Change Through Education: A Civil Rights Journey

From Yael Farber: Community Synagogue of Rye’s 11th Grade COSY Teens recently took a Civil Rights journey to Alabama and Georgia for their Social Action Community Event.

Along with teens from Woodlands Community Temple in White Plains, they spent 3 days being inspired by the powerful history of the Civil Rights Movement, motivating each other to ask challenging questions, grapple with difficult answers, and give all of us hope for the future. Change begins with education.

“I loved meeting people from a different part of the world. It was so interesting to meet Joanne and hear about her experience growing up in Selma.” — Amber Hufford reflecting on meeting Joanne Bland, a woman who marched at the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday.

“I really liked seeing the difference between the rural areas and urban areas of Alabama. There weren’t people walking around the rural areas but the cities were so lively. It was really interesting to see the variety of life based on the geography.”— Julia Rosenberg, after driving from Montgomery to Selma to Birmingham in one day.

“To be immersed in southern culture and to learn about their culture and the civil rights movement through their religion was eye opening.” — Jack Wells, after visiting the King Center and Ebenezer Baptist Church.

“I am an activist, yes, but I have the ability to not always be an activist. When your entire life is these issues, you are forced to either always be an activist or be entirely complacent in your own subjugation.” — Rachel Harris, reflecting on the weekend as a whole.