ARC OF THE MORAL UNIVERSE

Tiffany Dittrich and Catherine Olson (North Campus / Area Learning Center) were awarded a Glasrud Fellowship to spend 10 days visiting iconic locations from the civil rights movement. They toured Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi in the Summer of 2018. Tiffany and Catherine are educators with a passion for social justice.

​”During his march to Selma, Alabama, in 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. asked, “How long will justice be crucified, and truth bear it?”  He referenced nineteenth-century abolitionist Theodore Parker when answering, “Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”  Sadly, this year marks the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination and many of the goals he so passionately advocated for have yet to be accomplished. While the United States has made marked civil rights advancements, many issues still remain.  The criminal justice system disproportionately impacts members of the African American community and wealth and opportunity gaps persist.”

“As educators, we feel it is important to highlight how the African American community has triumphed over oppression and to illuminate our students’ understanding of contemporary civil rights issues.  We believe that it is impossible to fully understand who we are as a nation and where we are going without first fully understanding our complete history.” - Tiffany Dittrich and Catherine Olson.

On their trip, Tiffany and Catherine had a chance to meet civil rights warrior Annie Pearl Avery, pictured here below.