The Civil Rights Trail | A Dream to Reality

Days 1-3

Atlanta

Fly into Atlanta and stay for three nights which will give you time to acclimatise and explore the city of Atlanta, not only its Civil Rights history, but also the modern metropolis.

Start your journey at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Birth Home, childhood home of the most well-known Civil Rights Activist.  Afterwards visit the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Rev. King preached some of his most eloquent sermons. Later, stroll through MLK National Historical Park and end at the King Center, resting place of the slain activist and American icon.  You will also want to spend time visiting the Center for Civil & Human Rights which features the papers and artifacts of Martin Luther King as well as stories for human rights around the world today.

3 nights Atlanta

Day 4

Atlanta to Savannah

Savannah was known for its Protest Movement which finally ended segregation on October 1^st, 1963.  It is a charming city with some beautiful period buildings and excellent restaurants. We have allowed just one night here, but if  you have time, two would be better.  (3.5 hours drive)

1 night Savannah

Days 5-6

Savannah to Charleston & South Carolina

If any single recent event can prove the fight for equality is not over, the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church is the most recent site that embodies this continued struggle in the U.S.A.  This church was where nine church members were massacred on June 17, 2015 by a white supremacist, thus igniting a long smouldering debate about civil rights and racial tensions in the U.S.A.  Do spend some time visiting the plantation houses in the area which are reminders of an earlier age but also of the slave labour needed to run the estates. (2 hours drive)

2 nights Charleston

Day 7

Charleston & South Carolina to Raleigh

Raleigh played an important role in the creation of the first building for higher education for African-American women, Estey Hall at Shaw University. Later this is where the SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) was launched and instrumental in bringing about change to racial injustice through non-violence sit-ins in North Carolina and throughout the South! (4 hours drive)

1 night Raleigh

Day 8

Raleigh to Asheville

Ashville, NC, one of the most important sit-ins, if not THE most important sit-in, was held on February 1, 1960 in Greensboro by four black students from a nearby college at the lunch counter of the local Woolworth’s (now the home of the International Civil Rights Center & Museum), where these students were refused service.  This site has been restored exactly as it was in 1960 and you can stop in Greensboro on your way to Asheville where we suggest you break your journey to Nashville.  It is known for its vibrant arts scene and historic architecture.  However, its most famous landmark is the enormous Biltmore Estate (3 ¾ hours drive)

1 night Asheville

Days 9-10

Asheville to Nashville

After civil rights attorney Z. Alexander Looby’s home was bombed by segregationists, Nashville took centre stage with the march of almost 3000 black people up to the steps of the Davidson Country Courthouse.  Here the group was met by Mayor Ben West, who agreed segregation was immoral and that the city’s lunch counters should be integrated – a milestone in the civil rights struggle. Nashville is also the home of country music and we suggest you take some time to visit the famous Grand Ole Opry Stage and the Country Music Hall of Fame (4 ½ hours drive)

2 nights Nashville

Days 11-12

Nashville to Memphis

Perhaps no other museum and site embodies the pain and struggles of African-Americans as the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968.  The museum is a must for all those who want to discover the struggles and challenges of the Civil Rights Movement since it’s conception. Memphis is also famous for its blues, soul and rock ‘n’ roll music.  You can visit Elvis’ home at Graceland and the legendary Sun Studio where dozens of musicians such as Johnny Cash and B. B. King recorded their hits.  (3 hours drive) If you would like to explore some of the musical gems, we suggest you add an extra night or two in Memphis. (3 hours drive)

2 nights Memphis

Day 13

Memphis to Little Rock

After the U.S. Supreme Court ruling outlawing segregation in all public schools was passed, Little Rock became front and centre in the conflict of segregation and integration in the U.S.A. Arkansas Governor Faubus refused to allow nine black students enter Little Rock’s Central High School (still an active school and also Civil Rights Museum), which led President Eisenhower to send in federal troops to carry out the Supreme Court’s decision to integrate public schools throughout the U.S.A.! (2 hours drive)

1 night Little Rock

Days 14-15

Little Rock to Mississippi

Numerous lynching’s and killings where perpetrators often were acquitted of their crimes, became common place in Mississippi. Two such high profile cases, notably that of two civil rights activists, Medgar Evers & Emmett Till. Visit the Medgar Evers Home Museum and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum that encompasses the entire Civil Rights Movement but particularly emphasis is placed on these two young civil rights activists. (2 ¾ hours drive)

2 nights Mississippi

Days 16-18

Mississippi to New Orleans

If one image emblazons the ugliness of segregation, the image of 6-year-old Ruby Bridges entering William Frantz Elementary by federal marshals is that image.  Nearby, is the Plessy versus Ferguson Plaque that indicates the place where Homer Plessy attempted to board a white only train car that eventually led to the ruling legalizing segregation under the “separate but equal” conditions. New Orleans is also a glorious city to visit full of interesting buildings, music and excellent food.  Take some time to visit one of the alligator farms and the bayou that surrounds the city. (3 hours drive)

3 nights New Orleans

Days 19-20

New Orleans to Montgomery

Selma was perhaps the most important launching point that helped enact the Voting Rights Act in 1965 by President Johnson.  An organized march from Selma to Montgomery was met with resistance from both the public and the police, spotlighting the racial discrimination in the South.  Visit the Selma Interpretive Center and National Voting Rights Museum and Institute both on opposite sides of the famous Edmund Pettus Bridge, where marchers were turned away several times by the police.  Proceed to Alabama’s capital, Montgomery, and visit important civil rights sites such as the Alabama State Capitol, where the march from Selma to Montgomery ended, Dexter Parsonage Museum, Dr. Martin Luther King’s home that was bombed several times.  Not to be missed are the various churches that played an important role in organizing peaceful resistance against segregation: Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church, First Baptist Church and Holt Street Baptist Church.  Finally end your day in Montgomery by visiting the Rosa Parks Museum as well as the Civil Rights Memorial Center, both very moving.  (4 ¾ hours drive)

2 nights Montgomery

Day 21

Montgomery to Birmingham

Visit the 16th Street Baptist Church, site of the bombing that killed four young black girls in 1961.  Continue across the street to the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum housing many important articles and artifacts of the Civil Rights Movement.  End your day walking through the moving Kelly Ingram Park with its sculptures depicting the civil rights struggles in Birmingham. (1 ¾ hour drive)

1 night Birmingham

Day 22

Birmingham

It is time to return to Atlanta for your return flight which will be in the late afternoon so plenty of time to get there from Birmingham. (2 ½ hours)