-Shannan Kirchner
Yesterday we arrived in Birmingham, Alabama. We pulled right up to our first destination, the Civil Rights Institute. Our professor had been talking up the museum for the past couple of days, and he promised it would be another great experience.
With that, we took to the doors, watched a short movie, and continued on to the many exhibits displayed. At this point our group was scattered and we all took our own route. As I progressed through the corridors I read through all the different plaques, timelines, and spectacles. Toward the middle I was drawn to a section of the museum I was quite fond of. It was a read aloud of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail.” Hearing him speak his own words with such valor and finesse was moving. It left me feeling inspired. I listened to the entire excerpt then moved on.
What I encountered next was an experience I know will resonate with me forever. I believe that sometimes it is the small things that really make the biggest impact. I stood staring into a glass case that hung a glowing, white Klu Klux Klan outfit. The outfit was complete. The robe was long, topped with a pointed, cone hat with eye slits and white slippers. I could not help but start to imagine everything about that robe. I pictured someone putting it on, someone going out in the streets with it, someone hanging it in their closet.
Who are these people? Who are these people that live with such hate in their hearts and minds? Could these people really, truly think that what they are doing is right? So many questions ran through my mind. So many questions that will probably always go unanswered.
The Klu Klu Klan is a hate group that has committed thousands of crimes. Not only were their actions illegal, but they were just plain inhumane. We were told a story yesterday by our tour guide in Birmingham of a house that was destroyed three times. It was bombed, rebuilt, set on a fire, rebuilt, and set on fire again. We learned more about the four young girls killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. We learned about young boys who were shot for throwing rocks. These atrocities were at the hands of the Klu Klux Klan. Nothing will ever bring back these young lives. Nothing will ever ease the pain of their families.
There are not words to describe the malice that the Klu Klux Klan manifests. It is sickening and hard to even understand. The movement is not over. Until groups like the Klu Klux Klan are eradicated, the fight is not over. I was left with a feeling that has become quite familiar on this trip. A desire to move forward and continue what has been started.
Yesterday we arrived in Birmingham, Alabama. We pulled right up to our first destination, the Civil Rights Institute. Our professor had been talking up the museum for the past couple of days, and he promised it would be another great experience.
With that, we took to the doors, watched a short movie, and continued on to the many exhibits displayed. At this point our group was scattered and we all took our own route. As I progressed through the corridors I read through all the different plaques, timelines, and spectacles. Toward the middle I was drawn to a section of the museum I was quite fond of. It was a read aloud of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail.” Hearing him speak his own words with such valor and finesse was moving. It left me feeling inspired. I listened to the entire excerpt then moved on.
What I encountered next was an experience I know will resonate with me forever. I believe that sometimes it is the small things that really make the biggest impact. I stood staring into a glass case that hung a glowing, white Klu Klux Klan outfit. The outfit was complete. The robe was long, topped with a pointed, cone hat with eye slits and white slippers. I could not help but start to imagine everything about that robe. I pictured someone putting it on, someone going out in the streets with it, someone hanging it in their closet.
Who are these people? Who are these people that live with such hate in their hearts and minds? Could these people really, truly think that what they are doing is right? So many questions ran through my mind. So many questions that will probably always go unanswered.
The Klu Klu Klan is a hate group that has committed thousands of crimes. Not only were their actions illegal, but they were just plain inhumane. We were told a story yesterday by our tour guide in Birmingham of a house that was destroyed three times. It was bombed, rebuilt, set on a fire, rebuilt, and set on fire again. We learned more about the four young girls killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. We learned about young boys who were shot for throwing rocks. These atrocities were at the hands of the Klu Klux Klan. Nothing will ever bring back these young lives. Nothing will ever ease the pain of their families.
There are not words to describe the malice that the Klu Klux Klan manifests. It is sickening and hard to even understand. The movement is not over. Until groups like the Klu Klux Klan are eradicated, the fight is not over. I was left with a feeling that has become quite familiar on this trip. A desire to move forward and continue what has been started.