Day 12 - Hannah Rosenthal & Shayna Rosen

This morning we began the trek from our hot, cramped hostel in Atlanta, Georgia (Jenny side note- It wasn't that bad!) to the Children’s Holocaust Memorial in Whitwell, Tennessee. At 9 am, we carried our suitcases down the rickety stairs and out of the former brothel (according to an article on the wall). We packed them onto our big Charter bus, Mr. Robinson on board. He greeted us with a big grin and a cheery “Wazzuuuuppppp?”

On our journey from Atlanta, we watched the documentary, “Paper Clips,” which outlined what we were to experience in Whitwell. Karen patrolled the aisle, making sure that we were all awake. At about 10:30 am central time, we arrived in the little town of Whitwell, Tennessee, population 1,600. We were greeted by lonesome cows, dilapidated gas stations, and a single Hardee’s restaurant. And, in a town with only two stoplights, we still managed to get lost. (Jenny takes this comment as a personal insult). Finally, we arrived at our destination, the campus of Whitwell elementary, middle and high schools. Compared with everything else we had seen, the schools looked very nice and new. We filed out of the bus, surprised by the sweltering heat. In front of our eyes was the work of 11 consecutive eighth grade classes at Whitwell Middle School.
The Paper Clips project began in 1998 as a way to educate the students at the school about diversity and intolerance. Because there was not a Jew for miles (insert Karen’s hand gestures here), the school administrators decided to teach the students about the Holocaust. It is impossible to visualize the 11 million victims, so the students decided to collect paperclips to represent all those murdered. As word about the project spread, the students received paperclips and letters from all around the world. They originally planned to collect only 6 million to represent the Jews decimated, but they surpassed 30 million paperclips. Because they had collected such an unimaginable number, they set out on a search to find a cattle car used to transport people to concentration camps. They were contacted by Peter and Dagmar Schroeder from Germany who donated a railcar. Now, the children’s work serves as a memorial. Visitors are also invited to read the 30,000 letters and gifts from around the world that the students received.

When we reached the school, Principal Linda M. Hooper greeted us and split us into tour groups. From there we were taken by rising eighth graders to three different stations: we saw Holocaust pictures, read the letters and toured the railcar. The railcar had recently been stained, so our shoes stuck the floor while we walked. Eleven million paperclips sat behind glass walls. There was an opening that allowed us to reach in and touch the paperclips, and as one student said, “it was like holding the souls of the Holocaust victims.” Quotes lined the walls of boxcar; one that particularly struck us was:

Education and remembrance are the only cures for hatred and bigotry.

- Miriam Oster

Outside of the car stood another memorial that represented the 1.5 million children murdered. It was a metal tomb with statues of children catching butterflies. On the ground also lay footstones with mosaic butterflies to represent freedom.

We all really enjoyed visiting the Children’s Holocaust Memorial. It was inspirational to see that this rural community was able to complete such a daunting task and educate others about the consequences of hatred.

We got back on the bus after eating a slightly undesirable white bread sandwich lunch (we are all so sick of sandwiches!) (Jenny side note- GET OVER IT!), and headed to our second destination: Birmingham, Alabama. After a 2 ½ hour drive, we exited Mr. Robinson’s bus and walked to the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church and Kelly Ingram Park. On September 15, 1963, the church was bombed and four little African American girls were killed. As we walked around the church, we were met by a disheveled looking African American man. He introduced himself as Andrew and began telling us about the history of the church and the park. Meeting him was a really enlightening experience. As he talked to us and we realized how knowledgeable he was, we began to think about the dangers of judging people before we get to know them.

After this, we separated and walked through Kelly Ingram Park. We looked at the monuments erected to pay tribute to the brave children who risked their lives to fight for equal rights. It was at this park where the famous images of children being bitten by dogs and police blasting water hoses took place. There is a fountain in the center of the park separated into four quadrants to remember the four children killed in the church bombing.

Following our individual explorations of the park, we came together as a group under a stone pavilion. It was at this point that our group had its biggest emotional bonding experience of our whole CL journey. We sat for 2 ½ hours and held each other in support as we spoke about our life’s hard ships and offered prayers. The intense heat seemed to disappear as we truly came together as a family for the first time. We wrapped up with 35 hugs, and got back on the bus to head to the Waffle House for a 9 o’clock dinner…or breakfast if you prefer.