enough to answer our questions and expressed great interest and support.
Dr. Josie Johnson spoke about some very complex issues that seemed to be unsolvable at least for the moment. We had a very powerful and engaging dialogue where we expressed our interests and concerns for the black community. She stressed how important it was for everyone to be vigilant and pay attention to the ways in which the media and other oppressive tools hinder the progress of justice in the Black community. She also sympathized with us and reminded us that the struggle has been going on since the beginning of slavery and that it changes ever so slightly with time. “The Struggle never ends.” she said, hinting to the fact that although it can become emotionally stressful at times we must persevere. More than ever we need to be aware of the subtle ways in which racism is expressed and not become content with the small successes we may achieve. Dr. Johnson also placed a strong importance on the youth, because it is through us that the struggle and the legacy of the Civil Rights is continued, which is why education is important. The activists who fought for desegregation believed that through education they could uplift their race because knowledge is powerful; it had the capacity to emancipate a people. With all the questions we were asking her she asked us how would we answer our questions first, pleased with the responses she told us “We are the Civil Rights movement.” With some humble and peaceful authority she said when she comes back she hopes that we’ve made some progress in coming to a conclusion regarding our answers.
We are very excited and humbled by the experiences of those who came before us and are willing to impart their knowledge with us. As we begin our journey we can only hope that we continually grow as individuals and as a collective working as agents on the behalf of social justice and Civil Rights.
FYI the last first 2 comments were posted by Ashlene Brown and O'Shane Richardson.
ReplyDeleteFirst Day on the Bus:
ReplyDeleteWe woke up in the morning and had to be at the bus at 9am, which in college time, is 10am, so we left at 9:30. We sat on the bus for about an hour before we started class. We watched the eyes on the prize the Little Rock 9.
After watching the movie we had a discussion led by Colleen. We talked about the importance of education given how hard teenagers in the 60's worked with eachother to integrate schools. We imagined what it would have been like to be in their shoes.
The next video we watched was Little Rock High: 50 Years Later. This was a documentary film following students in white and black communities and their exeriences in the same high school today. Many of us could relate the stories of the students to our own high school experiences. Wendy facilitated a discussion after the film about the social issues at the school. Some topics that came up in our heated discussion were teen pregnancy, ageism, classism, and AP track list. We talked about how AP classes are majority white in most public high schools.
The conversation eventually turned into a debate and discussion about where the motivation comes from to appreciate education and success. We came up with various sources of motivation including family, ourselves, community leaders, etc.
After the movie, we all had a chance to sit with ourselves and think about what we had just witnessed. After thinking, we were able to come together and talk in a more informal way at dinner.
We ate at an all you can eat buffet, and the waiters were so great! Later we checked into the hotel and explored.
A few of us finished the evening with Colleen's former professor Terry. He was full of energy and entertained us with his stories. He talked about working in the South as a psychology student. He also explained the complicated racial connotations of sheet music.
We learned so much on the first day, after nine hours of traveling through three states. We haven't even reached the south yet,
Coming into this program we thought we were going to learn about the south and the civil rights movement, now we're starting to have feelings that this is going to be a journey of self reflection and realizations.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe morning of June 13th 2009, our team of twenty individuals embarked on a long six hour ride to Nashville, Tennessee. During the bus ride, we were given a reading assignment which granted us access to the courageous life of Ella Baker. We learned that Ella Baker was a strong community activist who motivated and inspired young adults, like ourselves, to take control of their community and their organization for if they allowed other community leaders to take charge, SNCC would no longer be the organization that they know and worked hard to create.
ReplyDeleteSecond on our list of assignments, we watched a documentary entitled Eyes on the Prize which was about the sit-ins of the 1960s. The documentary highlighted the proper non-violent techniques the protesters learned prior to the first sit-in on February 13th 1960. Protestors, like Diane Nash, reminiscence about their first sit-in experience and their surprise to the white people’s reaction. Nash recalls a specific waitress who dropped “about $2,000 worth” of plates as a reaction to the defying of the segregation laws, which designated a specific area for the whites and for the blacks. Despite the waitress’ reaction, Nash recalls that no other people addressed their presence. She assumed that they were believed to be “outside agitators” from the North and did not know the proper ways to behave.
Later Nash addresses her famous encounter with Mayor Ben West. Sparked by the arrest after the sit-ins, thousands of protestors silently marched to city hall where Nash provocatively asked the Mayor, "Do you feel it is wrong to discriminate against a person solely on the basis of their race or color?" Mayor West honestly answered yes and three weeks after the Mayor’s response, it was the first time blacks were served at restaurant counters in Nashville, Tennessee.
We knew we had finally arrived in Nashville when the scorched heat….
When we finally arrived at Nashville, we were greeted by a community organizer Kwame Lillard, and two Freedom Riders Allen Cason and Etta Ray. They led us to The Garden House, where we indulged in authentic southern meals. From omelets to fluffy pancakes to turkey sandwiches, we were all very satisfied with the cooking, and even more appreciative when we met the chef behind our pans.
We, including the three civil rights leaders, boarded the bus and went for a historic tour of Nashville. Our first stop was Fisk University where we stood in front of a statue of W.E.B. DuBois. There Kwame discussed the origins of NAACP, SNCC, and other Black led organizations that fought for civil rights. Kwame provided us with an analogy to help us better understand the significance of the Civil Rights Movement. He stated that the Civil Rights Movement was like a tree trunk and due to its success, it paved the way for other branch like organizations, such as The Women’s Suffrage Movement. In addition, Kwame taught us that oppression is a man made construct and because of it, we cannot get mad at the wrong people. For instance, Ms. Ray told us a story about her expulsion from Tennessee State University because of her involvement in the Freedom Rides. Puzzled, Ms. Ray wanted to blame the university’s Black president as reason of her expulsion, but she later learned that it was the board of region and the governor of the state that gave the president orders to expel her or else his position as president would be in jeopardy.
ReplyDeleteContinuing our tour, we drove by many different historic sites such as, the oldest Black bank in America, which survived the Great Depression and the house where James Weldon Johnson wrote the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing”. Among one of our favorite stops was the surprise visit to meet Oprah’s father, Vernon Winfrey, at his local barbershop. He welcomed us with much enthusiasm and was excited to share his experiences, including his honorary hall of fame title for being one of the eight oldest Black barbers in Nashville.
Our final stop of the tour was Tennessee National Cemetery, where we saw the tombstones of the Union Army’s Colored Troops. At the center stood an intricately sculpted statue of a black soldier, which is the first and only one created and dedicated to the black men who fought for our freedom during the Civil War.
After the tour, we gathered our thoughts and relocated to Kwame’s office. Once there, Kwame facilitated a question-and-answer session, where we had the opportunity to talk and pose pressing questions about the movement, their lives and the future consequences of the current generation of black youth.
All in all, we absorbed an abundant amount of information in reference to an illusion that is created by white supremacy; an illusion supporting the belief that Whites are superior to all “other” races. Kwame challenged us with several questions that caused to question our society like “why white is always affiliated with good and black with bad”. In fact, Kwame stated that “superior is how to think and reason”. Like many great leaders, Kwame stated that the education of all cultures is a fundamental element to bring about social change within our national community. He believes that during the Civil Rights Movement, “we [black people] gave up everything we had for the right to be integrated” which ultimately caused blacks to lose their sense of community.
As a community, it is up to the current generation “to decide what will happen with the next generation”. As leaders, we must return back to our community, ready, to educate the next generation and bring forth a new movement whose mission is to recollect what we lost during the strive for integration.
Greetings from Nashville, Tennessee!!!! My name is Daphne, and my partner's name is CJ. The past week has been absolutely amazing. On Saturday morning, we began our journey to the South. Our first stop was in Nashville, TN. Today, we had the privilege of visiting the Nashville Public Library. Before we left for the library, however, CJ and I had lunch and discussed some socio-economical issues about the Civil Rights Movement.
ReplyDeleteThis is CJ here! Today was an amazing day for numerous reasons, the most significant may have been the ability to sleep in and not have anything on our itinerary until 1:00 P.M. We did our regular routine and got on the bus, and headed over to the Nashville Public Library to explore its expanse Civil Rights Movement archives. At the Nashville Public Library, we were greeted by Andrea Blackman, who was chosen to be the Archivist of the Civil Rights Movement. We were also greeted by two of our new friends, Ms. Etta and Allan, who both participated in the Freedom Rides from Nashville.
We arrived at the Nashville Public Library, which is an amazing 3 story brick building, with marble finishing on the interior. The Civil Rights section of the Library has its own unique flare to it. When walking into the Civil Rights Movement Archive, the first thing you see is a frosted glass monument donning a Martin Luther King quote. The room is surrounded with a number from photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, from the Nashville Banner newspaper, which is no longer in publication.
We spoke with Andrea Blackman extensively about a number of issues. We discussed issues including but not limited to: media's roll in history, lack of information discussed about Diane Nash covered within the Banner, and student led nonviolent moments in Nashville and other cities. After our discussion with Dr.Blackman, Ms. Etta and Allan, we watched a video that focused on Nashville students nonviolent movements. We also perused different information within the library, including desegregation and sit-in photographs, newspaper clips, personal letters, and an extensive collection of Civil Rights Movement books.
After leaving the library, we went to dinner in Nashville at a restaurant called Swett's which had delicious looking chicken, ribs, corn, mash potatoes and my personal favorite from the meal, pumpkin pie. As a stanch vegetarian, I felt like I was missing out on something. After getting back from our intriguing day, we will have some relaxation time before heading to Atlanta in the morning.
Greetings from Atlanta, Georgia! It is our fourth day on the road and our group has learned so much already. We had about a four hour drive from Nashville to Atlanta. On our bus/traveling classroom we tried to accomplish two specific learning goals. The first goal was to understand how popular culture is used to reinforce racism. We watched a film called, “Ethnic Notions” that explored the evolution of racist portrayals of African-American people starting with slavery all the way to current day in the media. The film represented various depictions of African-American people as domesticated, savage, and childlike creatures. From our perspective this was shocking but unfortunately not surprising.
ReplyDeleteThe groups response to the video during discussion lead to reflecting on the consequences of the images today and also sharing personal experiences that are related to how popular culture reinforces racism in society. The consensus of the group was that trying to educate or change the perception of black people is an exhausting and difficult road to travel because racism exists among our everyday lives and interactions. So discussing matters of race and ethnicity and explaining why people do what they do is a burden to any minority or any white student because one of us benefited from racism and one of us suffered due to racism.
The second goal of the day was for us to understand the true role of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Everyone found out that MLK was a true human being like each of us and made a powerful impact on the civil rights movement even while dealing with personal struggles. Dr. King’s energy and commitment to non-violence persuaded others to follow and not question the tactic. MLK’S enthusiasm for Christianity and brotherhood allowed him to sacrifice his life for the movement.
After learning more about Dr. King’s history and contributions to the movement, we visited the Martin Luther King Jr. Historical District. While there we spent the afternoon visiting the different sites that are dedicated to his lasting legacy. It was amazing to walk around the area on a regular Monday afternoon and see the hundreds of people exploring and supporting the history.
Tonight Dr. Beverley Wallace blessed our time in the ATL with her presence and insightfully asked the group some tough but meaningful questions about our trip and how the trip has given us access to understanding why we experience what we do at out respective institutions.
This blog was brought to you by the Lovely Sara Kettering and the Intellectual David Brade.
Stay tuned for the following days of this historic adventure.
Have fun with my aunt (Colleen), you guys! If she gets too out of hand, send her home. The dogs are missing her. ^_^
ReplyDelete<3 Tally
Today, or should we say yesterday... [because we were so exhausted last night we did not get a chance to write] or because there was no internet connection... you take your pick.
ReplyDeleteThis morning we had the privilege of viewing the archives of the Civil Rights Movement at the Emery University Library of Rare Books. As we walked into the library we read the timeline of Alice Walker and even saw copies [posted on the wall with the timeline... but NOT the original transcript] of her novel, The Color Purple, which won the Pulitzer Prize for literature.
After looking at the timeline we met with two women who were employed by the library to archive documents written after 1968 by the SCLC [Southern Christian Leadership Conference]. These archives are rare books that were purchased by the library; our group found this to be rather controversial. What we found most unusual was how uneasy the women were when asked if there were any African-American people on the staff. In fact, they became so flustered that they failed to answer the question directly. We also found it peculiar that while members of this movement are still living, apart of the local community and within reach were not included in archiving the documents or in how they were presented. Again, we experienced another aspect of inequality and misrepresentation in how history is documented and recorded. One of the women responded by saying that the job demanded masters degrees, but in all reality, the people they are "documenting" and "studying" made history without masters degrees. If these people who are the history are alive and well.... shouldn't they be included?
After this rather intense dialogue we left for a town meeting which included a range of ages.. from six years old and up to the late seventies. This particular town meeting seemed to be focused around organizing for upcoming events within the city and its surrounding areas. During the meeting we happened to meet someone who attended Hamline, Brenda Scott. She offered to volunteer some of her time to show us around which was great.
After the meeting we went to eat at a locally owned establishment whose food and company were equally appreciated and celebrated. Tyronne Brooks, who lead part of the town meeting, took time out of his day to speak with us and answer any questions that we had.
Shortly afterwards we went on a tour with Colin Dube who is a graduate student at John Hopkins. He is employed by the Auburn Avenue Research Library, which we toured. Finally we left for a tour of Atlantic Station and the surrounding areas.
we ended at the mall........and at last we got some shut eye
p.s. this was written by Leonel Dorvil and Katherine Johnson.
ReplyDeleteJune 17, 2009
ReplyDeleteToday marked our third day in Georgia. On the bus ride, we watched a segment from the 1961-1963 Eyes on the Prize documentary. The film focused on the history of Albany Georgia, which was where we were headed to meet Mr. and Mrs. Sherrod in their work office. From the documentary, we learned that Albany was perceived to be a major failure in The Civil Rights Movement. After Martin Luther King surrendered to Albany’s strategic planning to prevent desegregation, many begun to doubt Albany’s chances of becoming an integrated town. Meanwhile the SNCC branch in Albany opposed that notion and stated that King’s presence attracted more people due to the publicity.
We later learned from Charles and Shirley Sherrod, members and community organizers of SNCC, that the publicity not only attracted more outside people, but it inspired people from the local community to find value in the work of SNCC. When Mr. Sherrod was asked to express his opinion about the “outside agitators” controversy, he stated that outside people should not come to communities in hopes of saving the people. Instead, he continued, outsiders should attempt to become members of the organization to understand the foundational structure. If outsiders try to be savors, than the structure will not succeed whereas a collectivist organization allows everyone to be involved and dedicated to the cause.
June 17 continued:
ReplyDeleteAs the conversation developed, Mrs. Sherrod went on expressing that the struggle of the movement was fought for integration but most importantly to free the minds of Black people. Ironically, she believes that integration of schools is one of “the worst things that happened to Black people”. She argued that black people gave up a well-rounded community that supported black businesses and supplied dedicated teachers. Mr. Sherrod later added that we should have a learning process where teachers are able to learn from students just as students learn from teachers.
The highlight and most detailed portion of our discussion was the use of plantations in Georgia. According to Mrs. Sherrod, manufacturing corporations and foundations such as Coca-Cola, Victoria’s Secret, Hanes, and The Olin Foundation, own plantations in Albany that are currently used as entertainment sites for wealthy White people. These Whites pay a substantial amount of money to come to these plantations to go hunting. To our surprise The Olin Foundation, owners of the Nilo plantation, supplies many different colleges and universities, like Denison and Hamline University, with mathematics and science buildings.
After leaving Mr. and Mrs. Sherrod in Albany, we all boarded the bus and headed north to Americus, Georgia where Carol Barner Sheay and Sandra Mansfield met us at the Koinonia Farm. Mrs. Sheay and Mrs. Mansfield, two of the original fifteen Stolen Girls, welcomed us by having us sing freedom songs. Following, they began telling us about their involvement in The Civil Rights Movement and how it led to their multiple arrests. Their most memorable prison experience was the Leesburg Stockade.
Contained in a hot concrete cell with bars on the windows for 45 days, the women recalled several memories like when a guard purposely released a rattlesnake into the cell because they were singing and praying. Mrs. Sheay continued her story by talking about the day Danny Lyon came to the stockade to take photos of the girls and their inhumane treatment. Mrs. Sheay explained that they were smiling in the photos because they knew Lyons came to help. Lyons informed the girls that he would do his best to get them out of the stockade by publishing the photos, which eventually succeed when the president saw the pictures and ordered the immediate released of the girls.
Mrs. Sheay and Mrs. Mansfield supplied us with much information and even took us to go see the stockade. In the mist of their information was a great deal of heartwarming and satisfying advice. Mrs. Sheay’s greatest advice was her explanation about being a striver for change. She explained that she was not a survivor of the stockade and the Civil Rights Movement but a striver. She stated that anyone can be a survivor but strivers are those who are able to look past the normative and continue to fight the struggle.
Hello blog readers! My name is Carol David and I am a student at the University of Minnesota studying Geography. I am really enjoying my trip to the south! Today was another HOT day at the Koinonia farm in Americus, Georgia. It was a rough night for sleeping because the house is not air conditioned and we did not have a fan in our bedroom. I can’t even tell you how hot it is here! You do not need an alarm clock to wake up because just before the sun rises the roosters are crowing! There was no hitting the snooze button today! At 9:00 this morning we all walked over to the museum on the farm where Sara, a member of the Koinonia community showed us a video about the start of the farm community. The documentary was called “Briars in the Cotton Patch, The Story of Koinonia”. It was started in 1942 by Clarence Jordan as a Christian community where blacks and whites could live together and work together. When people on the outside found out what was going on they became outraged. The Ku Klux Klan came to the farm shooting their guns and setting a house on fire. Today the farm continues to be a Christian community where about 30 people live. They make money by selling pecans that they harvest on their farms. Sara showed us the bakery where they make delicious chocolates and cakes with their pecans. They also sell fair trade coffee and chocolate.
ReplyDeleteThe community grows all of their own fruits and vegetables. Sara took us on a tour of the farm and taught us about Permaculture and how they irrigate their crops. Permaculture is a word that mixes the words permanent and agriculture. It is the idea of growing enough food to feed the community without damaging the land so it will always be able to support the community. In their gardens they do not use pesticides. It is very interesting the way they keep out pests. Sara said that they put down cardboard boxes as mulch. On top of the cardboard boxes they put a mixture of different organic materials and keep piling it on. She said the mixture confuses the pests because of the different smells and tastes and eventually they leave the area.
The geographic region is very dry so irrigation is an issue. The community built a pond which collects runoff water. Water is also collected from the roof tops of buildings where it runs down the gutters and into a holding tank.
The community works hard in order to assure that they do not have to buy new building materials. An example Sara gave us was that of a fence that is around the garden. They have planted cactus and other plants to make a natural fence so when the old fence falls down, they won’t have to buy materials to build a new one.
The farm also has animals. There are goats, chickens, and a cute puppy that protects the chickens from fox in the area. There are also bulls and cows. Sara told us that chickens are great for the farm because they provide eggs, fertilizer, meat and they aerate the soil.
After taking a tour of the farm, we had a few minutes to hang out while we waited for lunch. Every day at noon someone rings a bell to let everyone know that lunch is ready. Every day the families that live in the community have lunch together. Before eating they say a prayer and then the buffet style lunch is served. I enjoyed the meal. I ate spaghetti, my favorite, and a salad that was made entirely from their garden along with some Georgia peaches.
After lunch we had an hour and a half before we would have class. A lot of us took naps while some of us played games or did homework. Class was held in the air conditioned museum on the farm. During class we had an activity where we discussed things that we want to learn more about, what has surprised us so far, what has been uplifting, and what we look forward to. After class we went to yet another buffet for dinner. I don’t think I will ever eat at a buffet again after this trip! After dinner we went to Wal-Mart so we could pick up some things that we needed.
Today was a great day! As I blog the guys are shaving each others head! Friday morning we are heading to Alabama.
PS. that was edited by my blog partner Everett Daily!
ReplyDeleteToday was possibly the most intense experience we have had thus far. We reached Selma, Alabama, our destination for the day… thinking we would be going on a traditional museum tour. However, we did not realize that the museum is catered towards transporting the visitors back to the Middle Passage [the horrific journey native Africans experienced in enslaved ships from West Africa to the West Indies].
ReplyDeleteAs soon as we stepped off the bus we were abruptly submerged into the life of a slave on the Middle Passage. We were told to stand against the wall, separated by male and female. Then we had to hold out our hands and open our mouths while being called n***** and other humiliating words. This was an essential part of the experience, as it quickly carried us into the lives of those before us. It did not take long for us all to become a part of the experience, as the women leading the tour were brutally graphic and realistic. Shortly after we were commanded to squeeze into a confined room. We were then taken to a small ship where we were rocked back and forth while tightly constraining ourselves into a fetal position.
Throughout a sequence of events many of us felt a powerful wave of emotions flooding over us. In particular, Leonel and I both felt the most frightened when we had to choose who among our friends was to live or die. In order to save ourselves we had to choose one person, or if we didn’t as I, [Katherine did not], two people were sacrificed. The decision was both heartbreaking and terrifying. Though we realized that it was a mere simulation, the rawness of the incident was a taste of the horror people went through.
The episode was in fact so real for us that when the women told us we could relax and that it was over, many of us who were standing against poles with our arms raised up [in a tied position] did not relax. The women had to ask us twice in order for us all to realize that the experience was indeed concluded. Thankfully we were given time to debrief after this overpowering adventure. The women who led the tour opened up the conversation by asking how we felt when we were called the n word. One of our friends mentioned how he realized the gravity of the word even more after this; that it is not just a word that should be thrown around carelessly. The white students also had a reaction to the word since the n word is typically directed towards African-Americans. They had a moment of clarity and a moment of shock by being placed in the subordinate position rather than the dominant race. Throughout our discussion we concluded that the n word is not a term of endearment since it was never a good word to begin with, and in addition it holds a weight of history many cannot comprehend. We ended our discussion with hope in that there is forgiveness and that it is possible to love again and move on.
After the museum tour we walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, which was where “Bloody Sunday” [March 7th, 1965] took place. “Bloody Sunday” was a nonviolent march led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that resulted in the State patrol releasing water hoses, tear gas, nightclubs, numerous injuries and even death after the march. As we [Leonel and Katherine] walked across the bridge we expected to feel more emotional and connected. Unfortunately, the bridge did not evoke the same emotional reaction as the museum did. Nonetheless, walking across the bridge was an important experience as it is a monumental point in the Civil Rights Movement and in America’s history.
These two events together packed into one day were extremely overwhelming to handle emotionally, mentally and even physically. Some more debriefing and discussion could have helped us all process the day, hopefully we can return to this experience when all of us are ready to talk about it.
~Leonel and Katherine
We left the University of Alabama this morning and made our way to Philadelphia, Mississippi. While on the bus we decided to have a conversation about what happened during the trip to the museum, with the activity where we were all treated like slaves. Some of us felt like the ten minute debriefing after we were done with the activity wasn’t enough time to process what had happened. Each of us, including the instructors spoke about how we felt after what happened and how we were processing it now. Most of us know that it is going to take a lot longer for us to process everything so we have decided to have more of these talks, as a group.
ReplyDeleteIn preparation for our day in Philadelphia, we watched a segment of “Eyes on the Prize” about the murder of Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman, all young college age civil rights activists.
When we got to Philadelphia, we arrived at Mount Zion United Methodist Church where we attended the 45th Anniversary of the murder of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman. We learned that Schwerner and Goodman risked their lives promoting voter registration for African Americans in Mississippi. They later met up with Chaney to investigate the burning of Mt. Zion United Methodist. Little did they know, the Ku Klux Klan was following them. The police while leaving the church stopped the three men. They were arrested for speeding while they were stopped fixing a flat tire. They were arrested at 4:30 pm and released from jail at 10:30 pm. They reason the police released them at this time was so that the Klan had time enough to plan an ambush for the three men. Sure enough the Klan kidnapped the three and drove them into a ditch on an abandoned road.
During the service we sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and “We Shall Overcome.” Hollis Watkins, a Civil Rights activist spoke about having worked directly with Goodman, Chaney, Schwerner. Hollis Watkins generously thanked our group for attending the service. The keynote speaker was a candidate for mayor of Philadelphia, MS. His main message was that “civil rights are not a black thing, civil rights are the right thing.”
After the service was done, we visited the site of the murder and learned the gruesome truth of how they were actually killed. We compared and contrasted the real story to the fictional account of what happened in the movie Mississippi Burning. However, one thing that we have learned on this trip is that it takes more than one person to tell us what really happened, because of the many interpretations that people have of each event in history. We drove to Jackson and had a late dinner at a southern buffet. Stuffed with sweet tea and mac n’ cheese, we pulled into the hotel for a good night sleep.
I think the group might be blogging incorrectly. To add photos and links, etc. everyone writing has to be an administrator. Anyone visiting your blog (like me) can also post comments. Is it too late to change up the process a bit?
ReplyDeleteWish you could bring back some of that amazing food to share!!!
Hello everyone. My name is Everett and I will be telling you about the first day of our last week together on our Civil Rights Tour. Today, we boarded the bus at 9am and headed for Jackson, Mississippi’s city hall. We spoke with the current mayor and a representative who has had a seat for over 10 years. They both gave us advice on working towards a greater society and working together, with all people, in order to create whatever change we see necessary.
ReplyDeleteHere we also met Hollis Watkins, who is a veteran of the Civil Rights movement. Although we saw him yesterday we did not get to spend too much time with him because of the church service. Hollis hopped on the bus with all of us and we traveled to a historical Ferris Street. Here on this street there were historical restaurants, jazz clubs, and theatres. Unfortunately, all of the buildings are abandoned and have fallen apart. I have seen abandoned buildings before but never have I seen so many consecutively. I thought that it was sad that all of these historical places were, apparently, no longer remembered or cared for, due to the condition that they were in. We traveled by foot for about 5 blocks and we then boarded the bus.
Once back on the bus we went to Medgar Evers home, which is now a museum. Here we saw Medgar Evers neighborhood, his home, and the driveway where he was shot down. Afterwards we drove to see a statue of Medgar Evers. Here we sung a song that was written about Medgar Evers and his death. The statue was beautiful and read the words:
Medgar Wiley Evers
July 2, 1925 – June 12, 1963
Dedicated to Everyone
Who Believes in Peace,
Love and Non-Violence;
Let’s Keep the Torch Burning
Wife:
Myrlie Beasley Evers,
Sons:
Darrell Kenyatta & James Van Dyke,
Daughter:
Reena Denise Evers
This part of the day was a bit emotional but not too much. Once we left the memorial we went to the office of Hollis Watkins. Upon entering we were fed. We had bread, spaghetti, blue berry cobbler, and sweet tea. I drank sweet tea (a drink that I have been sticking with since I started this tour). Lunch was delicious and after lunch we met Hollis’ closest friends, Jimmy Travis. He and Hollis met in 1961 and they have been friends since. They have NEVER been in an argument or any form of dispute. Jimmy was also apart of the Civil Rights movement and he spoke on his involvement, his difficulties in life, and his relationship with Hollis.
After listening to Jimmy Travis, we spoke with Hollis for about 3 hours. Needless to say, we learned a lot about him. Hollis Watkins is the youngest of 12 children. His parents were sharecroppers who made less than $700 in a year. When Hollis graduated high school he went on to attend Tugaloo College where Hollis found out how poor he actually was. Hollis is a smart man and when he was at Tugaloo, he found ways to get free meals. He noticed that the track team would get one free meal a day. So he joined the track team. He also noticed that the choir team received a free meal a day, so he joined the choir. Hollis did not necessarily want to do both, he just wanted to eat. However, he was great at both.
Later in life, Hollis joined the freedom riders, African Americans who fought to integrate the buses that traveled from state to state. The reason why Hollis joined them was that he could not understand why the God that he and White people supposedly shared would allow the Whites to treat the Blacks so badly. He said that he was told that the answer he was looking for would be found if he were to go on the freedom rides, so he went.
Hollis joined SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) in 1961. While with SNCC Hollis was beaten, jailed, and threatened. Hollis had some terrible stories about the movement. He told us that the worst beatings would happen on Sunday mornings on the steps of the White people’s churches. The White people used to viciously beat them when they would try to attend their church. There were also times when Hollis would be arrested for protesting and there would often be threats on his life, even as far as having guns pointed in his gut. The words of a police officer to other police officers while he had his gun on Hollis:
ReplyDelete“Yes, this the nigga I’m gonna kill. Question is whether I’m gonna blow his guts out or his brains out. “
There were also threats made on Hollis’ life while in prison. Hollis was arrested for trying to register Blacks to vote. He was sent to a maximum-security prison and sent to death row for 55 days. He once was put into solitary confinement, a room 6 by 6, with 14 other prisoners. The only air in that space was a small crack between the bottom of the door and the floor. Another threat on Hollis’ life occurred when guards took Hollis out of his cell and sat him in a chair. They showed Hollis a noose, which had a ribbon tied on it. They said: “Get up nigga. We gonna have a hanging party and you gonna be first.” When Hollis told us what his response was, I thought he was crazy. He said, “I would just sit back in my chair and chill, and look them dead in the eye. And I would laugh.” I looked at Hollis in amazement and somewhat in confusion because I did not understand how I was sitting in his presence. He then said that it was revealed to him by God, that he would not die during the civil rights movement and because he knew he was not going to be killed he used to laugh at the officers. After Hollis said this I was in awe and understood why he was so important to the movement. Hollis is definitely a Civil Rights icon.
All in all, the day was another good day to add to our Civil Rights Tour. We learned so much about Hollis Watkins, his family, his childhood, and his role in the movement. Tomorrow we will be in the Mississippi Delta with Hollis again.
BY JESUS AND CHRIS
ReplyDeleteWe are in Birmingham, Alabama also known as "Bombingham" to many people that have lived here during the movement. We started our day today at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. We were introduced to Horace Huntley, an archivist who specializes in oral history. He was the first to get a BA in African American Studies at the University of Minnesota. He had been hoping to travel the world so he enlisted into the Air Force. He ended up at North Dakota, not exactly where he wanted to be. He told us about a time he was on the bus and a lady refused to sit behind him because of how he looked. He is involved with an oral history project that involves transcribing over 400 interviews. It was then time for us to tour the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. We briefly met a beautiful lady named Mrs. Jackson. She was taking her time off to meet us and gracefully spent the day with us. We entered and began the tour with an eight-minute movie. It was cool because the screen just rises and we can begin the tour. This has been one of the most detailed museums I have ever been at. It talked about all the things we have been learning on our trip. It is a self -guided tour that deals with the Civil Rights Movement and the present struggles being faced today. The first section is the barriers gallery. This section displayed the segregated classrooms and churches. The class for ìwhiteî students had the best materials and classroom. The other class had outdated books and the classroom was really crammed. The section after barriers was the confrontation gallery. This section displayed much of the havoc and violence geared toward the black community. This is the time when Birmingham was known as ìBombinghamî. We then entered an area known as the movement gallery. It spans from the Freedom Rides to the March on Washington. There was a milestone gallery that is pretty self-explanatory. It highlighted the achievements of the struggling people. The last section was the human rights gallery and I did not get to spend so much time in this one because we had to leave. But this gallery dealt with current issues. We were then headed to lunch.
continued from above...
ReplyDeleteWe then went to the historic 16th Street Baptist church, where we participated in a tour. We were given a brief overview of the history of the church by a member. She brought out how important the church was to the movement in Birmingham. She also spoke about the four girls (Addie Mae Collins (aged 14), Denise McNair (aged 11), Carole Robertson (aged 14), and Cynthia Wesley (aged 14)) who were killed in the church bombing on September 15, 1963. The members of the church also take great pride in the fact the church was built by T.S. Window a black architect who was in charge of the church project. She asks us to give a round of applause for black men to show appreciation for the work black men do. We then watched a video about the bombing of the church, and the four girls who lost their lives in the church. It examined the case that took place after the bombing and those who were finally convicted years after the bombing. The film also brought out some of the mysterious things that were noticed after the bombing such as the face of Christ being the part of the picture that was damaged. The tour guide also spoke about Dr. Martin Luther Kingís speeches on having a non-violent movement that were given at the church and those members who felt they could not refrain from violence if they were hit. She said those members helped the movement in other ways by, donating what money they had to the cause. John Pitts of Wales donated the stained glass window of a black Jesus on cross with one hand facing outwards: signifying the rejection of oppression and one hand facing inward: symbolizing forgiveness.
After the church we took a tour of the Charles Sherrod Civil Rights Park with Ms. Jackson, the vice president of the NAACP chapter in Birmingham. The park included sculptures that depicted the police dogs that attacked those who participated in the childrenís march. It also had sculptures of the water hoses that sprayed the children that day during their peaceful march.
After browsing the park, we sat down with Ms. Jackson, and she spoke with her experiences in Birmingham during the movement. She shared her story of segregation and the rules she and others of the black race were forced by law to live by. Ms. Jackson helped us to understand that the movement consisted of fighting for integration but more importantly it was fighting for equal access and she is still fighting for that today.
Mrs. Jackson is extremely funny, both Fiona and Colleen came into our study room and laughed their heads off, literally they came in and fell on the floor laughing and crying because they were laughing so much. They had dinner with Mrs. Jackson and had a blast! It made us all wish that we were there with them. We were blogging while they just burst into the common room like they were possessed.
Greetings from Tunica, Mississippi! As we approach the final last couple days of our journey through the deep south we continue to learn and reflect on so much.
ReplyDeleteToday we started out leaving Jackson, Mississippi following our leader for the last couple of days, Mr. Hollace Watkins. Mr. Watkins took us to an organic herb garden a good hour away from Jackson. The garden is family owned and operated and strives to produce quality, healthy, and all natural products. The family has owned the land that we toured for five generations. Ms. Ciné gave us a tour throughout the garden explaining the functioning of the land as well as an overview of the herbs and things produced. We learned that developing our own products allows us the luxury to become healthy in our diets, our hygiene and just more independent. Ms. Ciné told us that farming was and still is necessary for not just the black community but everyone to become aware of because natural organic produce, and herbs and minerals help rid our bodies of potential diseases that have spread through each ethnicity. Ms. Ciné shared the history behind the marketing of shea tutter in the United States. Shea Butter’s production is rooted in Africa, over the years the product has been morphed into something that has been taken for granted. Ms. Ciné actively supports business women in Africa who raise a more healthy, natural, and conscious shea butter product. At the end of our time at the garden, many of us purchased some of Ms. Ciné’s natural skin and hair care products.
After leaving the farm Hollace Watkins lead us to the memorial grave site of Fannie Lou Hamer and her husband Perry “Pap” Hamer. Fannie was known for being in the Mississippi Democratic Freedom Party. Fannie’s famous quote was “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” because of the cruel and unjust laws that impeded the equality of Mississippians back in the sixties. We then continued to celebrate her contribution to the empowerment of black people. Hollace lead us in songs from his new album such as: “Stayed on Freedom”, “Which side are you on”, “I want my freedom” and “Freedom come and it won’t be long”. Singing these freedom songs with Hollace brought vibrant smiles to the group and the realization that singing played a major role in the movement.
We then moved on to Tunica, Mississippi where we were welcomed by multiple different community organizers and leaders. The leaders joined us on the bus and gave us a tour of the town. Overall Tunica County is home to about 9,000 people. During the tour we witnessed first hand the role that racism still plays in some parts of the south. The racism is very real and visible in Tunica. We were told that within the county, segregation still plays a very big role in housing, the school system, and the overall functioning of the county. For many of us, the stories and descriptions of the inequalities that face Tunica were both shocking and unbelievable. After our tour, our hosts made us a delicious soul fool meal! Our group is both very humbled and appreciative to the hard work that the community members we met today are doing for the movement and we appreciate their gracious hospitality.
David & Sara
Greetings from Chicago!!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is CJ and Daphne. Today is the last day before we head back to the Twin Cities. This trip has been filled with a rollercoaster of emotions. We have also learned so much about the history and the consequences of the Civil Rights Movement. This morning, we departed from Mt. Vernon, IL and traveled to Chicago for a tour of the Bronzeville area in Chicago. Our tour guide gave us a clear picture of the history of Chicago. Since I currently reside in Chicago, this news was not as new for me, but it was still interesting. We went dowtown and looked at the new renovations all around Chicago. Our tour guide expressed his discontent with the option of having the 2016 Olympics in Chicago. After our tour, we had the opportunity to visit the historic DuSable Museum.
Before we stopped at the Museum, we drove past President Obama's abode in Chicago. The home itself was shrouded with trees, so we didn't get a good view of the home. Around the Presidents home, numerous police squad cars were parked monitoring the home, and a side street that would have provided a good view of the home was blocked off. So we just drove past it a couple of times to tried to get a good photo-op.
When we arrived at the DuSable, our docent asked us some provocative questions about the civil rights movement and black history, such as who the first people of African decent in America were. Our docent debunked the notion that the first black people came to America in chains in 1492, but rather that Africans arrived in America in roughly 1311 on their own boats according to Ivan Van Sertima. After an impressive welcome to DuSable, we moved on to look at a few of the exhibits. A couple of the exhibits that peeked my interests were an area of Museum dedicated to Harold Washington, who was Chicago's first black mayor. Our docent pointed out that their would not have been a Barack Obama without a Harold Washington. Another exhibit of interest for myself was dedicated to Blues and Jazz scene in Chicago, that migrated north with southern blues and jazz musicians, such as Muddy Waters. Within DuSable, there was also a section that our docent pointed out to us that focused on the Black Panthers. Earlier in the day, we had spent some time focusing on The Black Panther Party for Self- Defense that was based in Chicago. We also focused on the brutal death of Fred Hampton, who was gunned down in his bedroom asleep at the age of 21. He was one of the Chicago Black Panther Party's leaders.
After we moved out from the DuSable museum, we continued our tour throughout Bronzeville and heard of such atrocities as public housing money in Chicago being used to build condos to gentrify certain neighborhoods. After finishing of our studies of Chicago and its significants to the civil rights movement, we drove past Chicago to our hotel in Elk Grove Village, IL and found some dinner at an Italian Restaurant.
CJ and Daphne
The beginning of the end has started. We are on way back to our starting point of this trip, St. Paul Minnesota. We left this morning from Chicago to start our long drive back to Hamline University. There was a feeling of exhaustion on the bus after what we have been through these last two weeks. On board the bus we discussed an article called ‘The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism” by Andre which discussed racism and how it promotes hatred among oppressed women of color. We as a group discussed how the article relates to us, and how it relates to the civil rights movement. After we stopped for lunch we had a conversation about groups that were oppressed and the similarities of the oppression and the differences. The lengthiest of the conversations was about some of the group members arguing the homosexual community would often try compare there struggle with that of black people. Some believe that oppression is the same for all groups, and others believed that homosexuals could not say their oppression was the same as black people because they are different in many ways. We soon shifted to another topic which had to do with a movie, Two Towns of Jasper, about a town in Jasper, Indiana. It was shocking for all of us to find out that James Byrd Jr. was brutally murdered by white supremacist in the year 1998. No one could believe that things like that still happened. It was obvious to point out that in some places like Jasper things have not gotten better. The Black and White people do not mingle at all; it is very upsetting for us to see places like this. It points out that race in America is still a big issue. It was an intense video but one that all people should see. Especially people who think that struggle is over. We made our way towards Hamline University and said goodbye to the best bus driver in the world, Darv.
ReplyDeleteCivil rights are rights that all people in the same country should have. The civil rights of one country apply to all its citizens within the borders of the country. The rights are given by the laws of the country. Civil rights are not the same as human rights.
ReplyDeletesupplements