By Kimmie Kochman

Our journey began by meeting with a historian at the spot where a Jewish man named Leo Frank was lynched in 1915. He told us that there were 400 documented lynchings during the early 1900s and only one was of a white man and it was Leo Frank. Mr. Frank was a Jewish man from New York who moved to Atlanta to manage a pencil factory. One day a young employee, Mary Phagin, was murdered and Leo Frank was wrongly accused. He was tried and convicted to die. The Governor of Georgia stayed the execution but then members of the KKK took Leo Frank from jail and hung him where we were standing. It really left a mark on the identity of Southern Jews. In the 1990s, Mr. Frank was finally pardoned for the crime.

We then went downtown and met with Reverend Williams at the famous Ebenezer Baptist Church. He spoke with us about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who used to preach at this church. Reverend Williams was very passionate about everything he spoke about because he lived through these times. He worked with Dr. King and he also helped integrate the Georgia school systems by putting his daughters in all-white schools. We all loved his preacher style of speaking and he held our attention for over an hour. We really were amazed to be at the one of the main churches involved with the Civil Rights Movement. After listening to Reverend Williams we went outside and saw Dr. & Mrs. King’s tombs. It was very emotional for us all.

After having lunch at Underground Atlanta, we went to the Names Project that houses the AIDS Memorial Quilt. We met with Chris, a man living with HIV and Janeace who works for the Names Project. Chris spoke about how he contracted HIV and how we should live our lives in order not to contract the disease. His attitude towards living life knowing he has an incurable disease and his care for us really made an impression on everyone. Janeace taught us how the quilt began and the lessons that have been learned from the quilt. The AIDS quilt became a very personal experience for me when I saw a square that had been made for a family member.

The last stop of the day was at Billy’s old high school where we got to play on the football field. Some of us threw the Frisbee around while others just sat and talked. Before we left we got into a group and had our first “wrap up” where everyone go to tell the group what they learned, experienced and thought about the day. It was a great start to our journey and tomorrow we are on our way to “Sweet Home Alabama”.