From the Past to the Present: FSU Students Visits Selma-Montgomery
posted by Kinaya Gibson | March 28, 2023 | In NewsKicking off Women’s History Month, a select group of Fayetteville State University students had the opportunity to take a five-day trip to Selma-Montgomery in Alabama alongside students at Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC).
Students had a chance to visit a plethora of historical monuments and meet legendary civil rights leaders from the past and present.
There is an ongoing debate in America about whether critical race theory, Black history, and other parts of culture should be taught in schools. It now places a responsibility on everyone to seek out information for themselves.
Alize Hamilton, a junior majoring in business administration with a concentration in entrepreneurship, stated why it was important for her to attend the trip as an Assistant Secretary for FSU’s chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
“It’s my job to soak up as much information as I can as a minority. I am mixed but Black is a part of my culture, so it’s something that I should know about and with Black history trying to be taken out of schools, it something you have to educate yourself on,” Hamilton said.
The trip to Selma was free for all students who attended. They visited various sites, such as, the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, Edmund Pettus Bridge, and more.
Hamilton recalled her time at one of her favorite sites, the Legacy Museum, where she mentioned how they had a chance to view an interactive exhibit where slaves of different age ranges and gender would talk to you and share how slavery impacted them. These sites gave a clear history of life from slavery all the way up to what is considered modern day slavery and what Hamilton said is the “evil that we face now, which is mass incarceration.”
Outside of the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, visitors were able to witness a memorial that has every lynching recorded in each state in America, North Carolina had 160. At the end of their tour, she recalled the quote that they were left with “May we never forget all those who suffered and died because they asserted their basic human right to be free.”
Towards the end of the visit in Alabama, students were able to attend a unity breakfast where they were able to hear from and meet several historical figures, such as, Martin Luther King III, Jesse Jackson, Maxine Waters, and an original freedom rider.
Because it is women’s history month, it was important to meet and highlight women who were a part of the fight for freedom. Hamilton spoke about meeting JoAnne Bland, who was only eleven years old when she marched across the infamous Edmund Pettus Bridge on ‘Bloody Sunday.’ When students asked what her reasoning was for marching at such a young age, Bland recalled seeing a white peer enjoying their ice-cream and spinning around at the counter in the shop and how she wanted the same experience. Her mother told her when she gets her freedom, she will be able to have that same experience at the counter.
Bland witnessed her sister become injured on that Sunday and still decided to walk across the bridge again because she understood the reasoning behind their fight, even at a young age.
Currently, Bland goes all around speaking on her fight for freedom and the importance of seeking help for mental health.
After all the knowledge students were able to gain, Hamilton said that her message to FSU students is: “Your voice matters, and don’t let anyone shut you up. …Be the change you want to see.”
Students interested in learning more about their history may take this same trip next year. Stay connected to the FSU NAACP chapter and other student organizations to get more information about not only this trip but on how to stay involved and informed.
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