Students Take to the Road for Social Justice - washingtonpost.com: In the basement of Maryland Del. Jeffrey D. Waldstreicher's house lies a chunk of drywall that has motivated him over the years as he has navigated the political world.
Waldstreicher (D-Montgomery) gathered his treasure on a summer trip 11 years ago with Operation Understanding D.C., a group that each year takes more than 30 African American and Jewish students on a tour of the South to meet with civil rights leaders. Waldstreicher went during the summer that several black churches were burned in Alabama, and part of the trip was spent helping a congregation rebuild. He kept a memento.
"That piece of drywall is often an inspiration for me," said Waldstreicher, who lives in Kensington. "It helps to prevent cynicism from creeping up, and it's easy to let that happen when working in politics."
This morning, 31 students are set to embark on a 25-day journey to learn how they can continue a shared legacy of social change. The trip will take them to New York to visit historic synagogues and churches, and they will head south through North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. They are scheduled to meet such people as Joe Levin, co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Rev. C.T. Vivian, an activist who challenged officials in Selma, Ala., over the right to register black voters.
The trip is part of a year-long program in which students are immersed in African American and Jewish cultures through such things as lectures and potluck dinners. They also visit places of worship during Passover and Easter.
