Rain, Rain, go away

We were pretty lucky on this trip with weather. Yes, it was very very hot on the day that we were in Selma, but it was remedied with some shade. Yesterday, our trip from Birmingham to Greenville--we weren't so lucky. It rained the whole way--so what should have been a 4 hour trip--was a 6 hour trip. After getting a late start anyway--our evening plans for Greenville were ruined. We were supposed to go to Cleveland Park and have a cookout. Instead, we ate at Subway on the road and arrived at our hotel around 11PM.

Before our long car ride yesterday, we spent the morning in Birmingham at the Civil Rights Institute. This museum is my favorite. The exhibits have tons of information that tell about the history of Birmingham and the rest of Alabama and how they contributed to the National Civil Rights movement. Birmingham's role was very significant because of its police commissioner and his harsh treatment (dogs, fire hoses) would make national news and help legislators and the rest of the country know the horrors of Jim Crow laws. The exhibits were also easy to understand and most of them were 3-D displays. The use of multi-media made it a favorite for some of the kids as well.

This is the last blog entry. I just wanted to let you all know how much I love your kids. They are inquisitive, playful, respectful, and just all around fun to be around. I could not think of a better group to spend my last official CFS trip with. This experience has been amazing.

What your kids will need when they get home:
*sleep
*a good non-on-the-road meal with vegetables
*a conversation about what they have learned

In that conversation please ask specific questions like:

*What happened at the 16th Street Baptist Church in 1963?

*Who was Jimmie Lee Jackson?

*What happened on Bloody Sunday?

*Why was the death of Emmet Till so significant?

*Who did you find out about in the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham?

*Was the Woolworth Sit-In in Greensboro the first sit-in?

*Where was the "Black Wall Street" in the early 20th century?

*Who were the Freedom Riders?

*How many times did it take before the people of Selma were able to make it all the way to Montgomery in 1965?

Thank you for letting me borrow your kids for the week. And thanks to our wonderful leaders on the trip--Halima Davis who braved driving almost half-way across the country! Wesley Murray and Megan Clinton--Upper School student and CFS alum. And thanks to Renee for helping us find the money to fund this trip and for her presence in Alabama.

Now--I'm giving your kids back. As much as I enjoy them, I must say I will be happy to be in my own bed tonight.

Toni Graves Williamson

Sent from my iPad

Kelly Ingram Park

16th Street Baptist Church

Wednesday, May 25

While the Oprah Winfrey Show graced the airway for one last good time, the CRE crew explored Montgomery and Selma, Alabama.  In Montgomery we went to the Civil Rights Memorial.  It has been organized by the Southern Poverty Law Center.  What a moving experience.  They honor people who have died in the struggle out front with a monument (created by the same person who created the Vietnam Memorial in DC whose name is escaping me right now. . .).  Water runs over the table where names of 40 martyrs have been etched.  The kids were able to run their fingers through the water and over these names.  It was very touching.  Inside of the memorial center there is something called the Wall of Tolerance (several pictures from some of the kids names were blogged earlier).  We had to take a pledge to stand up for justice in order to have our names flash on the wall.  There the names will continue to rotate through the 600,000 other names forever as a testament and a promise from all of us.  Yet again--you might find that the theme of the day is "moving"

After Montgomery will traveled to Selma where we took a tour of the National Voting Rights Museum.  We took a tour of the museum which is under a bit of construction, but the treat from this place was our tour guide.  He told us about Selma's significance in the Civil Rights Movement with regards to Voting Rights.  He is a native of Selma.  And although he didn't walk across the Edmund Pettus bridge on what came to be known as Bloody Sunday , he was active in the community to fight for rights at a very young age.  He was jailed twice as a child for being part of a demonstration. Sam was inspirational.  

After meeting Sam we walked across the bridge just as Selma residents did in their march towards freedom.  

Tonight we just arrived in Birmingham.  We are going to go to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute tomorrow.  

More to come.

Toni Graves Williamson

Sent from my iPad

Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma