My wife Yvonne and I both grew up under the Jim Crow laws of segregation here in the South. This American apartheid system subjugated African-Americans to daily humiliation and shame. The Jim Crow laws denied African-Americans basic human rights. It was a system of de jure segregation in the South and de facto segregation in the North and in both cases denied all people of color equal protection under the laws on which America was founded.
Most youth of today believe that the rights and freedoms they take for granted and enjoy have always existed. They cannot fathom a life of daily disrespect, of second-class citizenship, being regulated to the back of the bus, or getting only secondhand, outdated text books discarded by segregated white schools, or inferior and underfunded everything. Imagine laws mandating segregated public schools, public accommodations and public transportation, restaurants, and drinking fountains. My generation fought the evils of segregation and institutionalized economic, educational and social disenfranchisement so that our children could enjoy their constitutional rights of first-class citizenship.
The National Center for Civil and Human Rights chronicles thousands of people — whites, African-Americans and other people of color, men and women — who have done things around the globe that have positively impacted the fabric of the world. The Center highlights the struggles and successes of those who fought for the liberation of their people. The Center is to be applauded for the diversity of the people and events showcased, as that ensures broad appeal across the world. And who could benefit more from the Center than our youth, who can experience firsthand the devastating effects of unwarranted biases and hate.
With 24-hour access to news, music, Facebook, Twitter and more, many of us have very little “alone time” — time to confer with our inner thinking power. A walk through the Civil and Human Rights Center forces every visitor to internalize that which he or she sees. It is almost impossible for one to merely walk through the Center and check it off their “bucket list” but not be impacted by what is there. It is an experience. It is a place to contemplate the why’s, who’s, and whats; to ask “what would I have done,” “what can I do, today,” and “how will I impact my world?” A visit to the Center forces us to think, to be more introspective, and to tap into our own power. It is impossible to experience the Center and not come away changed. I believe that this experience is truly a must for all young people, especially those of Atlanta, as the city’s influence continues to grow globally.
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