Wednesday June 22 ~ Ride Day 8 Rest Day 2

Wednesday June 22 ~ Ride Day 8 Rest Day 2

This is a day of much needed rest for us. My sister has allowed us to stay in her and her husband’s home in Germantown, a cozy suburb of Memphis. This was the first time I was able to visit my sister Andrea and her husband “Bone” Mathews. 

We awoke at 7am headed out of the house by 11. The plan was to see bison in  the park. Memphis has this great park similar to Central Park in NYC. My sister likened it to Belle Isle in Detroit. An island on the Detroit River that was a place for relaxation for many residents of the area. I agree that it is much nicer. There we saw bison just before the huge downpour. Suepinda and Andrea were getting groceries so we met up with them at the store. After the grocery pickup we headed to the Pilgrim House, our “Safe House” for the night. There we met historian, Prof. Charles McKinney for a quick lesson in enslavement history and the US government’s complicity in allowing the south to continue its money making use with the “Fugitive Slave Laws”. Other legislative decisions, such as the one for Dred Scott, highlight this fact.

After saying our goodbyes to the good doctor we headed to downtown Memphis to visit the National Civil Rights Museum and Staxx Records.  Due to the length of time it takes to visit each site (1.5 hrs) we chose to stick with the Civil Rights Museum as opposed to rushing through both exhibitions. It was now 2:30pm.

The National Civil Rights Museum is a lot to take in. It traces the struggle from the enslavement period to where Dr. Martin Luther King waged battle with the city of Memphis on the side of the sanitation workers. Before it all was over Dr. King lost his life but the sanitation workers won their rights.  The center is like reading an encyclopedia of the period in 3D with actual buses that tell you to get to the back and sanitation trucks with trash. We also get to see the actual room where Dr. King slept before his assassination.

We ended the day with a video presentation by Julia Hicks, one of the founders of Pilgrim House. It was a video of the Santation Worker’s struggle in Memphis. After that we worked on a couple of bikes with Anthony Syracusa and had dinner that was prepared by Suepinda.  A long and eventful day followed by a great meal.

With Pilgrim House chores handed out to each cyclist and completed we bedded down for the night.

Spoke ‘n Revolutions Youth Cycling UGRR Tour 2011 ~ Visit the nation’s National Parks. 

Let’s Move Outside!