Civil Rights Memorial Center
Maya Lin’s granite memorial and the adjacent center honor forty people killed during the modern civil-rights movement while connecting their stories to contemporary justice work.
Artwork inspired by Yvonne Wells
Run a hand through the water only after reading the chronology. The names span children, organizers, clergy, local citizens, and people killed for attempting ordinary rights; the table resists a single-hero narrative.
The memorial is outdoors and continuously viewable, but the interpretive center follows weekday security and hours. Bring identification and expect screening rather than assuming street-side access means instant entry.
- Maya Lin memorial
- Water carries names forward
- martyr biographies
- Lives remembered beyond martyrdom
- Wall of Tolerance
- Public pledge against injustice
Quick guide
- Best first move
- Maya Lin memorial: Maya Lin’s granite memorial and the adjacent center honor forty people killed during the modern civil-rights movement while connecting their stories to contemporary justice work.
- Most revealing detail
- martyr biographies gives the clearest route into a water-covered timeline names lives, dates, and unfinished work.
Quick guide
- Start with
- Maya Lin memorial — Maya Lin’s granite memorial and the adjacent center honor forty people killed during the modern civil-rights movement while connecting their stories to contemporary justice work.
- Look closely at
- martyr biographies — Run a hand through the water only after reading the chronology.
- Connect the story
- Wall of Tolerance — The memorial is outdoors and continuously viewable, but the interpretive center follows weekday security and hours.
- Plan around
- Allow 1–1½ hours; plan around wall of tolerance and current access conditions.
Good to know
Use the official homepage to confirm security and center access; the outdoor memorial and indoor experience are not identical.
Notice these
- Maya Lin memorial
- martyr biographies
- Wall of Tolerance