Coinciding with the 50th
anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, the US Civil Rights
Trail was unveiled this year. Historians compounded the collection of
surviving landmarks from major civil rights events. Former National Park
Service Director Jonathan Jarvis initiated the project, and after working with
tourism directors from the South, released the make up of the Civil Rights
trail. Self described as “a collection of churches, courthouses, schools,
museums and other landmarks, primarily in the Southern states, where activists
challenged segregation in the 1950s and 1960s to advance social justice”
(Civil Rights Trail).
The committee decided to name 3
Memphis areas as part of the Trail; the first, and perhaps the most obvious
choice, being the National Civil Rights Museum. Incorporating the Lorraine
Motel, the site of Dr. King’s assassination as part of the landmark, the NCRM
showcases a wide variety of aspects of the southern Civil Rights movement. The Mason
Temple Church of God in Christ was chosen as the place where Dr. King gave his
“Mountaintop’ speech the night before he died. Additionally, the Sanitation
Workers strike was given a nod; Clayborn Temple became the headquarters for
activists during the strike in 1968.
Having gone through the list of
historic sites that this project has chosen to honor, I see a huge emphasis put
on MLK. Nearly all of Georgia sites have to do with him, and rightfully so; his
childhood home, his church and the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic
Site are all located in Atlanta. Two of the three sites in Memphis honor him.
Many of the sites from other states mentioned King’s influence. This could be
on purpose; the already present publicity surrounding the anniversary of his
death will be incredibly helpful for this project. Focusing on one of the most
notable leaders of the movement, specifically this year, would be a strategic
move. However, this could reinforce the widespread idea of the Civil Rights
movement. Everyone knows Dr. King and his non-violent resistance. I do not mean to discount Dr. King and his efforts, but he, himself, was not the Civil Rights movement. While I
believe the Trail does a good job of incorporating different aspects of the Civil
Rights Movement in the 1950’s and 60’s, there is much left to be desired from this project. The first thing that came to my mind
was, ‘Where is Malcom X?’ While perhaps not technically defined as part of the
civil rights movement due to his black nationalistic ideas, his philosophy did
have an impact on the Civil Rights movement. It attracted many African
Americans who felt the Civil Rights movement was not doing them justice. Should
this be included if this project attempts to explore the movement from all
angles. I know there are aspects missing that I am not immediately thinking of, and am curious to hear
what others think. There are over 100 sites on this trail, there should be no problem adding more; What are they
missing?
https://www.memphisflyer.com/NewsBlog/archives/2018/02/22/three-memphis-sites-added-to-us-civil-rights-trail
https://civilrightstrail.com
I almost feel like this also brings up the issue of why only three Memphis sites have been chosen to be in the trail...? In the article I have included with this comment, it makes a valid point that Memphis only has three sites, whereas Nashville has six. I am in no way disputing that Nashville should have that number, but surely if Memphis was considered as an epicentre for the movement as we have discussed, should it not have more sites, such as LeMoyne Owen or the other museums which concern civil rights issues?
ReplyDeletehttp://wreg.com/2018/02/22/sanford-civil-rights-trail-highlights-memphis-history-but-why-only-three/
I agree with Keziah's point that there should be more points on the trail for Memphis, while still recognizing Nashville's significance in the civil rights movement. Why do certain spots in Memphis have these trails but others do not. With Memphis being arguably one of the most important cities during the civil rights movement, it seems the city is being overlooked.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I'm down with the idea of a Civil Rights Trail at all... it implies that the movement is a historical event, and that we have enough time and distance to see it as such. Spotlighting individual places where important civil rights events occurred is great, but the idea of a "Civil Rights Trail" implies that there is a beginning and an end, a finite number of places, people, and dates that map out the Civil Rights Movement. It supports the Master Narrative.
ReplyDeleteI would like to know more about this initiative and the people involved, though. It's an interesting political conundrum. And as critical as I am, if it gets people interested and engaged in learning about history, I'm sure it will have at least a partly positive effect.