Growing up in Stone Mountain and the MetroAtlanta area, one of the things I loved the most was always being surrounded by my people at every turn. Atlanta is a city with a long legacy of Black history that exudes through so many parts of the culture from music, to neighborhoods, to food, to businesses, and so much more. Atlanta has had many nicknames such as “The City tooBusy to Hate” during the time of Civil Rights and “The Black Mecca of the South.” While it still does come with its own set of issues, these names are reflective of the strong Black culture that is found at home.
With so many places, museums, and historical markers that lend to the narrative of Black history in Atlanta, it was hard to choose one to reflect on for Black History Month. Therefore, I am reflecting on two places that tell very different, historical, and important narratives – The National Center for Civil and Human Rights and The Trap Music Museum.
The National Center for Civil and Human Rights
This trip was special because it was a trip with just my brother and me, and I always enjoy the moments we spend together being older and apart more often. We went to this museum as one of the last things to do before my next birthday.
Upon initially entering the exhibit of the main floor, the wall is separated into 2 sides for “colored” and “white” to take you back to the time frame which they were referencing. The people in the pictures on the “colored” side were so beautiful to me and reminded me of the old pictures I would see of my own family. I knew this would be a lot. The museum highlighted greater Civil Rights moments such as the Brown v. Board of Education case that allowed for the integration of schools. It also touched on local pieces of Atlanta History such as Sweet Auburn Avenue, a historically Black area where businesses, communities and families were especially prominent. Places such as the African American Panoramic Experience (APEX Museum) and other restaurants and businesses can still be found.
The bottom floor of the museum housed The Morehouse College Martin Luther King Jr. Collection, which contained many of his private writings and gave lens to who he truly was versus the few reused quotes that we often hear of him when discussions of Black History come up. At the time of his death, he was more unpopular than he had ever been and was voicing for freedom for those not only in America but also globally – taking stances against war, apartheid, and issues impact disenfranchised the world over. Many of his methods of protest were used as foundational to the establishment of other global movements for modern social movements in the U.S. and globally. These narratives of global social changes movements were highlighted on the top floor, which I admittedly spent the least amount of time in because it was close to closing. I like to read everything, so I was running through the floor trying to soak in what I could before finally calling it a day.
The Trap Music Museum
Fast forward from the years of MLK, Jr. in Atlanta to the 90s and early 2000s where you have T.I. coining the invention of trap music in the same city. While there are many commonalities in the Black experience, class (along with region, cultural background, etc.) is one of the things that creates variety in this experience. I’ll be clear in saying that I am from the suburbs, so this is purely a reflection of my own experience visiting the museum.
I was excited to visit the Trap Music Museum because I had been hearing so much hype about it and seeing people post pictures of themselves there. While I knew that I was excited, I was not sure what to expect or what reflections I would take away. I listened to trap music growing up and still find it in rotation with other genres, but the actual lived experience of the trap is not my own. I have found that being Black and moving through the world with other non-Black people, this music is often a large part of the lens through which others see us. I have also seen people who I know don’t share the upbringing of the trap try to paint themselves in these images for attention, clout, or whatever reason. Therefore, while I was interested in seeing the exhibits, I was more interested in the narrative that it would present. When I got there, the line was to the parking lot and waited for a while before finally being able to enter. The entrance was set up like the entrance to a neighborhood where the creation of this music usually occurs. Part of my initial curiosity was answered with a sign at the door giving the disclaimer that they “did not glorify or celebrate the use of drugs and violence associated with trap culture. It’s just an unfortunate reality.”
The museum was set up in an interactive way with rooms themed for different artists such as T.I., Rick Ross, etc. and original copies of lyrics handwritten by artists such as Jeezy. While I initially expected exhibits to just memorialize the greats of Trap Music, I received lessons on systemic inequality and racial injustice. As I moved through the museum, I realized that the [Trap] narrative was one showing the circumstances created by a system – a broken system. It talked the birthing of the music out of a place of poverty imposed by many social inequities and the experiences of these inequities and being high touch points with the prison system leading to the music as a means for an outlet. Before going, I had no idea that Georgia had the highest number of people under legal supervision (in jail, out on parole, etc.) in the U.S. The U.S. already has the largest prison system in the world, and here I was in the state doing the most numbers already located in the country with the highest population. Whether or not you like trap music, there was a lot to learn about our society and how far we have left to go from the visit to this museum.
Visiting both of these places in the same year highlighted for me that Black History and the work for equity here and across the world comes with so many layers and pieces. MLK Jr. had his dream in the same place where years later a form of music would be birthed out of the poverty and struggle of those that he had been fighting for. Furthermore, all of this is in a place I call home. This is a reminder that there is still a way to go and work to be done.
What is a way that you can impact change and equity within my own circles of influence?
What are some ways that you can better educate myself on social issues?
What are some ways that you have seen Black history play out where you are from?
