XIIIs Trip: Understanding History Through the Black Experience

by Kai and Herschel, XIIIs

On May 6th the Xllls flew out of New York and started their trip to the South. This trip is extremely important as they visit museums, monuments, and other landmarks that connect to the Xllls curriculum on American History. They visited museums such as the Legacy Museum, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, and National Voting Rights Museum and Institute. Tyler Tarnowicz and Trayshia Rogers, the Xllls group teachers, were chaperones on the trip as well as Tyrone Brown-Osborne.

Throughout the week, the Xllls traveled to Atlanta, Montgomery, Selma, and Birmingham. In Atlanta, Georgia, the Xllls visited Martin Luther King Jr.’s birth home, as well as visiting his memorial and museums. They stayed at three different hotels in total. When traveling to Selma, they ended up driving through the entire town and crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge, where Bloody Sunday happened, an event where Black voting rights protesters were met with violence from police.

As the group traveled from one city to another, Xllls also were able to enjoy fun activities on the trip such as bowling and visiting the Georgia Aquarium.

Throughout the year, the XIIIs have learned about American history through the Black experience. This trip is supposed to be a way to better understand what the XIIIs are learning in the classroom. “I think there is something really moving about being in the place where people lost their lives or in the place where change was made. It forces you to listen, but also makes everything we’ve learned so real,” said Vienna.

This article originally appeared in the May 2024 issue of Room-to-Room, the monthly newspaper produced by eighth graders. Last names of students were removed for privacy.