Hidden Gems in Mississippi

I did not love Mississippi.
I didn’t like the state flags blowing in the wind or the vast, rural landscape...but I did like the people. Initially, I was afraid to go there; I feared the worst, for I expected to encounter only three types of people:

1.  The racists.
I mean, we are in Mississippi, after all. They would just look at our group, scornfully, as we stopped for Popeye’s.

2. The Black People.
These people would, for the most part, be economically disenfranchised, but their predicament would be more complicated. I imagine it extremely difficult, socially, to be black in Mississippi— to live within the jurisdiction of a state, represented by a pseudo-confederate flag. There would be a constant feeling of exile, as if you were unwanted in your own home. And in such an environment, how could anyone see a successful future for themselves?

Out of politeness, I would have to be eternally optimistic.

And finally,
3. The white mentors at the Rosedale Freedom Project.
They would have voluntarily left their homes, far away, to help children in poverty. They would be good people: liberal and well-read, but something would be off. They would not realize their intrinsic desire to save the poor black kids from the system; their objective would be one of self validation as opposed to one of true activism.

I must reiterate that this was just my fear. On reflection, I dislike the low expectations that I projected upon an entire state. In principle, it shows some of my own prejudices. That was further emphasized by the fact that my assumptions were incorrect.
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I have done my share of community service, but the Rosedale Freedom Project was special. My time there, though short, was the only instance in which I had seen a service/ relief organization being lead by the people for whom it was aimed. The children (both black and white) who attended the freedom project had the initiative to see that their schools were ineffective and to do something about it. Inspire of the rough conditions of their homes and their family lives, the students are determined to better themselves. The most humbling part of my experience was hearing the story of a girl named Princess. For her entire life, she has dreamt of attending college; and though she yearns for a better lifestyle than Rosedale, MS has to offer, she has dedicated herself to education for the improvement of the lives of her entire family.

Food for thought: Maybe people are only agents of change when their cause is overt and pressing. Is that why we have yet to truly address diversity of political opinion at the Park School?

-Kendall