We went to the National Civil Rights Museum here in Memphis and I left with a new appreciation for this period in history. Abolishing segregation was something I always thought of as being a long time ago and half way across the country, but seeing all the history behind it brought it much closer to home. After spending the summer in the south, it has opened my eyes to the racism and bigotry that is alive in our day. It is extremely sad the way people treat each other and the intolerance and injustice that goes on. Racism does not affect only minorities, but all races. I have a great admiration for Dr. Martin Luther King and the work he did to progress in creating equal rights for all races.
The museum was actually built around the hotel where he was assassinated. I didn't realize this until I was standing in the room, which was left in the same condition as it was April 4, 1968, and looking out the window to the balcony where he stepped outside and was shot.
They also had a bus from the 60's and a lifesize statue of Rosa Parks. When you sat down on the seats in the bus, a voice came over the speaker and yelled at you to get up. I admire her determination to stand up for her rights even if it meant she would be arrested. I take for granted many of the freedoms I enjoy today. Especially the rights I have as a woman, when compared to all the women throughout history. I've never had to fight for freedom to believe what I want or to be able to do the everyday things which other people had to fight for only decades ago. An experience like this is definitely something that makes you snap out of your everyday thoughts and come to a greater appreciation for the place you are in life and the opportunity to live in this period in time.
We went to the National Civil Rights Museum here in Memphis and I left with a new appreciation for this period in history. Abolishing segregation was something I always thought of as being a long time ago and half way across the country, but seeing all the history behind it brought it much closer to home. After spending the summer in the south, it has opened my eyes to the racism and bigotry that is alive in our day. It is extremely sad the way people treat each other and the intolerance and injustice that goes on. Racism does not affect only minorities, but all races. I have a great admiration for Dr. Martin Luther King and the work he did to progress in creating equal rights for all races.
The museum was actually built around the hotel where he was assassinated. I didn't realize this until I was standing in the room, which was left in the same condition as it was April 4, 1968, and looking out the window to the balcony where he stepped outside and was shot.
They also had a bus from the 60's and a lifesize statue of Rosa Parks. When you sat down on the seats in the bus, a voice came over the speaker and yelled at you to get up. I admire her determination to stand up for her rights even if it meant she would be arrested. I take for granted many of the freedoms I enjoy today. Especially the rights I have as a woman, when compared to all the women throughout history. I've never had to fight for freedom to believe what I want or to be able to do the everyday things which other people had to fight for only decades ago. An experience like this is definitely something that makes you snap out of your everyday thoughts and come to a greater appreciation for the place you are in life and the opportunity to live in this period in time.
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