Tuesday, February 7, 2012
The Underground Railroad
Last Saturday morning, I woke up early to return to my hometown and explore the famous museum detailing the hardships of the Underground Railroad. The museum's rich history and cultural exploration challenged me to realize the horrors of the slave trade that occurred in America. A large quilt adorned a massive wall made by a Columbus native. The process of the intricate quilt took 35 years and pushed the ideas of freedom and perseverance. An awing moment took place when I entered a house that was once used to house slaves. Relatively small and made of wooden beams, the structure held iron shackles that once fettered slaves. It was disturbing to thing that someone's free will was literally held back. The final part of the museum that deeply interested me was a video we watched about the hardships of slaves escaping enslavement. The girl in the video was fleeing Kentucky into Ohio and the closeness of her almost capture kept my heart beating and had me on the edge of my seat. Overall, the trip was extremely interesting. I had never been to the museum even though I grew up in Cincinnati, and I am happy to say that I experienced it with my scholars program.
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I attended the trip to Cincinnati to visit the Underground Railroad Museum as well, and it was truly an eye-opener. Of course I learned about slavery and the underground railroad movement in my high school years, but being in Wisconsin, I feel as though we were kind of disconnected from the movement itself. Being in Cincinnatti and seeing the river fugitive slaves would risk their lives crossing totally changed my perspective. The entire museum was filled with information I did not know previously and it caused me to think about slavery and our past in a different way. The most poignant thought to cross my mind, and one that continues to haunt me, is what if those people who risked it all to run the underground railroad and help their fellow man HAD NOT done that? What kind of world would we live in today if those brave people had not been as selfless as they were? Thinking those kinds of thoughts really makes you grateful for the freedom you have. Visiting the museum and experiencing the feelings I did is not something I will forget any time soon.
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