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By Matthew Appel

It is truly difficult when one lives in the modern world to comprehend the discrimination that those in the past felt when they were simply trying to live an ordinary life. Today, we were introduced to a diverse array of examples of this as we learned about the lynching of Leo Frank, the AIDS Quilt and Dr. Martin Luther King’s non violent protests against segregation first hand.

The day began as we visited the site of the murder of Mary Phagan, a 13 year old Atlanta girl, supposedly killed by Leo Frank which happened at a pencil factory in downtown Atlanta. Billy told us the story as we stood where her murder happened. We discovered a rather obscure case of a violation of basic human rights, as we found out that Leo Frank was not given a fair trial before being convicted of murder.

Our next destination was the headquarters of the NAMES Project which houses the AIDS Quilt. They are dedicated to spreading AIDS awareness. It was truly inspiring to listen to the testimony of Alan Landis, a man living with the disease. We also saw the AIDS Quilt which shows us that this is not just a gay disease but that  it impacts everyone. As we have many different cities represented on this trip, it was interesting  and shocking to hear the vast difference in sex education that we get in school.  The people from New York and Los Angeles get comprehensive sex and AIDS education while the Southerners seem to get abstinence only education.

Finally, we went to listen to a moving speech by Rev. Williams. He is a man who marched and  worked with Dr. King during the Civil Rights movement. Rev. Williams integrated schools in Georgia using his own children and went to jail many times trying to fight segregation in restaurants and public places. He still gets emotional
speaking about his children and how hard it was to be the first black faces in a school as well as when he spoke about Dr. King’s assassination. His vivid lecture resembled that of a preacher at a church and he allowed us to connect with Dr. King as he brought him to life for us.

But the lesson of the day was to not be afraid of change and to keep moving forward. Though on an educational journey,  we had time to play in a park and sample some interesting cuisine such as a Mongolian restaurant for lunch. Today was a great start for what will surely be a phenomenal adventure!

Tomorrow we really start our programming with following the footsteps of Dr. King, seeing his tomb, and the King Center as well as going to the site of the Leo Frank lynching and to the AIDS Quilt. We will end the day by meeting Rev. Williams who worked with Dr. King to integrate the schools.

Tomorrow, the participants will start writing for this journal and you can really experience
the trip through their eyes.

As our first full day of Etgar 36 began, we set off to the Pencil Factory to discuss the story of Leo Frank. We were standing at the site where in 1913, Leo Frank, a white Jewish man who managed the factory, was accused of murdering a 13 year old girl named Mary Phagan. Once accused, he faced extremely unfair treatment from both the legal system and society. After experiencing violence and hatred in jail, he was eventually taken from the jail by members of the KKK who were seeking revenge for Mary’s death.  They took him to a farm and hung him. His lynching was one of the only documented white lynchings in the early 1900s. This event was significant for many reasons, especially for the Jewish community. Our discussion at the pencil factory opened our eyes to the wide variety of people impacted by the Civil Rights movement, and it also reflected the close connection between our Jewish identity and the history of America.

at the Pencil Factory

After a stop at a store to pick up any forgotten supplies, we had lunch. Then we visited Sweet Auburn Avenue. This street was the old center of black life in Atlanta, which represented hope, pride, and comfort for many people who lived in the neighborhood. After a discussion at the MLK Center, we went inside to see the exhibits and watch a movie that documented the story and struggle of Civil Rights. The film introduced us to many of the important people and issues that we discussed and will continue to discuss throughout our journey, such as Congressman John Lewis who we will meet with when we go to Washington DC. We walked to the house where Dr. King was born. The street was lined with both large and small homes, which is often credited for his vision of equality for all people. We then went to Dr. King’s tomb and paid our respects to him and his wife.

Gandhi statue at the King Center	tomb of Dr. King and Coretta Scott King

After a stop at Krispy Kreme, we headed to the Names Project, which is the national headquarters for the AIDS Quilt. We split into two groups- boys and girls. The girls first started by speaking with Janece Shaffer, who is the communications director of the Names Project. We discussed the significance of the AIDS epidemic to us as Americans and Jews. We also discussed why our country’s response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic is a Civil Rights issue. We were amazed to learn the differences in the availability and content of sex education across our country. We then switched with the boys who started by meeting with Alan, a man living with AIDS. He was incredibly open with us and we were all amazed at how willing he was to answer our questions. His story moved everyone and we all felt it was a great introduction to our discussions about the continuing struggle for Civil Rights. Throughout his story he really stressed that it only takes one person to make a difference, motivating us all to try and make a change throughout our journey.

	surrounded by quilts at the Names Project

Our final meeting of the day was with Reverend Williams. His booming voice and powerful message impacted us all. We discussed the dangerous times of our generation as well as his Civil Rights experiences. Reverend Williams, at over 80 years old, is one of the oldest living Civil Rights activists. He shared stories of integrating restaurants and hotels, as well as stories of his daughter integrating her elementary school. He pushed us all to continue the fight for Civil Rights for everyone and really strive to make the world a better place. As he concluded his speech, he explained everything we had been discussing in one phrase: “The Civil Rights movement is not a black movement, it is a people movement.”

We ended the day with dinner and then burning off our energy by playing on a field.

Today was a great start to our journey. We were moved by the speakers and places we experienced, and we can’t wait to head off to Alabama!

We began our first full day of the summer journey in Atlanta by exploring the anti-Semitism that engulfed the city and the world. It is the story of good-hearted Northern-born Jewish Leo Frank, who came down to Atlanta to run a pencil factory. The disaster began in 1913 upon the murder of Mary Phagan, by process of strangulation. Georgia’s Attorney General had suffered many losses and was looking to redeem his reputation. A group of suspects were collected but the prime suspect was Jim Conley, who was a custodian at the pencil factory. However, he implicated Leo Frank by claiming that he was a forced accomplice to the “evil” Jew. His story was believed and an extremely biased trial against Leo Frank began. Leo Frank was found guilty and originally sentenced to death but then Governor Slaton, whose term was ending, came to Frank’s rescue. Governor Slaton alleviated the judicial punishment to just life in prison. However, his life in prison proved to be short. Frank’s throat was slit at the first prison and he was rescued by a fellow prisoner who happened to be a doctor. Leo Frank was moved to a prison hospital. It was there that members of the newly resurrected KKK walked in to the prison and took Leo Frank. They took him to a farm and asked him if he had a final request. He asked that they send his wedding ring to his wife who had gone back to New York. They nonchalantly accepted, lynched him, and then cut down his body and beat his corpse. The case of Leo Frank revealed to Southern Jews their place in society. To me, the acts performed towards Frank present the irony of the prejudices of that era. How is it that the KKK could so easily offer a final request towards Frank, fulfill it, but then slaughter him so brutally? The offering of a final request lends a humane aspect towards the KKK’s behavior. It does not seem possible to treat a human with such gracefulness and then kill him with absolutely no justification. Leo Frank’s death proved to the world that as long as prejudice towards any ethnicity, creed, or nationality exists, the world will inevitably turn away from reason and find shelter in chaos.

Hearing the story of Leo Frank where he was lynched

Next we visited Auburn Avenue and the Martin Luther King Jr Center for Non Violent Change. In the museum we saw art, lessons and videos depicting the process and importance of King’s accomplishments as well as influences. The entire setting felt like a time machine to the headquarters of the Civil Rights movement. Across the street is Ebenezer Church where Dr. King preached and down the street is his birth house. Auburn Avenue represented a refuge for the richest and poorest Blacks in Atlanta coexisting peacefully. The center taught me that the Civil Rights Movement was not only for the Black population; it was an outcry of protest representing any being who has been oppressed and made inferior by another. King’s words presented the universal idea of peace, a world graced by equality in lieu of inferiority. These words still apply today and are very much needed. Dr. King may be dead but his ideas are still very much alive. It seems a man with a gun can kill a man but cant kill ones ideas. The King Center proved to be a memorial to King’s life but also a celebration and reminder of the lifestyle his ideals were based on.

Discussing the influence of Gandhi in front of his statue at the King Center	Etgar 36 2009 in front of Dr. King's birth home	Paying respect at the tomb of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The next part of the day took place at the Names Project where the AIDS Quilt is stored. We first met a man named Alan. Upon entering the room I believed he would fill us in on the details of the project, but I was startled when he announced he was a homosexual living with HIV. It was an eye opening experience to be staring the disease in the face, and I finally realized what the disease looked like. AIDS does not look like homosexuals, nor does it look like Africans or the vulnerable or the weak. It looks like strength. Personally, this kind hearted, religious, optimistic man in front of me symbolized the disease and the strength which accompanies it. He spoke with such nonchalance about anything from announcing his sexuality to his parents, to not being able to walk, to digesting $2,000 worth of drugs weekly. Alan has learned to become comfortably dependent on others, and this does not show weakness, it shows amazing fortitude. This made me realize that the quilt was not to simply pressure the government into helping these inflicted individuals but also to celebrate what the deceased beings have accomplished.

Hearing about the history of the AIDS Quilt at the Names Project

Our final meeting of the day was with Reverend Williams in a small coffee shop. His old style preacher tone was startling at first. At the age of 92, his mind and tongue have stayed strong. He spoke with such conviction and passion about the Civil Rights movement, his role in it, and its effect on him and us. If Dr. King’s principals and oratory prowess had been recycled and embodied in a sole individual, I found that individual in a space above a coffee shop. He was able to manually connect all of us to his own experiences and the extreme conditions of the time. Rev. Williams presented the quintessence of not only black pride, but universal tolerance. For instance, despite the relentless troubles he suffered from the government due to racial differences, he originally preferred Hillary Clinton for President over Barack Obama. He showed me that although mankind has the ability for unimaginable cruelty, we also possess a great potential for kindness and forgiveness. It is characters like him that brought on the comfortable societal standards we all enjoy today.

Listening to real life history with Rev. Williams

Our day ended with the opportunity to run around and play on a local high school football field and just relax.

Before the staff could even begin the planned ice breakers the teens started their own getting to know you games! They have bonded really quickly and it is a really bright and interesting group.

After the staff ran the planned ice breakers we went out to a pizza and salad dinner. This was followed by watching the movie, “The Journey”. It was made by a local young Jewish filmmaker and it documents his journey across America in which he interviewed famous and successful people, asking them what advice they would give to the future generation about what is meaningful in life. The cinematographer, Kathleen Kelly, who was also a major character of the movie came and spoke to the kids too. It was a powerful night and a great way to start the journey.

Tomorrow looks to be a great day as we will go to site where Leo Frank, a transplanted Jew, was lynched in the early 1900s. We will also visit the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Non Violence as well as the AIDS Quilt.

It was a great first day!

Day one of our journey began today as we traveled the city of Atlanta with the bus as our only real home. We went from site to site, meeting with some of the most interesting, vivid and knowledgeable people I have ever met.

Our first stop was the Leo Frank tree, where we were introduced to our first speaker of the day, Tim Cole, a friend of Billy’s who is an expert on the Leo Frank trial and lynching. Leo Frank was a Jew living in Atlanta who was supposedly the last person to have been in contact with Mary Phagan. She was a 13 year old girl who was found murdered in the basement of the pencil factory where Leo Frank was the manager. Leo was arrested and put on trial. After a travesty of a trial, he was found guilty and sentenced to be hung. The Governor of Georgia on his last days in office felt that the trial had not been fair and commuted the sentence to life in jail instead of death. This did not sit well with some of the townspeople, who resurrected the KKK and took Leo Frank from jail and hung him. This made Leo Frank the one white person out of 400 documented lynchings in the South in the early 1900s. Tim Cole’s extensive knowledge of this topic brought up many issues among us, including questions on how the different races reacted to this trial and lynching. This was something I had never really thought about before, and it is incredible to see the impact of these events.

We then had lunch and some time to walk around Underground Atlanta.

After lunch we went to the National Historic Site for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. There we learned about Dr. King’s relationship with Gandhi and the power of non-violent protest. We walked around the museum just soaking up all the clips of Dr. King’s speeches, quotes and marches.

Our next stop was the Names Project/AIDS Memorial Quilt. People from all over the country who have lost a friend or family member send in a 3×6 foot panel of cloth (the approximate size of a grave) in which they try to capture the life of the loved one who died. Stepping into the building where the entire quilt is stored is both awe inspiring and tragic. Rows upon rows of quilts are stacked neatly all the way to the ceiling and when you are walking amongst these rows the silence is almost tangible. We had two speakers at the Names Project: Billy and Janeace. Billy, not our trip leader, is a man living with HIV/AIDS and he told us his story. His story made AIDS personally a bigger issue in my mind and made it painfully real to me. Janeace works for the Names Project and told us the importance of these quilts, how they are created and stored as well as what they represent.

Our final stop was listening to probably THE most interesting, vivid, emotional and wisest 92 year old I have ever met. His name is Reverend Williams and he walks in with the most fantastic booming preacher voice and give us some priceless wisdom only brought on by living a full and long life. Reverend Williams was arrested over 15 times with Dr. King during the Civil Rights struggle. He integrated Georgia schools with his children, was the first black person to sit at some lunch counters and marched in many protests. He made us answer the question of whether history is always good and whether Dr. King’s death was a huge loss to the world or was needed for his message to be a success.

After all of this we had dinner and then went to Billy’s old high school where we got to run around and play on the football field or just sit and talk with our new friends. We are all having an amazing time and cannot wait for tomorrow and the upcoming weeks!

Today was spent getting to know each other and what they are about to experience.

Everyone arriving today made it to Atlanta on time and we began exactly at 4 PM, all according to plan. They got started right away meeting each other (even without our prompting – probably a first!) and based on first impressions they are a great, fun and friendly group!

After a brief orientation and overview, the staff ran a few icebreaker games to help the teens get to know each other a little better. From there we headed out for some good pizza and salad, to fill our stomachs before heading back to watch a movie called “The Journey”. It was made by a young Jewish man who after college decided to journey across America interviewing powerful people (CEOs, politicians, entertainers, etc.) about the advice they would give the younger generation for a successful life. It is a great way to really get at the theme of the trip. After the movie ended, the group received a surprise visit from Eric Saperstein, the man whose journey the documentary is about. He led a discussion with the kids about what it means to go on a journey. Then we headed to the hotel to rest up for a big day around Atlanta tomorrow.

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”.

As a group, we decided that everything we did today had to do with Civil Rights and, yet, each issue has so much to explore in it. We were helped in our exploration of each issue by meeting with friendly and dedicated people that work on these issues.

After the first of what promises to be many continental breakfasts (the waffles earn high praise) we met with Tim Cole and Rabbi Steven Lebow to discuss the lynching of Leo Frank at the site where the hanging occurred. Leo Frank was a Jew from New York who moved to Atlanta and ran a pencil factory. He was wrongly accused of murdering 14 year old Mary Phagan. In a trial that was a travesty of justice, he was sentenced to death. This event led to the resurrection of the KKK as well as the creation of the ADL. Listening to Frank’s story, the rigged witnesses at his trial, the bravery of Governor of Georgia at the time who commuted his death sentence as well as the anti-Semitism that followed, including the lynching, I felt anger, awe and a little apprehension of this loss of Civil Rights.

After a quick stop at the Coca Cola Museum, after all, we were in Atlanta, where we had fun tasting beverages from all over the world we had lunch in Underground Atlanta.

Our next meeting was with Reverend Williams, a contemporary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Ebeaneazer Baptist Church where Dr. King Jr. grew up and where he went on to co-pastor with his father. Reverend Williams was amazing – energetic, smart and loving. He told us about his own life work in desegregating Georgia schools with his daughter as well as about Dr. King’s life, used Dr. King as an example of a kid who absorbed information in school and went on to use it to do great things.

Funny he should mention school because that was something many in our group contrasted with in our daily group discussion on what we learned and experienced during the day. But first came the Names Project. This is the organization that collects, stores and displays the AIDS Quilt. We did not just see the list of names of those who died of AIDS; we read the quilt panels that their loved ones made for them. We spoke with Chris, who works at the Names Project and has lived with AIDS for 8 years. He spoke frankly, occasionally humorously, sometimes heartbreakingly about his life with AIDS. He has to take 15 pills every day. He can’t go out in the heat, his favorite climate, for too long without getting sunstroke. He has seen many of his friends die of AIDS and he thinks much more in terms of short-term goals since his diagnosis. Chris told us that 492 people who can’t afford the medications are on a wait list for them in Alabama alone as much of the Federal money to fight AIDS here in America has been diverted to fight AIDS in Africa. He also told us that employers of less than 15 people can refuse to hire someone just because they have AIDS.

Many of us said that the day’s experiences had brought past and present problems closer to them than any textbook or lecture had ever dine before. We were all amazed at how linked everything we had learned today was… from the issue of anti-Semitism in the Leo Frank lynching to the work of Dr. King to the current efforts of the community fighting AIDS…it is all variations on getting involved in the struggle of Civil Rights. We were also in awe over how complicated each issue was. I will always remember the friendly, hard working people we met today… they will continue to be an inspiration.

Saul Bellows said “In the warmest of hearts, there is a cold spot for the Jews”. This idea led us to our first meeting of our journey with Dale Schwartz and Rabbi Steven Lebow, two researchers and speakers on Leo Frank and his historic cause in 1913. First we heard about the case from Rabbi Lebow. In 1913, Leo Frank, a Jew from New York and an owner of a pencil factory in Atlanta was accused of murdering a young worker Mary Fagin. After a trial of skewed evidence and doctored testimony, Leo Frank was convicted and sentenced to death. The Governor of Georgia reduced the sentence to life in prison. While in a Georgia jail, 90 years ago this August, a mob of prominent Georgians took Leo Frank and lynched him.

We met our two speakers on the spot where the lynching took place 90 years ago this August. Dale Schwartz worked over the 1980s to grant Frank a gubernatorial pardon. After years of research and working with the pardon board Schwartz earned Leo Frank a pardon in 1986. In 1995, Rabbi Lebow led the first yarzeit service at this site, where the tree was that Leo Frank was lynched and put a plaque on the site commemorating the event. There were two major outcomes of the incident. One was negative, the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan. The other, more positive outcome was the formation of the Anti-Defamation League. The ADL is a perfect example of a group of people standing up for what they think is right.

50 years later, another man stood up for what he believed to be right. That man was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fighting for the Civil Rights of Blacks. We first visited his tomb and paid our respects. We walked down a block to the church where Dr. King preached, the Ebenezer Baptist Church. There we met and heard from Reverend Graham Williams who eloquently discussed with us Dr. King’s life and actions. Reverend Williams was a preacher in Atlanta for 50 years and worked with Dr. King. Following his impassioned talk with us, we walked across the street to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Center. We saw a brief film about the life of Dr. King and saw exhibits on his work.

After our time at the MLK Jr. Center we drove to the Names Project. The organization collects quilts sent in form all over the world in memory of victims of AIDS. In total the project has collected 54 tons of quilts. Seeing so many quilts sewn by individuals with such care was truly moving. The workers at the Names Project spoke to us about the current AIDS situation in America and the world. They also informed us what we can do to help in the fight on AIDS.

All three of these events and groups were fighting for causes of different time periods. The early 1900s had focused on the rights of Jews and eradicating Anti-Semitism. In the 1950s and 60s Dr. King worked to erase racism and worked for the Civil Rights of all people. Since the late 1980s the fight has been made for gay rights and the fight against AIDS. This was all wonderful and interesting. We also had time just to have fun too!

Earlier in the day we visited the Coca-Cola museum. There we saw how Coke was made and advertisements from all around the world since the 1930s. We got a chance to taste different Coke products from around the world. This included Passion Fruit Fanta from New Guinea and disgusting bitter aperitif from Italy. At night after dinner we went to a football field at Billy’s old high school where we could run around and play. Some read, some sat and talked and some played ultimate frisbee. Overall it was an invigorating and interesting first day and we can’t wait for the next few weeks!

Etgar 36 sitting with the Coca Cola bears

Rabbi Lebow speaking to Etgar 36 at the site of the Leo Frank lynching

Paying our respects at the tomb of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Rev. Williams speaking to us at Ebenezer Baptist Church

Hearing about the work that the Names Project does

David Bucholtz at an AIDS quilt made by the creator of Doonesbury

Playing ultimate frisbee