In 2005 CCHR was nothing more than a glimmer in the eye of Georgia’s civil rights leadership, Ambassador Andrew Young, Representative John Lewis and Mrs. Evelyn Lowery. The idea: a civil rights museum in Atlanta. After a study of other civil rights museums conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a working group appointed by Mayor Shirley Franklin gave structure to the vision. Then, in January 2007 a partnership between the Atlanta Development Authority and Central Atlanta Progress really got the ball rolling.

Doug Shipman was appointed the Executive Director of the Center for Civil and Human Rights Partnership which hopes to open its doors sometime in 2010. Doug, together with Tiffany Powell, Senior Project Manager, and, I am sure, many others are hard at work on the details.

They do not toil alone. Coca Cola has donated land in the Olympic Park/World of Coke/Georgia Aquarium area and a slew of other civic minded corporations support the effort.

Add to that, the fact that in 2006 Atlanta was successful in making sure the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers stayed in Atlanta.

Add to that, the personal support of people like Earl Lewis, Provost at Emory University, Care USA, Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, Bobby Kennedy’s daughter, and John D. Evans, a co-founder of C-Span.

This is not just a museum and the focus is not just the American Civil Rights Movement. It will be a world class center whose focus is the world-wide struggle for human rights. Its goal is to serve as

…a space for ongoing dialogue, study, and contributions to the resolution of current and future freedom struggles of all people at local, national, and international levels. This facility will give visitors a place to learn about the past and engage conversations about the future. The Center will be a portal for exploration and discussion through performances, lectures, symposiums and partnerships across the Atlanta and Georgia community; the Center intends to be the global hub for contemporary discussion on the link between Civil Rights lessons and Human Rights issues.

The thing I like about what Doug told me is that the Center will engage in storytelling. We all love stories and Doug told me a few. While I grew up in Georgia during those tumultuous 60s, I did not grow up in Atlanta or any where near the action. The Civil Rights Movement was something I experienced through the evening news and school integration. I am sure there are a lot of people like me that don’t know that while Martin Luther King, Jr. had to fear for his life in many states, he walked the streets of Atlanta without fear. And how about this: the Mayor of Atlanta would often give him a ride home at the end of day! Incredible! And when he went to Savannah, the sheriff of Chatham County would meet him at the county line and escort him to his destination. Listen to the interview for the details and more.

I can hardly wait for 2009! See you there.