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Taylor Rodgers
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Robert Jackson:
Today we were able to speak to a man by the name of Taylor Rodgers, who was a sanitation worker who took a part in the strike of 32 sanitation workers under the leadership of T.O. Jones. It was interesting to hear him speak about how they all unified as one and fought the city officials for better treatment and wages. It is weird to me, because they could actually ban together and fight for something they believed in, yet today we can barely get together for something of an even greater scale and fight together on that. Although most of his answers were abrupt and simple, when he did say longer statements, it made me feel as though I was in the Movement myself. He was truly a great example of dedication.
After we spoke to Brother Rodgers, we proceeded to the Lorraine Motel, site of where Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. When we got there, we were told that we could not enter, as they were not open yet. It was a cold rainy day, so we got back on the bus and waited, but it was not too long before we went back outside to go speak to Jacqueline Smith, who was the last tenant to live in the Lorraine Motel before she was kicked out while they turned the motel into a museum. She has been protesting the motel for about 15 years now, trying to get people to boycott the museum. She feels that Dr. King would rather want the motel to be used to house the homeless before turning it into a museum and ultimately into, as she calls it Hollywood. | She does not feel as though Dr. King would want the motel to become a spot for people to just come and see where he was shot. She dropped great knowledge, as well as provided us with a great operatic song, a talent she has possessed for many years. When I talked about seeing Sisters dedicated to the Movement, she truly exemplified that. She has been sitting outside homeless for 15 years, and it takes much heart and determination for someone to do that.
After speaking to her, and actually having her come onto our bus to talk to us, we eventually went into the museum. I was contemplating not even going in, because I felt like such a hypocrite for hearing her speak to us, really feeling what she had to say, and then turning around and doing something she is trying so hard to keep us from doing: entering the museum. I felt so bad as I stepped into the museum, but I did not have much choice as the tickets were already paid for, and I had wanted to see the museum for quite some time. I just felt as if I disrespected her dream. Nevertheless, the museum was pretty moving, and seeing the final room in which Dr. King stayed was somewhat discomforting as she said it would be. I do not know if I will ever make it back out to the museum or not, but I do hope that Sister Smith fulfills her dream.
On to Cleveland, Mississippi!
Victoria Edwards:
Today we listened to Mr. Rodgers he was part of the sanitation strike. I
have to admit that before reading the short section in Tired Feet and Weary
Souls I knew nothing about the strike. But upon meeting him I was
immediately taken in by the operation. Here was someone, not especially
fervent about Civil Rights beforehand, who because of his economic
conditions risked his life to better his plight and in doing that became
part of the much bigger plight of his people. It struck me how little
responsibility the sanitation owners had for their employees, it seemed
like sweatshop labor or something. The two deaths that occurred went
without life insurance and were as much a result of the dangerous working
conditions as anything the workers did-this especially stood out in my
mind. Mr. Rodgers was a simple man not trained in giving speeches, he simply
told us his part in the sanitation strike and the feelings that he went
though as he participated in it. Something that especially struck me was
how his family reacted to his striking. They said that he basically had
nothing anyway and so he might as well try to change something. It was
amazing to see how little they had. It was so small that anything would
have been better than remaining in that condition. This was yet another
chance for me to see another face to the Civil Rights Movement. With Rev.
Cambell I saw the loving ally with John Sigenthall I saw the politically
elite ally, and with Kawame I saw a black member of the Civil Rights
Movement who although bitter, was still actively involved more as a black
nationalist than anything. Mr. Rodgers provided me with a change to see how
the economic and social interests of the movement came together. Civil
Rights is not just about racial equality alone. In order to get full racial
equality there had to be social and economic equality as well. And this
strike proved to be one event that brought these two facets of life
together. It was very inspiration to hear how Martin Luther King dropped
everything he was doing because he too understood the importance of this
march and it's implications. After speaking with Mr. Rodgers we went to the
Civil Rights Museum. It was amazing, it was so big and I learned a lot but
felt a bit overwhelmed with the amount of information being placed before
me.
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The Class with Taylor Rodgers
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Ramya Raghavan:
This morning we met with Taylor Rodgers, who participated in the Memphis
Sanitation Strike.
Talking to Rodgers gave us yet another perspective on the movement.
Here was this humble, earnest man who just wanted a fair wage and a good
place to work, and he got swept into the fire of King's movement. It was
people like him who really made the movement a success in ways that Martin
Luther King Jr. could not. I asked Rodgers how he felt about the Democratic
Party today after Kwame Lillard spoke of his disenchantment with party
politics yesterday. I was disappointed to find that Rodgers did not have
faith in the Democrats, or any party for that matter. I like to think that
the Democratic party is a voice for all people, especially the working
class. It was disturbing to realize that many others do not share my
opinion.
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