The 11th grade students of James Madison Preparatory High School (JMPHS) traveled back in time on Friday, Feb. 12 as they traveled to Birmingham, Al. to tour the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, the 16th Street Baptist Church and Kelly Ingram Park.
Patrick White, the history teacher at JMPHS, originally came up with the idea to take his students on a field trip involving the civil rights after realizing that the history book in his classroom only has eight pages devoted to the civil rights era. White wanted his students to experience the civil rights era outside of the book and really get a feel for what life was like back then. He began planning last February and fundraised for over 10 months to make this experience happen.
White decided to take his students to the Civil Rights Institute and 16th Street Baptist Church. “[Those places are the] true heartbeat, the epicenter of the civil rights era,” said White. “It is so imperative as a history teacher that I make history come alive as best as I can. I want to make it as relevant as I can so my students understand eras, concepts and the impact of people in our world.”
The field trip clearly had an impact on the students, as many of them were moved by the different monuments and museum displays. White recalls that his students were especially stimulated by the different displays that showed how bathrooms, classrooms and water fountains were segregated.
The students also got a chance to view many artifacts from the civil rights era including the burned out Freedom Riders bus, Bull Connors Police tank, the bars that held Martin Luther King, Jr. in jail, as well as the bunk Martin Luther King slept on.
When asked why they felt learning about civil rights is important, many students had different answers, but they all agreed that the civil rights era was a very crucial turning point in history.
“[I think it's important to learn about that era] because it helps us see that our old ways aren't always right,” said student Michael Goley.
“[The civil rights era] was a time period in which ignorance and hate ruled the day but through persistence, empathy and nonviolence we [as people] were able to move towards complete tolerance that we enjoy today,” said student Ireland Wood.
During their field trip, the students also spoke with people who experienced the civil rights era firsthand.
“We met a man that was 17 at the time the bomb was detonated [at the 16th Street Baptist Church] and he knew one of the little girls that died,” said Wood. “He shared his experience with us and shared his pain to the point where we understood the true impact that the violence had against him.”
While touring the 16th Street Baptist Church, the students also got the chance to meet James Meredith, the very first integrated student at the University of Mississippi. “Meeting James Meredith was an honor for me,” said White. “I've been teaching for 20 years and never physically met someone who is talked about in a history book. I was in complete awe. It’s not every day that you can meet someone whom you’ve taught about, used as an example and utilized to explain the effects of a time period. He was very gracious with his time and answered all my questions. It was, to me, an incredible moment and I will cherish it forever.”
White hopes to have field trips like this in the future to give other students the opportunity to venture into the civil rights era beyond the pages of a textbook.