On Thursday, November 17, forty-one members of our TBE community embarked on a journey to Georgia and Alabama, where we immersed ourselves in the story of slavery and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.
We were guided by the incomparable Billy Planer, the founder and soul of the socially-conscious touring company, Etgar 36, referencing the Hebrew word for “challenge.” He masterfully educated us in the historical context of what we were experiencing, which deepened our understanding of the period. From the beginning, Billy repeatedly emphasized that the Civil Rights Movement was not “our story”…but rather the story of the African American community.
We landed late Thursday in Atlanta met with Billy and got an overview of the trip. Early Friday morning we travelled to Montgomery, to the Rosa Parks Museum, where the Civil Rights Movement began with the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Then we visited The Lynching Memorial, an unbelievably sobering acknowledgment of the victims of horrific lynchings. We next went to the Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Museum to explore the evolution from racial oppression to mass incarceration. We concluded the day by celebrating Shabbat at Temple Beth Or.
Early on Saturday, we proceeded to Selma, feeling overwhelmed by emotion as we crossed the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge. Later, we sat down to hear the spellbinding story of Lynda, a 73-year-old woman who, at age fifteen was the youngest marcher to be attacked by state troopers as she crossed the bridge on the infamous Bloody Sunday. We ended the day in Birmingham’s Freedom Park, where we were awed by an 89-year-old Bishop Woods, as he preached, sang, and educated us, all at the same time, about his experience during “the movement” and the role of his faith. Back in Atlanta on Sunday morning, we witnessed the power of song and prayer at the Ebenezer Baptist Church. We were over-the-top excited when we saw that the Reverend Raphael Warnock was officiating.
The lasting impact of this experience can be summed up best in comments made by fellow travelers:
“We were deeply and emotionally impacted by this abominable history of slavery and the Civil Rights Movement and the racial injustice that continues today.”
“Imagine that 12.5 million Africans were separated from family, raped, lynched, beaten and abused…. How could this happen?”
“We never knew that the northern cities, where many of us grew up, played such a pivotal role in the actual slave trade.”
“How far we have come in race relations and how far we still have to go…..”
“Billy Planer’s passion for and commitment to educating us about this era is so remarkable, asking us to face uncomfortable truths about our country and where we go from here.”
“The past, the present, and an uncertain future. It’s almost too much to take in. But throughout it all, a sense of sharing, exploring and learning together, with new and old friends. Having a community is the deepest of buffers against all that horror.”
“In spite of the capacity for cruelty to one another, there persists the ability of humankind to overcome those horrors with courage, hope and love. The message of this trip provided the true meaning of the words ‘renewal of faith.’”
“The CHALLENGE for each of us is to process what we experienced by looking deep inside ourselves and deciding what actions, small or large, we are willing to take.”
“Hats off to Ediss and the Racial Justice Initiative and all the TBE sponsored programs that make the world a better place.”
“Thank you, Ryan and Jess, for organizing and facilitating this unforgettable experience.”
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