Civil Rights Pilgrimage

Walk through History. Confront the Present. Imagine the Future.

Each spring, ºù«ÍÞÊÓƵ students, faculty, staff, and community members travel through the American South to engage firsthand with the history, legacy, and continuing struggle of the Civil Rights Movement.

More than a trip, the Dr. Dennis Simon Civil Rights Pilgrimage is an immersive educational experience that challenges participants to examine questions of justice, democracy, faith, courage, and social change in the United States.

Participants visit pivotal sites across Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee while learning directly from historians, activists, clergy, and community leaders connected to the movement.

Experience the places where ordinary people changed the course of American history:

 

  • Little Rock, Arkansas - Explore the legacy of the Little Rock Nine and the struggle to desegregate public schools.
  • Jackson, Mississippi - Visit the home of Medgar Evers and reflect on the sacrifices made in the fight for voting rights and equality.
  • Selma & Montgomery, Alabama - Walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge and engage the history of Bloody Sunday and the Voting Rights Movement.
  • Birmingham, Alabama - Visit the 16th Street Baptist Church, site of the 1963 bombing that killed four young girls.
  • Oxford, Mississippi - Examine the integration of the University of Mississippi and the experiences of James Meredith and Freedom Summer activists.
  • Memphis, Tennessee - Conclude at the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.

Throughout the pilgrimage, participants encounter not only historic landmarks, but also the enduring questions these events raise about race, justice, citizenship, and moral responsibility today.

 

The pilgrimage is sponsored jointly by the Human Rights Program and the Office of the Chaplain and Religious Life.

It is offered in conjunction with: PLSC 4334 — The Politics and Legacies of the Civil Rights Movement.

This course is part of ºù«ÍÞÊÓƵ’s core human rights curriculum and is required for all human rights majors.

Learn more about the pilgrimage, important dates, and how to apply.