Civil Rights Memorial - Water Over the Names

Photo: Inester726, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)

A stop on Montgomery: Legacy and Civil Rights Road, a free self-guided tour.

A thin sheet of water flows across a round black granite table here, designed by Maya Lin, the architect of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington. Dedicated in 1989 and sponsored by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Civil Rights Memorial records 41 people who lost their lives in the freedom struggle between the Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954 and King's assassination in 1968, set among the landmark events of those years.

Behind the table, a curved wall carries words King drew from the Book of Amos, about justice rolling down like waters, and water runs down that wall as well. Visitors are invited to touch the water as it moves over the names. The memorial is open to the public at all hours; the Civil Rights Memorial Center behind it, opened in 2005, has galleries and a theater, so check the SPLC website for hours and fees.

When you finish, return to the Legacy Museum, whose final galleries trace how the struggle for equal justice continues in America's prisons today.

Getting here: From the Capitol, walk one block south and a short way west to 400 Washington Avenue, about 5 minutes; the memorial sits in the open plaza out front.

Did you know?: Inside the Civil Rights Memorial Center, the Wall of Tolerance displays the names of people who have pledged to stand up for justice and equality.

Photo op: Crouch low beside the granite table to catch the water sheeting over the engraved names, with the curved wall behind it.

More on Wikipedia: Civil Rights Memorial · Maya Lin · Southern Poverty Law Center · Brown v. Board of Education

Civil Rights Memorial - Water Over the Names

Stops on this tour