Civil Rights - Day 4

After an eventful night of hiding from tornados, we were, luckily, able to sleep in. We woke up at eight, had breakfast, and departed for our first appointment at Kelly Ingram Park. The park is named after the first American soldier to die in World War I, who was supposedly African American. The park was instrumental in the civil rights movement because it is where  the children's war occurred in 1963. The children were attacked by dogs, blasted with water hoses, and thousands were sent to jail. The children’s bravery that day was truly amazing, and after out visit to the park we all have  great amount of respect for the kids who endured the pain. Next, we walked across the street to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. This museum has a number of interactive parts and interesting things to see. Along with the scavenger hunt, in which we learned valuable information about the civil rights movement, it was easy to stay focused through the tour, while still having fun. Afterwards, we took a short walk over to the 16^th Street Baptist Church, which is famous for being bombed in 1963, when four young girls were murdered. The church had an eerie feeling knowing that it was where these four, young, innocent girls lives were taken. Not only were these girls killed, but there was a fifth girl in the church during the bombing who lost an eye. Others were injured, and two boys were murdered the same day as well. Our final stop of the day was at the Indian Springs School. We ate lunch with several of the students and played interactive games where we discussed what it meant to have privileges, and what privileges we are gifted with in our everyday lives. It was easy to get to know the students, and even though they live in a different part of the country, they go through similar experiences to ours everyday. As of now we are traveling in our vans to Starkville, Mississippi, where we will spend the night to prepare for our long day of driving through the Mississippi Delta tomorrow. 

 By Sara Norton and Cuyler Brodnax