Civil Rights Pilgrimage Immersion Experience

Abstract

The Civil Rights Pilgrimage domestic-intercultural immersion experience provides an opportunity for University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire students to learn about key individuals, events, and other aspects surrounding the American Civil Rights Movement on a national basis. In the winter and spring of 2011, students spent ten days immersed in the Deep South to learn about the Movement. These were the sixth and seventh Civil Rights Pilgrimages. One of the key goals of the Pilgrimage is to provide students with an opportunity to enhance their multicultural competence and experience diversity in ways not naturally fostered by the community make-up of Eau Claire and the Chippewa Valley. The data collected in this study will become part of a longitudinal research project on the long-term impact of the Civil Rights Pilgrimage on students.