Jahnvi Post blog

I enjoyed the Atlanta trip immensely. I learned so much history, but the most interesting facet is how easily I was able to connect it to present day situations as well. The fight for civil rights is ongoing, but there is much to learn from looking back on the Civil Rights movement. 

One of the biggest takeaways from the trip I observed was Dr. MLK’s pure devotion to this future was unwavering, and it’s what ignited hope for millions, in the United States and all over the world. 

One thought that really stuck out to me was the influence of Dr. MLK. Following the Atlanta trip, i was listening to the TED/ NPR podcast on my drive home, and they discussed how Dr. MLK was able to amass such a following. The podcast stated that his followers didn’t believe in him, they believed in what he believed in. “Dr. MLK didn’t say ‘I have a plan,’ he said 'I have a dream.’” People flocked to hear him speak not because of who he is specifically but because of what he represented. Dr. MLK was an amazing leader because he was an amazing follower, he was completely devoted to a higher power and vision: for example,a future where a black child and a white child can hold hands on a playground together- a vision that he shared so descriptively (as he was a gifted orator). 

In a time where younger generations are protesting for their civil liberties, I think of the leaders. I think of the parkland kids, who believe unwaveringly in a future where kids can go to school without fear of gun violence, they believe in a future where kids are more civically engaged and hold their politicians accountable- this vision was built through their tragedies, and it is that tragedy that makes their commitment to change unwavering, similar to Dr. MLK. 

I am bringing back a renewed sense of determination, and hope, to Bonner. I feel recharged after this trip, as it’s been easy to get frustrated with the current state of affairs both nationally and globally, especially given the present administration. 

Post-Reflection

From Essence of Hope to the Center for Civil and Human Rights to the Morehouse College campus, our time in Atlanta last month not only allowed for many opportunities to learn about the history of Georgia and the United States, but made me far more aware of the past, present, and future of activism related to civil rights and social justice. Prior to this trip, I had never spent time in Atlanta aside from passing through, but our week in Georgia’s capital was filled with so many memorable experiences that I hope to continue to learn more and possibly return at some point soon.

Like in the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, racial and economic inequality is clearly everywhere in Atlanta and has been for centuries. During our visit to Sweet Auburn, the National Park Service tour guide explained to me how Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. aspired to become a firefighter for the City of Atlanta after spending time in his neighborhood fire station as a child, but later learned that he would not be able to because of the fire department’s racist policies. Plus, as the tour guide at Dr. King’s childhood home shared, practices such as redlining in some of Atlanta’s suburban neighborhoods prevented residents of color who sought to move out of places like Sweet Auburn to newer neighborhoods like Inman Park from doing so for years. Additionally, at the Center for Civil and Human Rights, the horrors of 1906 Atlanta race riot were spelled out and showed the terror felt by African-American residents for those three days and beyond. While these cases date back decades and the forms of discrimination and injustice in the city have changed, our visit to Atlanta, while enjoyable for us, showed that these crises have evolved but still remain prevalent there and around the country today.

From the fact that MARTA does not travel to certain suburban counties because of racist policies to the separation of the city by Interstates 75 and 85 to displacement amid a lack of affordable housing during new development projects, there are a variety of concerning matters from Atlanta’s past and present. From what we witnessed in Atlanta, in the shadow of high-rise luxury hotels and executive office suites, many residents of the city are experiencing homelessness and like Trenton, there appear to be few services or shelters available to them at the municipal level.

At Essence of Hope, for the first few hours that we set up with the other volunteers, the line of clients was already beginning and was soon out the door and down the street by the time the food bank opened. While the people we met who were working or regularly volunteering there were clearly passionate about their facility and I enjoyed speaking with them, working at the front desk checking in clients gave me a completely different perspective on the non-profit and food insecurity in Atlanta. Many who I worked with were over the age of 70 and were understandably frustrated about the process it took them just to put food on the table for their families every week. From standing outside on line for what felt like an endless amount of time to come into the food bank only to wait longer because of malfunctioning computers to walking all the way home with groceries, it was clearly an arduous task not unlike the experiences faced by many patrons of food pantries in the Garden State.

Later on, our visit to Morehouse College, the walking tour of Sweet Auburn, the lecture at the Center for Civil and Human Rights, and other stops were quite informative and taught me a significant amount about HBCUs, local history, and social justice movements. Some of the best experiences from the week to me were our time as Bonners spent together exploring Atlanta and speaking with residents. Our visits to Piedmont Park, the Sun Dial, and Centennial Olympic Park and going out to dinner in Midtown allowed for us to better get to know each other and to see more of the city. Plus, speaking with Atlantans along the way both at our service sites and at the places we visited allowed me to learn more about the region and the daily lives of residents there that I otherwise would not have known. I even ran into a volunteer at Essence of Hope who graduated from my high school in North Jersey 44 years ago.

In my next two years at TCNJ, unfortunately, I am still not sure what specific action steps can be taken to bring change to our Bonner program. I know that it will be extremely useful to continue comparing and contrasting TCNJ Bonner with other Bonner programs like the one at Morehouse in order to make changes and to see how non-profits like Essence of Hope operate similarly and differently from our community partners in Mercer County, though I am not sure how we as Bonners will be allowed to implement such adjustments. However, from this experience, it is clear that more educational opportunities of this sort and learning from other Bonner programs can be extremely beneficial for all of us. I am grateful for our time spent together in Atlanta and look forward to similar experiences in the future.

Atlanta Post-Trip Reflection

I am really happy that I decided to go on this trip. Not only did it expand my connection to the civil rights movement, which had a direct effect on how I live today, it also made me a lot closer with a few Bonners that I did not talk too much before. One of the best moments from the trip was the diner counter simulation at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. It was just so surreal and chilling. Even as I write this entry, thinking about what was said through the headphones and into my ear still moves me. Another one of my favorite moments was walking through Martin Luther King Jr.’s. As aforementioned during our in-person reflection, this tour really humanized MLK Jr. Obviously, he was human just like the rest of us, but his presence throughout history makes him seem so otherworldly. This made me realize that change really can start with a few, normal people and their supporters; a belief that I had lost touch with in the past few years.

Bringing back my experiences from this trip to my upcoming service at PEI KIDS may be a bit difficult. Ideally, it would be beneficial to take the probation students on a trip to various farms to take them out of their surroundings, allowing them both an escape from their daily life and a lesson on sustainability/life skills. Unfortunately, it is difficult to take my students on such trips because of their disinterest in the trip or dissatisfying behavior in the program.

However, if given a chance by our community partner, it would be beneficial to talk about some of the black historical figures (other than MLK Jr.). During one of our Saturday group conversations, many of the students expressed that they see the color of their skin and their culture as a curse. By having serious conversations about the civil rights movement outside of a school setting, it is possible that the students will have an awakening moment, similar to myself, where they realize that what they learned about the civil rights movement actually happened and is not the equivalent of a fairy tale or story. It may even help them feel a bit more empowered in their voice and have faith in societal change. 

Atlanta Post Trip Reflection

Disclaimer: I apologize for the length of this post as I originally intended for it to be two posts.

Part 1

Day 1: After taking a long drive to Atlanta the day before, I came here eager to explore this new city and immerse myself into the culture of Atlanta. This is exactly what this day helped us ease into as we served at the Truly Living Well Community Garden, and toured the historically black Morehouse College. At Truly Living Well, the man who presided over our service had an expansive amount of knowledge of gardening and farming. This information that he gifted us with is exactly what we will bring back to our Bonner service in the fall to help our garden flourish. Truly Living Well, allows people who were sanctioned by the court into community service, to serve there. However, I did not meet any of those people but would’ve loved to learn more insight about our criminal justice system. At Morehouse College, there was an unparreleled sense of camaraderie, pride, tradition and brotherhood compared to any college I visited. Martin Luther King amongst other civil rights activists attended this prestigious university at a time blacks were not admitted to other universities. Morehouse provides an excellent story of how a downtrodden people overcame adversity.

Day 2: That morning we visited Essence of Hope food pantry. It was very different from the Mercer Street Friends Food Bank in many ways. It was more run down but it was a far more eye opening experience. Half of the people serving were given the option to stay an extra hour to serve the needy their food rations. I heavily enjoyed this and found this to be the most altruistic experience that I’ve had while serving in Atlanta as I was interacting with people who needed my help. Many of the people I served food to were elderly and I thought about how they were likely around my current age at the time of segregation and the civil rights movement. I wish I could have asked one of those elderly people about their experience during that time period. We then visited the Civil Rights Museum which I heavily enjoyed. The extensively covered the Freedom Riders, and I learned that Atlanta was the most progressive city in the South when it came to the Civil Rights Movement. Atlanta was actually the first Southern city to end segregation. I sat at the lunch counter simulation which simulates who civil rights activists were treated during sit ins. I stayed for the entire time but many other people couldn’t because of the disturbing way these people were treated. I honestly wish I could’ve stayed longer and found myself taking pictures of exhibits (that we were allowed to photograph) at the end(museum was closing) because I was extremely immersed in this. The top story of the museum contained an exhibit of Civil Rights from an international perspective and the work that still needs to be done. My only critique about this museum is that they did not cover the racial terrorism through the rampant lynchings that Southern White's committed to keep their Black population subjugated into segregation. Georgia lynched the second highest amount of people, at nearly 500.

Part 2

Day 3: That morning we toured the historically black neighborhood of Auburn. A place that spear-headed the Civil Rights Movement. It contained the first black YMCA, the first black Masonic lounge, and numerous predecessors to Dr. King. This neighborhood is where Dr. King was raised and we had the privilege of touring his childhood home. Dr. King had an interesting childhood, being raised in relatively better circumstances than his other black peers. This experience humanized Dr. King instead of viewing him as a christ-like public figure. It was hilarious to hear about King’s childhood antics as he seemed to get himself into a lot of trouble, like destroying his family garage or jumping off the roof pretending he was Superman. At the end of the day we saw some of the King Center but we returned there on Thursday. We concluded our day with a lecture from Ashley Farmer.

Day 4: We began this day by touring Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King, his brother and his father were ministers. We listened to a recording of one of his sermons and I felt the inspiration in his words. I was saddened to learn that his mother was murdered here by a mentally man and that his father died of a broken heart after losing her, and his two sons. At the reflection pool, I learned that Dr. King and his wife were actually buried there from one of the security guards at the park. The guard gave me insight about his brother James “accidental” death of drowning in his pool despite being a fantastic swimmer and the fact there were marks found on his neck. I also gave him some information in return that I learned in my African American history course this semester. We returned to the Essence of Hope food pantry to continue our service that we did on Tuesday and had a dinner afterwards to conclude our trip.

Conclusion: Atlanta was a fantastic and eye opening experience for me. I would heavily recommend any underclassman Bonner to go to this trip. I personally believe that a great way to get underclassmen to attend these trips is to have upperclassmen who have been on these trips to discuss their experiences. This is something I am willing to do, if my suggestion becomes a reality.

Atlanta Reflection Post

The end of the Atlanta Trip came quicker than expected. I learned a lot and was inspired to take back to my highschoolers at BTE some of the things I learned about in Atlanta. The Bonners at Moorehouse has a tradition where they mentor highschoolers and groom them to become the next Bonners. I think this was a great model and one that could be implemented at Trenton High West. In the BTE program, we mentor and tutor a class of all sophomores. This creates a special bond with us Sophmore Bonners and BTE students because they will graduate high school when we graduate from TCNJ.

For next year it's my goal to create a calendar that equips the students with knowledge on which non-profits in their community are having volunteer opportunities. There should be a focus on volunteerism and civic engagement in addition to the academics in the BTE program. I know first hand how life changing volunteering can be and how many doors can open through making connections in the community. Colleges want a well-rounded student who is passionate and involved. This can also help students have references for the Bonner applications they might want to fill out when choosing which college to attend.

In addition to this push on volunteer opportunities and community engagement, I think students could benefit from more experiential learning. One way we can get students gardening and learn about civil rights is having them do field trips that include those topics. Students from the Highschool could help in the TCNJ garden or we could visit museums. Right now at BTE the majority of our trips are to colleges and of course I believe this is very important for students but I also believe many of them need to continue exploring careers they might want to pursue and a good way to do this is through volunteering, experiential learning trips, and discovering what they are passionate about.

Madison's Post-Trip Blog

Before the trip, I now realize my knowledge about the civil rights era was limited to the scarce materials I had from my schooling. These materials were told from an oppressor’s perspective, and did not even begin to define the intense uphill battle people endured, and are still enduring, to secure equal rights. The movie SELMA helped me to visualize the lengths Martin Luther King Jr., the Big Six, and all the other freedom riders, supporters, and allies went to during this movement. I thought a lot about how I, as a white woman, would have reacted during that time period, and react and support similar efforts today. However, what I did not expect to discover after the screening was how the city of Atlanta played such a major role in the movement, and the milestones that occurred there. Walking around Atlanta felt as if I was walking through an interactive museum. I was amazed at how much history was surrounding me. This began at Morehouse College, an institution where so many of their alumni have gone on to become leaders and influencers. I was able to learn more about HBCUs and the importance they play in the lives of their students (and evidently the world since so many of their students continue to have a global presence). Later on, when we visited the Center for Civil and Human Rights, I was able to get more visuals of this time period. One of my favorite aspects of the trip, and most powerful, was during the lunch counter experience at the center. You can read about these protests and watch as many scenes in movies as you want, but until someone sits down, closes their eyes, and hears those slurs and screams, it is all just a history lesson. That was another aspect of the trip that was memorable to me. We went to the center, MLK’s childhood home, Auburn street, etc. Throughout all of these experiences I was astounded at how all of these issues were being talked about from a historical perspective. From one point I understand; these people and places culminate a past decade marked by monumental changes and strides. However, these issues and thoughts and challenges are still prevalent today, and very much so. People are STILL fighting for their rights, fighting for social equality, fighting the institutional boundaries. This was evident when we served at the food bank, as well as the garden. From all of my experiences in Atlanta, there are a few things I hope to bring back to Bonner, my service, as well as myself personally. Most importantly is I need to study more on the practices and methods of the Civil Rights Era, and how their experiences can be used today. That was a question asked during Farmer’s panel that I have been thinking about. Ms. Farmer said herself “you don’t have to reinvent the wheel” and I want to discover more what that looks like. For my service, I would really like to do a gardening or growing activity with the youth at Anchor House. I think working with plants and having something to see progress with, and grow would be very beneficial for them. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this experience in Atlanta. I am still sifting through all of my thoughts and emotions from that week, but I can say that I definitely benefited from this trip. Thanks!

Madison's Pre-Trip Blog

After watching the movie Selma, and reading and discussing supplemental articles about the Civil Rights Era, it is evident that this trip to Atlanta is a necessary one. Personally, my service connects directly to this movement, and is still affected by its efforts today. Tutoring inmates in the Department of Corrections has proven that civil injustices are still apparent in the form of mass incarceration. Additionally, my service at Anchor House relates to civil rights as well in the form of institutionalized racism and oppression. These factors have contributed to many of the youth at Anchor House and their families’ struggles and fights for basic necessities. With all of this, what I hope to gain from this trip to Atlanta is a more concrete look into the Civil Rights era in a historical perspective, but also how it is still present today. I want to speak to the people that live in the South, and hear about their experiences and own struggles with this oppression; even decades after the movement. I also hope to explore Atlanta’s culture, food, history, etc., to get more of a sense of how people there live, and the differences between Georgia and New Jersey; especially in the ways racism is present and oppression continues.

The Civil Rights Movement is part of what allows me and my family to vote and have more opportunities. It is still surprising to me to learn more about this in my 20's and realize that I was not taught about these events more thoroughly in grade-school. I still see parallels in what was happening back then in history and what is happening now, and it makes me sad that we have not irradiated institutional racism in our country. At the same time I am glad we are progressing, but at times I feel we are replaying history due to the lack of education about our past and the blind eye many Americans turn to the racial divide in our country.

Working with BTE and doing service with high schoolers at Trenton High West has shown me the disparities in the quality of education my students get compared to children in affluent neighborhoods. One of the efforts of the civil rights movement was better education for students of color. Even today you can see the disparity in the educational systems, and the lack of resources students in urban areas have. I want my students to be able to get the same education and have equal opportunity as other students. I also wish to students around the country to get a clear education on the history of our country and to have a multicultural curriculum integrated into their schooling. If students can learn history through the lens of the minorities in this country then perhaps they'll have a more open-minded approach to individuals of other ethnicities and backgrounds. I want my students to know from an early age how critical the individuals that fought for our rights are. I want ALL students to understand how crucial the individuals that fought for our rights are.

I hope to learn more from the Atlanta Trip to spread this knowledge with students I mentor. I look forward to learning more about the history of Atlanta!

Pre-Atlanta Reflection

In Atlanta, I hope to gain a deeper understanding of the history of the Civil Rights movement and how the effects of that era influence race relations in the South today. I have never been to the South outside of the New Orleans Bonner trip last year, and NOLA is distinct from the other Southern states. I would like to understand the legacy of Jim Crow in Atlanta, a city of the Old South that has become one of the largest metropolitan areas in the US today. I will reflect on and compare my experience in Atlanta versus my time in New Orleans last year.

I would also like to gain a deeper understanding of why the Civil Rights movement of the late 1950s and 1960s succeed in producing legislation that banned, on paper, the inequalities that had until then been legal fact in this country. It is fascinating to me how white Americans reacted in the 1960s, versus in the 1920s or earlier when black Americans had agitated for equal rights. Why did what we know as "The" Civil Rights movement succeed where previous civil rights movements (notably in the 1920s) failed? It would interesting to compare the differences in the methods used by activists, as well as the varied reactions from white Americans over time. In addition, the comparison could extend to the current Black Lives Matter movement.

Pre-Atlanta Post

The United States has been continuously dealing with divisions and inequalities in regards to race. In light of recent political and social events, violence and investigations on minority individuals have become more present in the social media and television. Tensions are gradually growing and worsening as time progresses. I hope this trip to Atlanta with my fellow Bonners will shed some light on how people in the South are combating such issues. Additionally, it will be interesting to see how the Morehouse College Bonner operates.

From a young age, this generation has gone over the civil rights movement at least once a year in their elementary, middle, and high school history classes. While we know the logistics and history of the movement, we have never really experienced the heart and sense of community in the areas that fought strongly for civil rights; and I hope that this trip will show me at least a small portion of it.

Pre-Service Reflection- Atlanta Trip

As students we often hear a lot about civil rights, and in particular the Civil Rights Movement; and yet, I believe we are missing important elements. I think traveling to Atlanta and visiting places such as Morehouse College, the Center for Civil and Human Rights, and The King Center can help with providing me with more context as well has historical data concerning civil rights in the US, as well as the topic of human rights on the global scale. Through this trip, I hope to get a better understanding of how the Civil Rights Movement played a pivotal role in the mid-Twentieth Century, and the progress we have made thus far, while still recognizing the problems remaining in our society (and world), and how we as agents of social change can make structural differences, especially as recognize that sites of domination can also be used as sites of resistance, such as in education, which we all will be participating through our enrichment activities.

I believe that as a Black American my history is connected to and has been influenced by Black Americans of the the Civil Rights Movement. I am indebted and appreciative of the work that those before me have done, and the opportunities that I have been given henceforth. The struggle concerning civil rights is extremely relevant and connects to my service because during the Civil Rights Movement, and even today, individuals are still challenging the status quo that often perpetuates and reinforces inequality and injustice. I am particularly interested in the issues concerning the environment and food security, and believe that just as those in the Civil Rights Movement were fighting for and serving a community, through my service I believe that I also participate in resistance against structural inequalities related to hunger and poverty. I continue to learn through my service better ways to serve my community, in which I am part and have an interest. I think that the individuals of the Civil Rights Movement as well as social movements today demonstrate the power of individuals, especially through grassroots mobilization, as well as the significance and necessity to uplift our local communities.

PreTrip Reflection

Through this trip, I hope to learn more about the history of African Americans in the United States. There is so much to learn, but not many places to find it especially growing up in school systems where we learn about the white man’s perspective of the black man’s life. I’ve done a lot of research and taken classes that focus on where the injustices in the United States have stemmed from, but while in Atlanta, I hope to be able to see where some of these events took place. It’s one thing to read in a textbook or on the computer about events that took place, but it’s a different experience to place yourself in the environment where they took place and stand where past activists have stood. While in Atlanta, I hope to learn more about the events that took place in Georgia and be able to visit some of the locations where those events took place. It’d an experience I’d never forget.

For me personally, I think the prevalence of segregation is what affects me the most. There are still so many schools and cities that are segregated to this day. The history of segregation is also something that was hidden in laws like the GI Bill by providing resources like homes and tuition money for returning veterans, but really it was only offered to white veterans. Entire communities were built for families of returning veterans, but black veterans were not allowed to live there. Instead they were forced into dense, inner city housing. Quality and affordable housing is an issue area that I’m very passionate about. Working with HomeFront has helped me to see how that also affects families and individuals outside of inner city communities as well. HomeFront is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to prevent homelessness. There are mostly Trenton residents in the program who are black, latinx, and Hispanic. HomeFront provides funding to help their clients pay rent and other bills and they provide housing for clients and families who were evicted or were homeless. Their housing is spread out in Ewing, Lawrence, and Trenton, which I appreciate because it gives their clients exposure to a new environment. HomeFront also does a great job with keeping the youth in their program active by providing activities and transportation to those activities. This is another aspect of their program that I appreciate because they keep all aspects of their families lives in mind when planning programs and events. I really enjoy my site and service.

Pre-Reflection

Selma was a very powerful film, especially because of how it documented what unfolded in Alabama 53 years ago and its connections to the discrimination and racism that continues to plague both the north and the south to this day. The horrifying scenes shown in the film, from the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham to the violence against black protesters as they were crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge into the Selma city limits, illustrate the violence that impacted people who were trying to do what too many Americans take for granted: register to vote.

As we head to Atlanta, I think about the connections between what occured in Selma and throughout the south in the mid-20th century and our work in Trenton today. Although New Jersey has a long history of racism dating back before World War II, including slavery and redlining, the segregation and police brutality that occured in the state and in Trenton following the war is a direct result of the racist violence like what was shown in Selma. Millions of African-Americans fleeing racism in the south looked to Northern cities as a place to get away from oppression. However, when many people arrived in places like Trenton, they faced also racism, lack of housing opportunities, and brutality by police here. As African-Americans moved into Trenton, white residents and businesses moved out of the city, resulting in a lack of supermarkets, modern schools, and lack of a tax base. Uprisings in 1967 and again in 1968 following Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination saw police brutality in Newark, Trenton, and Camden, leading to loss of life and even more buildings in disrepair. In the years since the 1950s and 1960s, inequality has continued to plague the region.

The state of racism and inequality today contributes to the current crisis of homelessness in and around New Jersey’s capital, which we at The Streetlight look to address. A lack of resources in other communities brings many people experiencing homelessness into Trenton, but they often find discrimination here still. From brutality by officers to a lack of emergency housing venues, individuals experiencing homelessness often have nowhere to turn. Plus, nationwide, African-Americans disproportionately make up those who are experiencing homelessness.

Since I have lived my entire life in the New York Metropolitan Area and have only been to the deep south extensively during the New Orleans trip, I do not know what exactly to expect in Atlanta. However, I hope to see what, if anything, has changed in Georgia’s largest city since the Civil Rights Movement and why that is or is not the case. I also hope to take a closer look and economic and racial inequality in Atlanta and how it compared/compares to discrimination faced by people of color in New York and New Jersey, and how the Civil Rights Movement is remembered through museums in the region.

I believe that the yearly Bonner Service Trips are effective in informing Bonners about the issues that communities similar to Trenton have dealt with in the past. Unless this information is actively being seeked through taking a college level class on the topic or through research at the expense of free time, it will not be learned. This is because American history classes at the high school level and below do not teach the severity of the way blacks have been treated for hundreds of years. I personally believe that white bystandership or even racism itself happens as a result of being uninformed about this history.

As a history major who actively studies this history, I was still very moved by watching Selma especially since the 1960’s are relatively recent history. Blacks were routinely dehumanized, discriminated against and even murdered in many cases throughout the United States. We are visiting Georgia, where black lynchings exceeded all other states. I stand by the conviction that any human being capable of empathsizing being knowledgeable about that issue would be essential in efforts to eradicate racism. Lynchings often happened when blacks tried exercise their Constitutional right to vote, tried unionizing for their rights as sharecroppers or simply when they demanded justice for unlawful treatment.

The most disturbing part about all of this is that instances of recent history such as the Charlottesville White Supremacist march, Dylan Roof’s black church murders, the race disparities in criminal justice system representation and Donald Trump’s campaign rooted in xenophobia proves that racism is far from being eradicated in the United States. Another factor worth noting is the fact that I visited Richmond last year and was struck by grandiose size and beauty of the Confederate monuments of people who fought to preserve slavery. People who did not share the American notion that every American deserves their rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are being memorialized like gods while the injustices that blacks have faced are routinely swept under the rug as monuments to lynchings are just started to be constructed. I would not be surprised if I noticed this contradiction in Atlanta, in part to the fact that Heart of Atlanta Motel Supreme Court case is what made segregation effectively illegal. This case ruling segregation unconstitutional was not done because it was the right thing to do but because it restricted interstate commerce. I haven’t even been to Atlanta yet but I am anticipating I will learn alot about the the Civil Rights Movement and methods on how to address racism in America today.

I hope to gain a deeper understanding of the civil rights movement in this country. In school, although I have been exposed to a few aspects of African American history, I was never taught about this movement in terms of social justice and civil rights advancement- more so as an objective history lesson that doesn’t necessarily apply to today. This could not be farther from the truth, as evident by the daily media posts portraying yet another African American individual/ person of color suffering within racially biased institutions. Moreover, the same mediums of oppression are used to marginalize any individual in this country that does not fit the cookie cutter “True America ideal” of white, heterosexual, cisgender, middle/upper class males. It’s important to learn about how civil rights have been won in the past and how we can be agents of change in applying them today- which is what i hope to gain from this trip. I know I wont be transformed within the span of 5 days, or learn everything, but it’s certainly a great enrichment opportunity.

I remember reading a passage (though i can’t recall from where) that nonprofits are inherently problematic in that their existence stems from the government’s failure to provide the necessary services for populations of its constituents. After watching Selma, I was reminded of this when reflecting on my service as a Bonner. Much of the service we do, as helpful to the community as it is, will not result in institutional change. What we do as Bonner volunteers is facilitating the non profits/ organization in providing services and advancing the community amid a political climate where resources are left scarce. It’s important that we recognize the underlying issues that create an environment where the places we volunteer at are necessary to support marginalized individuals. What we, as bonners, can do is recognize the potential we have in creating institutional change- which is done through exercising our rights as citizens and demanding legislative changes. By leaning about civil rights movements and leaders of the past, we can apply similar frameworks to the present day with the goal of attaining social justice.