US president Donald Trump has paid tribute to the leaders and foot soldiers of the US civil rights movement whose sacrifices helped make the US a fairer and more just country.

But protests surrounding his visit to Mississippi laid bare stark divisions among Americans about his commitment to that legacy.

As Mr Trump gazed at an exhibit on Freedom Riders at the new Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, demonstrators near the site held up signs that said “Make America Civil Again” and “Lock Him Up”.

Some shouted “No Trump, no hate, no KKK in the USA.”

Mr Trump spent about 30 minutes at the museums, gave a 10-minute speech to selected guests inside and then flew back to his Florida estate, skipping the public schedule of the dedication ceremony held outside on a chilly day.

He spent more time getting to Jackson than he did on the ground.

His remarks steered clear of addressing the anger that his participation had sparked leading up to the dedication.

In a deliberate voice and rarely diverting from his prepared words, the president sought to honour the famous and the anonymous for their efforts on behalf of freedom for all.

US president Donald Trump speaks at the opening of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in Jackson, Mississippi, on Saturday. Photograph: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

“The civil rights museum records the oppression, cruelty and injustice inflicted on the African-American community, the fight to bring down Jim Crow and end segregation, to gain the right to vote and to achieve the sacred birthright of equality. And it’s big stuff. That’s big stuff,” he said.

“Those are very big phrases, very big words. Here we memorialise the brave men and women who struggled to sacrifice and sacrifice so much so that others might live in freedom,” he said.

‘Pompous disregard’

The national president of the NAACP and the mayor of Mississippi’s capital city said they kept their distance from Mr Trump because of his “pompous disregard” for the values embodied by the civil rights movement.

Derrick Johnson, head of the nation’s oldest civil rights organisation, and mayor Chokwe Lumumba said at a news conference that they looked forward to a “grander opening” of the museum that they can attend.

Mr Johnson, a Mississippian, said Mr Trump opposes labour rights, education, healthcare and voting rights for all Americans.

“We will never cede the stage to an individual who will fight against us,” Mr Johnson said. “We will not allow the history of those who sacrificed to be tarnished for political expediency.”

Mr Johnson and Mr Lumumba spoke to about 100 supporters, including some who participated in the civil rights demonstrations of the 1960s, at Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center, which was once the first public school built for African-Americans in Jackson. Now it is a museum to black history and culture.

Mr Lumumba called Mr Trump to task for “his pompous disregard for all of those factors that will not enable us to stand with him today”. – AP