As the national discussion over the last month centered on the Tulsa Riots and Juneteenth, I thought of one of my seminary classes last spring. We spent part of a class discussing images at the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama. So this week, I decided to take a virtual trip to this important memorial.
Why do we need this memorial?
Why, you may be asking to we need to have a memorial like this? Didn’t it happen a long time ago? We should be past this.
We need these types of memorials for the same reason we have Holocaust memorials. Maya Angelou said it best:
History, despite its wrenching pain,
Cannot be unlived, but if faced
With courage, need not be lived again.
Here is a YouTube video that explores the reasons why we need this memorial.
Lynching
The Equal Justice Initiative was founded by Bryan Stevenson, the lawyer featured in the movie Just Mercy, based on the book he wrote. His organization researches lynchings in the Deep South.
I recently watched The Great Debaters, and though the movie makers changed some historical facts, one disturbing scene was all too real. The debate team stumbles upon a lynching on their way to a competition. I found it horrifying to watch the fictional recreation, but I cannot imagine the trauma it inflicted upon the coach and students.
Not only did the these horrible acts leave thousands dead, they basically marginalized the participation of Black people in society. Most of these stories have never been told. This statement from the website summarizes the purpose of the memorial: “The National Memorial for Peace and Justice provides a sacred space for truth-telling and reflection about racial terrorism and its legacy. “
Sculptures
As you approach the memorial, one of the first things you see are sculptures by West African sculptor, Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, depicting enslaved people chained together.
Memorial Square
The memorial square contains over 800 steel monuments. Each monument represents a county where a lynching took place. The names of the victims are etched onto each monument.
Local Connections
The Equal Justice Initiative also supports the Community Remembrance Project, an opportunity for communities to confront their racial past, remember the victims, and encourage meaningful dialogue. As I researched our own community, I learned about the Longview Race Riot of 1919. Shortly after my discovery, the Longview paper had some articles about the possibility of having one of these memorials to remember that event.
Legacy Museum
The Legacy Museum sits on the site of a former slave warehouse. The museum uses first -person accounts, videos and immersive displays. For example one section has slave pen replicas, where you can see and hear what it was like getting ready to be sold on the auction block. They do not allow any video or photography inside the museum, so as not to destroy the atmosphere. All of the pictures on this blog have come from the museum itself and are used by permission.
The EJI modeled this museum on ones in other countries that had histories of genocide, human right abuses, and apartheid. They hope to “promote a more hopeful commitment to racial equality and just treatment of all people.”
I have added this to the list of places I will visit in the future. As we travel with the Father, we need to confront difficult issues, take them to the Lord in prayer and ask him what he would like us to do.