The National Civil Rights Museum

So, I knew they had re-purposed the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, into the museum.

What I didn't realize, was that they kept the outside intact...and I was a little flummoxed to realize I was standing just under that famous balcony. I mean, I have seen the famous pictures by Joseph Louw, and I have lectured on this many times...but it still took my breath away to realize that I was there. Right. There.

The museum was very, very good. It basically illuminated the major milestones of the Civil Rights Movement, but the exhibits were very immersive. So, after reading about Rosa Parks, we could get on a replica of a Montgomery city bus, circa 1955...

Hart is smiling because there is an audio loop playing of a white bus driving demanding that Rosa Parks move. It got kind of funny after we heard it 3 or 4 times...but it was still a terrific exhibit, bringing us into the moment - into the experience.

He also got to sit at a lunch counter while a film played about the sit ins

And just as I was telling him that one of the Freedom Ride Greyhound buses had been firebombed, we came upon this exhibit...really moving....

As we wended our way chronologically through so much pain, bravery, evil, and hope, we finally came to 1968. April 4. The rooms MLK and his people had in the Lorraine were replicated, and I suddenly realized that we were right there - just next to the balcony outside of room 306. I was overcome. Hart put his arm around me so sweetly as we slowly walked past...tears streaming down my face.

It was one of the best museum experiences I have ever had. Hart says he already talked about this so he doesn't have to weigh in on this one ;-)