In the Wheel

May 13-15 Birmingham, AL A.G. Gaston (right) in front of his motel with R.A. Hester. City of Birmingham Archives Arthur George Gaston died in 1996 with a net worth of $130 million. He was an innovator from the beginning, first earning some cash by letting the neighborhood kids ride his tire swing in exchange for their buttons, which the children's parents would buy back from him. As a young adult, he was a miner in Birmingham and provided lunches and burial insurance to his coworkers. Gaston opened a business school, a funeral home, a savings and loan, and the A.G. Gaston Motel, which was listed in the Green Book. While he generally laid low to keep out of conflict with white society, he did provide financial assistance to the Civil Rights movement, and opened his motel to activists in the early 60's. Dr. King stayed there during the Children's Crusade in 1963, a march in which children left school to walk downtown and talk with the mayor about segregation in Birmingham. Bu...

May 13-15, Birmingham I'm doing this trip backwards--that is, I'm doing it the opposite way the arrows show in the guide book. I suppose there's no real wrong way to do this, but it's working for me this way. Starting off with Little Rock was chronologically correct, but of course next I went to Memphis, and the assassination of Dr. King (1968). What Memphis gave me, though, was some familiarity with the leaders and activists I was to meet over and over as I went from Birmingham to Montgomery, to Selma, and finally Jackson, MS, and the Delta. In Birmingham, a few things came together for me: a prominent part of Green Book, the Freedom Rides (1960-1961), and Dr. King's Letter from a Birmingham Jail (1963).   If you haven't ever read King's Letter , set aside a few minutes for it.  He was jailed in Birmingham for ' parading without a permit '.  He wrote the letter on scraps of paper that were smuggled in to him. Most of us know that Dr. King's stra...

A note about pictures throughout this blog: not all of these will be great!   That's because my main focus is hearing from the people who are sharing their stories. In most cases, I take these to capture the information on plaques, or to help me remember all I've seen. May 21, 2021 Canton Freedom House is about ten miles outside of Jackson, MS. It's a civil rights museum that shrinks the decades between the Freedom Summer and today. This is a place that was the headquarters for the Congress of Racial Equality  (CORE), and was also used by the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, pronounced "snick").  George and Rembert Washington  George and Rembert Washington are pictured above in front of the store they owned and ran. They also owned the building across the street, which became the Freedom House. Like many who were active in the civil rights movement across the south, the Washingtons' business and buildings were attacked, and Mr. Washington was ...

 Little Rock, AR State Capitol May 8, 2021 Just a brief recognition of long-term public service hero Lennon Jones. He appears here in the two 'class photos' that record his span of service: 1991-2021. He's still there! He is the Properties and Facilities Manager at the Arkansas State Legislature. I hope your retirement account is bursting. Yes, this means I looked through decades of class photos of this legislature. It was interesting. In the very early days, they included children, pages, and spouses.

May 20, 2021 Jackson, Mississippi Visit to Medgar and Myrlie Evers' Home Former home of my grandparents in Lancaster, Ohio. Built 1959. My grandparents' house in Lancaster, Ohio had a carport. None of the many homes (over 10 of them?) I lived in as a child ever had one, so their carport was a unique little adventure when our family would visit during the summer. It was adjacent to their neighbor's carport, but was about four feet lower, so there was a little wall that gave the space an even cozier feeling. My grandpa used to smoke his pipe out there after dinner, sitting on the low wall, with his foot up on the milking stool. I loved the smell of the pipe smoke, the warmth of the summer evening, and the fireflies. It's different than hanging out in the driveway, which would be weird. For many people, it's like an outdoor living room. The acoustics are different, and you can stand out there during a belligerent midwestern rainstorm and feel safe from potential danger...

Memphis May 11-13 View of the Lorraine's classic sign with the motel in the background The wreath on the balcony is a replica of the one placed  there after Dr. King's assassination. The Lorraine got me started. Popular culture can be a good teaching tool. Take Watchmen . I learned a lot about the Green Book, I learned about the Tulsa Massacre, I recognized Emmett Till in the story, and felt the terror of a sundown town. There is probably plenty I missed. Here's a link from BET going over some of the history covered.   Likewise, hearing about the Lorraine Motel on Driving the Green Book sparked my interest in learning more about trying to travel and move about the country as a Black person in America. We see only some  of what goes on today. Driving the Green Book gives you the details that fill out the truth of taking a trip prior to 1970 in the U.S. Pack all your food because you won't be able to buy any on the road. Bathrooms? Hotels? Gas? Good luck. Travel for Black...

May 8-May 11, Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock, AR qualified for the Civil Rights Trail when government officials, supported by overt and covert tactics used by Little Rock residents, refused to allow and violently opposed integration of the Little Rock school system.  In Context It's 1957, two years after the murder of 14 year-old Emmett Till. No one was ever held accountable for his murder. It's also two years after Rosa Parks' bus ride in Montgomery, AL, which sparked sit-ins and freedom rides all over the south. Legal precedent has been set by the U.S. Supreme Court in Brown v. Board (1954), which struck down 'separate but equal', finding that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. It was followed by what is known as Brown II , which required desegregation of schools 'with all deliberate speed'. And yes, that language was vague enough to cause glacially-paced planning where desegregation could be pushed  off into future decades.  200 B...

May 7, 2021 Amarillo, TX to Little Rock, AR Miles Today: 613 Total miles: 2,781 Gas in OK: $2.79 Roadkill: Two armadillos, one (possibly two) tortoises, one deer* Happy Throwback Thursday This is the famed Cadillac Ranch, in the freakishly flat and windy wilds of Amarillo, TX. I happened to notice on the map that it was close to the hotel I stayed in so I decided to head over before gassing up for Arkansas on May 7--yes I've got blog posts stacking up. Why is it? Why indeed. It is allegedly an ' art installation ', which in America means that of course there will be some shopping available on site. In this case, it's cans of spray paint. Now, in many cities you can't buy spray paint if you're a minor. Why?  Because you might make something look better---------------------->     But seriously, I had some thoughts about this whole enterprise when I saw it. So I suppose that means it is art, since it 'evoked' something in me. Anyone who knows me knows t...

Section 5. Notification of Federal and State Officials.   (a) Beginning three (3) months after the enactment of this article, the Clerk of the City shall execute the mandatory and ministerial duty of sending letters on an annual basis to the members of the United States House of Representatives whose District includes the corporate limits of the City, both Arkansas United States Senators, any Representative or Senator in the Arkansas General Assembly whose district includes  all or a portion of the corporate limits of the City, the Governor of the State of Arkansas, and the President of the United States.  (b) This letter shall state, "The City of Little Rock, Arkansas, has passed an ordinance to de-prioritize adult marijuana offenses, where the marijuana is intended for personal use, and requests that the governments of the United States of America and the State of Arkansas take immediate steps to enact similar laws.

May 6, 2021 Albuquerque, NM to Amarillo, TX Miles Today: 301 Total miles: 2,469 Gas in NM: $2.79  What we're good at Here I am with my friend, cardboard Gus Fring. One thing I learned from living overseas is that the major influences in and exports from the U.S. are entertainment and fast food. I can't say we're good at either one of them, but we are prolific. One thing we are very good at that some of the countries I've visited were lacking in is construction safety. And we probably have our propensity for litigation to thank for that. The 'real' world of American culture is heavily influenced by the entertainment industry and pop culture, and nothing makes our dreams come true like being able to see where our favorite characters made meth and dissolved bodies. It happened to Albuquerque Anyway, Albuquerque was lucky enough to be the setting for Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. Some are unhappy about that, because what generally comes along with fan worship...

  Grand Canyon visit, May 4, 2021 One Canyon, Many Peoples Above is a graphic of the tribes of the Grand Canyon , which has been home to humans for 13,000 years. Below is a list of the associated tribes of the grand canyon, taken from the national park service website (linked above). I've included links to the tribe sites. Each of these websites has COVID-19 information on the landing page, but persevere and take a look beyond that. I've linked to a couple of constitutions also. Havasupai Tribe - AZ Hopi Tribe - AZ Hualapai Tribe - AZ Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians - AZ Constitution of the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians of the Kaibab Indian Reservation, Arizona Las Vegas Band of Paiute Indians - NV Moapa Band of Paiute Indians - NV Navajo Nation - AZ Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah - UT Constitution and other gov't documents San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe - AZ The Pueblo of Zuni - NM Yavapai-Apache Nation - AZ Pandemic Plusses Zero waiting for horrifically popular dest...

May 5, 2021  Flagstaff, to Grand Canyon, Winslow, and Albuquerque, NM Miles Today: 505  Total miles: 2,168 Gas in AZ: $3.09 Gas in NM: $2.79 Fairly long day driving, but got some great stops in at the Grand Canyon and in Winslow, AZ. I'll post about the Canyon next, but here's a bit about Winslow, where they have a nice little museum and some good iced coffee. My Favorite Winslow, AZ Resident Meet Cecil Creswell , former ' Harvey Girl ' who quit the service industry to become a rancher and eventually rustle cattle. She changed her name from Olive to Cecil and began living as a man after spending too many years in an immaculate pinafore.  Cecil  began her life as a rustler when she stole a bull from a neighbor, coloring it with henna so its owner didn't recognize it for three years. That bull and a couple of stolen cows started Cecil's herd.  I learned about Cecil today at the Old Trails Museum in Winslow, Arizona. Yes. That  Winslow . The Seat of Government...

Barstow, CA to Flagstaff, AZ Miles today: 351 Total miles to date: 1,663 Took I-40 to Flagstaff , AZ today. Drove about 90 miles on Route 66 and would have taken it the whole way if I could because there was no one on it. But you the speed limit is 55 mph and I-40 is 75 mph in most places so I went for speed. I can report that I did not see Large Marge , but I did see the Bagdad Cafe. Bought my ticket for the Grand Canyon tomorrow. This is an upside to the pandemic, because attendance is down so it will likely be less crowded than normal. I'm not sure where I'll be stopping tomorrow night because I'm not sure how long I'll be enjoying the views tomorrow. Apparently, the park is one of the ten most deadly national parks!  What a thrill.