Selma and Montgomery, Alabama November 17 and 18

Since we got a bit of a late start out of Birmingham, we didn't get to Selma till almost sunset.  We just had time to see the Edmund Pettus Bridge and walk around town for a few minutes before we had to head down the road to Montgomery. 

The infamous Edmund Pettus Bridge, where local and state police beat and tear gassed peaceful activists attempting to march to Montgomery.  March 7, 1965 became forever known as "Bloody Sunday" as the coverage went around the world.

The Alabama River

We then drove to Montgomery following the same route as the marchers, passing a few markers where they spent the night along the way.   The next morning we got up to a full day of history.  First stop, the Rosa Parks Library and Museum. We could not take photos inside but it was a very interesting interactive tour.

The Museum stands on the very spot where Rosa Parks was escorted from the bus and arrested.  Troy University had purchased the building(s) on this corner and was originally going to put in a parking garage. After researching the historical significance of the site, the university made the decision to develop the museum instead.

 Dexter Avenue Baptist Church where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. preached and where many meetings were held during the Civil Rights Movement.

 The Mississippi State Capital

 Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy

 Memorial marker for the Selma to Montgomery Civil Rights March

I did not know about the Capital City Guards.

 The Civil Rights Memorial and Southern Poverty Law Center

Maya Lin, who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC, also designed this memorial, which lists the names of all those killed working for civil rights in the 1960s.

Greyhound bus station and Freedom Rider Museum.  I really wanted to see this museum but it was closed the day we were there--disappointing!  I took this photo through the glass door and one of the murals outside.

Our Civil Rights Tour came to an end in Montgomery.  I could not help but reflect on the current times and the parallels between the unrest of the 1960s and today, with protests ongoing about the killings of unarmed black men by the police, the "cradle to prison pipeline" and the inequities still experienced by people of color in our communities.  I continue to hope for the day that true equality is realized.

Birmingham, Alabama, November 17

In Birmingham, I was excited to reunite with more friends!  Adrienne and Bill lived in Texas for a couple of years when our kids were young.  Adrienne and I were both social workers who had offices near each other and we became fast friends.  She and Bill have two daughters who are close to my daughters' ages so our families hung out together and did "kid stuff" together. Then they moved to Amarillo and later, back to Alabama, where they were from.  We figured out we hadn't seen each other since around 1999.  But we've kept in touch at the holidays and with an occasional phone call over the years and I knew I wanted to see them when we set our route for the road trip.

You know how you have those friends where you can just pick right up where you left off, as if no time had gone by?  That's how this visit was.  We started talking and laughing and it was as if time had fallen away.  They were both very welcoming to Rich and he enjoyed them very much. We went out for some "real" southern cooking and had lots of great conversation about life.  Adrienne had to work the next day but left us some breakfast and a huge goodie bag of snacks, water, and necessities for the road--how thoughtful is that?   Bill is retired so we spent the morning together and he went with us to see some Civil Rights sites in Birmingham.  We wish we'd had more time and I think we've convinced them to come see us in Alaska next summer.  :)  Thanks, Adrienne and Bill, for taking care of us!

The 16th Avenue Baptist Church, where four little African American girls were killed during a bombing by white supremacists in 1963.  Such an ugly part of our history.

Their names are:  Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Denise McNair. What grief their families, friends and the community must have felt. To think that your children are not even safe inside a church must have broken the hearts of all but the most heartless.
At least 20 more people were injured and two more Black teens shot to death in the aftermath, leading to Birmingham to being nicknamed "Bombingham" during the Civil Rights movement. However, the church bombing was seen as something of a turning point throughout the country.  As the news story reached the national and international press, many felt that they had not taken the struggle seriously enough.  A Milwaukee Sentinel editorial stated, "For the rest of the nation, the Birmingham church bombing should serve to goad the conscience. The deaths..in a sense are on the hands of each of us."  (From Wikipedia).

Many years later, some of the men who bombed the church were finally brought to justice.  Alabama Attorney General William Baxley reopened the investigation when he took office in 1971.  He stated he had been a student at the University of Alabama when the bombing took place in 1963. "I wanted to do something but I didn't know what." In 1977, former Ku Klux Klansman (okay, am I the only person who thinks this is such a ridiculous name for an organization??) was indicted for the murder of all four girls, tried and convicted of the first degree murder of Denise McNair and sentenced to life in prison. He died eight years later in prison.  Thomas Edwin Blanton, Jr. was tried in 2001 and found guilty at age 62 of four counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison.  Herman Frank Cash died in 1994 without ever being charged.  Bobby Frank Cherry, also a former KKK member, was indicted in 2001.  He was first found mentally incompetent to stand trial but later convicted in 2002, sentenced to life in prison, and died in 2004.

Kelly Ingram Park, where many demonstrations and actions took place, is located right across the street from the church and the Civil Rights Institute, which we also toured.

 Dogs were regularly set upon protestors.  As you walk through this area, it's as if the dogs are actually coming at you.

 Water guns that were used on protestors

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

After a full morning of history, we met some more friends at the Art Museum for lunch.  Mona was a classmate of Rich's and mine when we went to high school in NJ.  Although I did not know her very well in school and I left after sophomore year, Rich stayed till graduation and shared some classes with her. We had reconnected on Facebook a few years ago and she messaged us that they live right outside Birmingham. Since we had limited time, she suggested we meet at the Museum. We had a great time catching up with Mona, her husband Bill and their adorable little granddaughter.

It's always fun to see people from the past and get reacquainted!  Thanks, Mona and Bill, for coming out to meet us!

After lunch, we hit the road for Selma.

Taylor and Oxford, Mississippi, November 15 and 16

In these times of smart phones and GPS, Rich and I are still traveling mostly the "old fashioned" way, with (real paper) maps, hand-written directions, and our latest addition--screen grabs of maps on Rich's iPad.  Our AK cell phones have no data plan so we have to be prepared with instructions in advance or search for a wi-fi spot.  Yes, I know, this sounds terribly 20th century.

We left Jackson for Taylor, Mississippi to visit friends for the weekend.  We knew that they lived out in the country a bit but we figured we'd be fine with our iPad directions.  We didn't leave as early as we'd hoped and I texted along the way that we would just stop for lunch before arrival since we hadn't eaten breakfast. Then came the search for a place to eat and we finally were forced into a row of fast food places off the highway, settling for a Waffle House where I could still get some kind of breakfast food.  Okay, seriously, if a place calls itself "Waffle House," shouldn't it have super great waffles?  Waffle House--where you get  the flattest, saddest, most tasteless waffles you'll ever meet. :)

After eating, we continued on our journey to Taylor.  The bad thing about screen grabs of maps and directions is that they are not necessarily correct and you have no way to do any further research with no internet. Well, we did have an atlas in the car but it was no help. We were sent down many winding backroads that did not seem to match up with the directions at hand.  Eventually, I called Susan, who said without missing a beat, "Are you lost yet?!"  Yes, we were lost, but luckily we were lost in Taylor, MS and just had not come far enough.

Susan gave us directions the rest of the way and said she would wait down at the end of their driveway for us.  It's a good thing she did or we might have driven right past their house, which is up a hill and somewhat hidden from the road.  Whew, we made it!

It was great fun to be reunited with my dear friend Susan, also known here as fellow blogger Suzassippi, her husband known affectionately as Randoman, and their son known on her blog as J.  We go way back to our days in Texas, before they took off for Mississippi and I took off for Alaska, when we had young kids and were young social workers and peace activists in a town not-so-friendly to left-leaning folks . We've shared many adventures over the years and she is the one friend who has consistently kept in touch with me since I moved away.  We still email each other several times a week and discuss everything from current events to family life to the fact that getting older sucks pretty badly sometimes. Although we have seen each other in TX for brief get togethers when we both happen to be in town, this is the first time in several years we've had a couple of days to visit and hang out.

Our southern road trip was turning out to be a chilly and rainy one and our arrival date was probably the coldest and dreariest of the drive so far.  Where was our sunshine??!!

The first night our friends treated us to a lovely dinner out at a place called The Ravine.  The food and the company were great and we had a nice time catching up.

Randy and Susan

Since we have been in Oxford before, and the weather was pretty nasty, we did not tour around too much this time. We did visit the Ole Miss campus, where both Randy and Susan are employed, and went to see the statue of James Meredith, the first person of African American heritage to enroll in the University of Mississippi in 1962, amid violence from segregationists that necessitated the calling up of the National Guard and US Marshals.  Two people were killed with many more wounded and the Governor was fined and found in contempt before the rioting was done.  Read much more about these events here.

Once again, I am struck by the courage it took for one person to stand alone when all around him people were carrying out violence and spewing hatred.  I often wonder what it is about people like James Meredith that compels them to persevere in the face of so much opposition, not to mention the very real possibility of physical harm or death.  These are certainly the people who move our society along, even if many are kicking and screaming (literally--and worse--) against change.

Otherwise we mostly hung out at the house and visited, while reassuring their dogs that we had not moved in forever and that soon they would  have their routine and their sleeping arrangements back to normal.  ;)   Thanks, S, R and J for your hospitality!

Jackson, Mississippi, November 14

First stop in Jackson was the historic Greenwood Cemetery.  It's still in use and was established by a federal land grant in 1821.  It was originally known as "The Graveyard" and then as "City Cemetery" before being given the name of Greenwood in 1899.  Buried on these grounds are several Confederate generals, former governors of Mississippi and mayors of Jackson, as well as the author Eudora Welty.  The graves of more than 100 unknown Confederate soldiers are also located here.

I've always loved old cemeteries, probably because my grandfather used to take us to see them when we were kids visiting in New Jersey. Some dated back to Revolutionary War days and were very spooky as well as fascinating.  :)

We went to the State Capitol but there was a lot of construction going on and we ended up not going inside because the front entrance was blocked off.  For my friend Suzassippi, I did a little research and learned that the building is constructed in the Beaux-Arts architectural style.  :)   Out front is a memorial to the mothers, sisters, wives and daughters of Confederate soldiers.  From waymarking.com: "Nashville artist Belle Kinney created the sculpture, which was cast by the Tiffany Studio and dated 1917. The monument, one-and-one-half times life size, is the oldest public bronze sculpture in Jackson and the only one memorializing women. The sculpture features three figures: a central female representing Fame, to her left a dying Confederate soldier, and to her right a Confederate woman on whose head Fame is placing a laurel wreath, the symbolic gesture of victory, giving the monument its meaning as a memorial to women."

Across the street from the Capitol is the Gothic style First Baptist Church, which was built in 1927 and houses the largest Baptist congregation in the state.  It has connections to the Mt. Helm Baptist Church, below.

This is the historic Mt. Helm Baptist Church.  One of my favorite quotes is used in the description of the congregation:  "A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm (Henrik Ibsen).  From  the church website: "Founded in 1835, Mt. Helm is the oldest Black church in Jackson.  It began with several enslaved Blacks worshipping in the basement of First Baptist Church--Jackson, and became a separate body in 1867, the year the 13th amendment was ratified. A number of prominent Baptist churches were generated from the Mt. Helm congregation. Also Jackson State University, formerly Jackson College, was for a time housed at Mt. Helm."

 We passed this building while driving in the historic Farish District.

The Greyhound Bus Station where Freedom Riders were arrested in 1961.  From the website Civil Rights Movement Veterans:"On Wednesday morning, May 24, a dozen Freedom Riders boarded a Trailways bus for the 250 mile journey to Jackson MS. Surrounded by Highway Patrol and National Guard, the bus heads west on Highway 80 in a caravan of more than 40 vehicles. They pass through Selma at top speed without stopping--there will be no bus depot rest stops until Jackson seven hours from Montgomery. Meanwhile, back in Montgomery, 14 more riders board the mid day Greyhound for Jackson. When the weary riders arrive in Jackson and attempt to use "white only" restrooms and lunch counters they are immediately arrested for Breach of Peace and Refusal to Obey an Officer.  From lockup, the riders announce "Jail No Bail"--they will not pay fines for unconstitutional arrests and illegal convictions--and by staying in jain, they keep the issue alive." 

Eventually, there were so many Freedom Riders in jail that they were transferred to the notorious Parchman Prison where they continued their vow for "Jail No Bail."  Read more about the Freedom Riders here..  Imagine taking this ride knowing you could have been arrested, beaten, or even killed for your actions. I hope I would have been willing.

It's now an architect's office.

Medgar Evers was shot and killed outside his home, pictured above.  From the Evers Institute website:  "Medgar Evers was a pioneering visionary for civil rights in the 1950s and early 1960s in Mississippi. As the state's first field secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), he was one of the most visible leaders in the civil rights movement in America. His assassination on June 12, 1963, galvanized President John F. Kennedy to ask Congress for a comprehensive civil rights bill, which was signed into law the following year by President Lyndon Johnson."  Medgar Evers' wife Myrlie said, "You can kill a man, but you can't kill an idea."  She went on to establish the Evers Institute to continue work on social justice issues. It took almost 31 years for Evers' killer, Byron De La Beckwith, to be brought to justice.  Read more about Medgar Evers here.

We drove through the historic Farish District which was once a thriving area containing businesses such as the Alamo Theater, Trumpet Records, the NAACP field office where Medgar Evers worked, and the Big Apple Inn.  We were told they serve a great pig ear sandwich at the Big Apple Inn, but we didn't make it for lunch.  :)

We passed "Freedom Corner" while looking for Medgar Evers' home.  This caused me to reflect that many are still searching for true freedom, which only comes when there is equal opportunity and social justice for all.  I hope that the sacrifices of Medgar Evers, freedom riders, and civil rights activists will not have been in vain.