Dreamscapes Travel & Lifestyle

WINTER 2022/2023 DREAMSCAPES 59 EDMUND PETTUS BRIDGE, SELMA The sun warms my face as I stand at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, another pivotal landmark on Alabama's Civil Rights Trail. I inhale the solemnity of those who passed before me as I step on this smooth asphalt that changed history. In 1965, over 600 souls protesting national voting rights were beaten crossing the Alabama River. History calls it "Bloody Sunday." After three attempts over five days, demonstrators finally crossed the bridge. This event contributed to the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits discrimination at the polls. To me, the arched blue steel structure is a constant symbol, as though it knows its integral place in American history. The Edmund Pettus Bridge, which was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2013, is another historic marker under UNESCO World Heritage site consideration. LESSON LEARNED The Alabama Civil Rights Trail provided me the space to further explore my Blackness. I am comforted that despite a troubled history and afflicted present, I am not alone. The two UNESCO nominations highlight the need for global recognition, to shine a light on this dark past. It is a reminder that we must continue the fight for freedom and equality, and that the fight never ends. PHOTOS: EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE | THE ALABAMA TOURISM DEPARTMENT/CHRIS GRANGER. OPPOSITE: THE ALABAMA TOURISM DEPARTMENT/CHRIS GRANGER | NATALIE PREDDIE THE LEGACY MUSEUM, MONTGOMERY When I first glimpse The Legacy Museum: From Enslave- ment to Mass Incarceration, I instantly feel how this barracks-like building can be a comment on Black oppres- sion. Funded by the Equal Justice Initiative, a local non-profit organization that provides legal representa- tion for the wrongly convicted, the museum is built on old slave auction land. Its large exterior frame is a rect- angle of steel and glass. Inside, I explore the saga of the African-American journey from slavery to the civil rights struggles endured today. As I enter, I am enveloped by the sound of waves crashing against the shore. Around the dimly lit room, lifelike statues of kidnapped Africans are seen shackled and chained, some reaching for one another, others clutching their babies—it's a chilling sight. Life-size holograms of slaves pierce the walls, as their stories of violence and abandoned hope come to life. A detailed timeline steers me from room to room and throughout these harrowing displays, I see America's painful past, present, and possible future. DS SOIL JARS FROM LYNCHING SITES, THE LEGACY MUSEUM

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