So I'm now in Jackson, Mississippi.

I had to leave Ursinus college at like 4am in the morning and the flight was SO uncomfortable. We landed in Cincinnati and then took another plane to Memphis, Tennessee. There were went to the Civil Rights Museum which was made in the hotel where MLK Jr. was shot and killed. It was really interesting. I learned so much and it was all very astonishing. It was so strange and creepy standing only a few feet away from where such an important figure and leader of the civil rights movement was killed with one fatal shot. There was also displays where the killer was and it was even more creepy standing so close to where he was perched. They had the hotel room of MLK set up and replicated exactly to how it looked that day. They really put a lot of work and detail into it. There was this one display of all the conspiracy theories that people have thought up involving the killer and Dr. MLK. One of them was an organized crime. Another was the Memphis police actually being involved and some of the SNCC workers too. One of the things the killer said was that he wanted to do it for the money, which obviously gives the impression that someone might have actually hired him or offered him money for the assassination. Very interesting.

After that we went to the STAX Records Museum where true soul music was born and developed. They had the actual stage costumes of some of the top performers like Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding (who died in a plane crash at like age 26. So sad.). It was really interesting and it was great being able to hear the true soul songs. Soul today is nothing compared to what it used to be, but of course, as will it always be in history, music changes and develops and evolves. But yeah, that was a great experience too.

Then we took a like 3 hour drive to Jackson. I was sooo exhausted. I didn't sleep the night we left because I thought that I would be able to sleep on the plane. I didn't get much sleep during the drive also because I was just so freaking uncomfortable! It was bad, and we went straight, no stops. I had to pee so bad haha!

Today we went to a Baptist church and that was amazing. It wasn't as chaotic as I had expected it to be but it truly was outstanding and astonishing. I mean, I want to go again! And it's funny because the minister was actually a graduate of Ursinus college. He used to work on a plantation and everything and Ursinus college had accepted him and taught him. So that was really cool.

Then we talked to the congressman of Mississippi. He definitely wasn't what I expected because I didn't know anything about him or his views. I didn't expect him to be black and I didn't expect him to be an Obama supporter and everything. I was expecting a white racist who still thought Bush did a perfect job. Haha! (Please don't argue with me. I'm tired of trying to convince stupid people about this lol). Anyway. He was a great guy and he was so funny. He greeted us in his overalls and shoes with no socks lol. I asked him about the president's address to congress and I asked him what it was like, and he told me it was incredibly moving and that even republicans couldn't help but be excited by his overwhelming words. He truly is an amazing speaker. Some might consider that a form of manipulation, and hey, they might be right, but by saying that you're pretty much accusing so many presidents and politicians of manipulation. And I won't lie haha, they are like that. But that's beside my point. What I don't like is when people say that because they are a good speaker, that means that they can't keep their word and that they just lie and tell you what you want to hear. Politics has really gotten a bad reputation. Not ALL politics are like that. Not all politicians are liars and schemers and corrupt. Some truly do what to make their community a better place. It's difficult though. People are expecting Obama to have everything fixed. They are also accusing him of the mess that Bush left behind, which I'm not surprised about. Ugh, whatever. I don't bother with those people. They are dumb and don't understand the concept of a domino effect. Then there are those FAR left people who claim Obama to be the savior. Now, while I don't doubt his ability to correct a lot of things wrong with this country, I'm not going to worship him like a religion. They mentioned how at some points, when he was addressing the economy with a positive attitude and explaining his plan, the stock market was rising at the same time. haha. Anyway...

This congressman was great. I loved speaking to him.

Then we went to a place to eat. The food here is really good so far but nothing extraordinary. Then we visited the downtown area of Jackson and until you look at it, you don't realize the true segregation and difference between the white and black community. What I can't stand is when people say that the black people just put themselves in that position and they live off welfare because they are lazy. I'm like, really?! Do you do ANY research at all or do you just believe everything FOX news tells you? I mean, really! Haha! People BORN into poverty tend to stay in poverty because they aren't giving the education, the opportunities or the resources to reach their maximum potential. Yeah! White people are just better naturally. Omg! People like that make me ashamed to be white myself. You can't deny the fact that being white gives you a natural advantage. Ugh. I don't know. People like that just frustrate me. I stopped hating them. Now I really understand. Instead I feel sorry for people like that. I feel sorry for them and their ignorance. You have to see it for your own eyes. You have to stand in a desolated town destroyed by unemployment and segregation to really understand these people. You can't just watch it on TV and know - truly know. You have to go to the neighborhoods, see the houses, the empty stores, the desolate buildings. And driving through it doesn't count! Driving through, telling the people in the car, "don't look at them. Roll up the window." That doesn't count. You're becoming another reason why this world is so destroyed and Russellian. You need to stand there and see with OPEN eyes, not clouded eyes - eyes clouded by an upbringing of prejudice and judgmental parents and friends; eyes clouded by a society that accuses black victims of Katrina thief while saying the white families are just trying to survive. It's these type of subtleties that make it so difficult to bridge this gap that separates the country. If you don't bother to look and explore and read and research and stand in those streets, you aren't helping. You need to see it. Otherwise, you can't understand the real predicament. Otherwise, you're just lying to yourself.

Otherwise, you're just another source of the problem.




Anyway, this was just the second day of being here. I want to write all this down now since it's still fresh in my mind. I want to make sure I remember this and record it all when it happens that way I don't leave out some of my thoughts when I'm in that mood; that moment.