Celebrating MLK Day!

Today was a beautiful sunny day with perfect 60 degree weather and not a cloud in sight! I was looking at my calendar earlier and realized that it is Martin Luther King Jr. Day! I decided that I was going to celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr. by learning about all of the great accomplishments he and other leaders made during the Civil Rights Movement, so I went on a virtual field trip at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. I visited the Civil Rights Institute on the web at rg.bcri.org/gallery. This site was filled with resources about the history of the Civil Rights Movement. The Movement link on the webpage began with a clip of Martin Luther King Jr. speaking about how Birmingham was the most segregated city in the U.S. Whoa! I had no idea that Birmingham was the most segregated city during that time, and it makes me sad that it was that way. However, times have certainly changed a lot since then.

As I continued on my virtual field trip through the Civil Rights Institute, I was shocked as I read the timeline of events in Birmingham during the Civil Rights Movement, it really opened my eyes to the reality of the violence and injustice that occurred during that time. It is so tragic to me that people could treat each other with such cruelty. I read that the Klu Klux Klan burned crosses at schools and around Jefferson County to protest the integration of schools, and did other horrifying, unmentionable things. I found that 1963 was the year that many major events of progression and regression in Civil Rights history took place. That year, two African American men were appointed to the Birmingham City Council, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," the first African American students enrolled in desegregated schools in Birmingham, segregation laws were repealed in Birmingham, and the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing occurred.

I found out about some of the Civil Rights leaders from Birmingham, including Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth. Before today, I had no idea who Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth was, other than the fact that the Birmingham Airport is named after him. He was a very significant leader in the Birmingham Civil Rights Movement. Reverend Shuttlesworth co-founded the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (ACMHR), which petitioned for desegregation of public schools in Birmingham, facilitated bus boycotts, and conducted many other brave acts to eradicate segregation in Birmingham.  Reverend Shuttlesworth went through so much to gain equal rights for African Americans; his house was bombed, and he was beaten and arrested. I watched a video with an interview of him in which he spoke about the creation of the ACMHR, and he reminisced about gathering people to organize and protest against segregation and discussed the dangers they knew they would face. During his interview, he said that even to that day he felt that many people did not want to be integrated. Sadly he is right, there are still many people that cannot see past racial or cultural differences. We are all made of the same flesh and blood, so what makes one person think they are worth more than another person? It is so important to embrace each other's differences and recognize that everyone is beautiful inside and out. I plan to use what I have learned today to strive to be a better citizen, and to encourage others to accept and embrace ethnic and cultural differences.

This virtual field trip to the Civil Rights Institute would be a great resource to educate students about the Civil Rights Movement, and to facilitate discussions about ethnic and cultural diversity and the importance of respecting others. This would be a good resource to use during Black History Month to inform students about Civil Rights leaders and key events that occurred during the Civil Rights Movement. Students can use the information they incur to put into perspective the hardships African Americans underwent during this time, and to address ways to prevent prejudice and discrimination towards others in current times. Virtual field trips are a great way to keep students engaged in the classroom, in a comfortable environment where they can freely share their thoughts and opinions about what they have learned. This type of activity can be used to promote authentic, collaborative learning in whole class and small group instruction. I hope to go on another virtual field trip when I become a teacher! I just kissed my brain because I learned so much today! Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for my next excursion where I'll be showcasing an app!