Civil Rights Trail

7/31/2019 Civil Rights Trail

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A labama

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Follow the footsteps of the civil rights pioneers fromBirmingham to Greensboro, Selma, Montgomery and Tuskegee who triumphed in the struggle for racial equality in America.

Without the struggles for voting rights in the 1960s, BarackObama could not have become president.

A few weeks after announcing his candidacy, he spoke in Selmain 2007 and paid tribute to leaders of the Civil Rights Movementwho survived attacks and arrests during the violent demonstrations.I stand on the shoulders of giants. What happened in Selma andBirmingham stirred the conscience of the nation.

The night he accepted the Democratic nomination in Denver,he mentioned a 106-year-old woman who had seen great change inAmerica. She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hosesin Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlantawho told a people that We Shall Overcome. Yes we can.

The Alabama Civil Rights Trail has become a majorinternational destination. The United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has selectedAlabama churches as future World Heritage Sites. Two Baptistchurches in Birmingham and Dr. Martin Luther Kings churchin Montgomery will be the first World Heritage Sites inAmerica linked to the struggle for civil rights.

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What happened in Selma and Birmingham stirred the conscience of the nation.

- Barack Obama

Rev. Joseph Lowery, Barack Obama and activist Joanne Bland in 2007.

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Tuscaloosa

PrattvilleTuskegee

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Talladega

Anniston

MontgomerySelma

Greensboro

Civil Rights Trail Map American travel expert Arthur Frommer includes the Alabama Civil Rights Trail among the 12 new destina-tions in the world to see.

Alabama bears the scars of the civil rightsera, and the monuments to that struggleinspire the courage to face new challenges.

- The Washington Post

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alk along the Civil Rights Trail


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The Montgomery Bus Boycott was thefirst major victory in the modern Civil RightsMovement. Dr. King became the acknowledgedleader of the movement. His increased responsibili-ties prompted him to resign from church duties afterfour years. Meanwhile, Mrs. Parks and her husbandmoved north to establish an educational programfor young people.

After Freedom Rider college students wereattacked in Montgomery in 1964, for the first timefederal authorities provided protection for civilrights demonstrators.Kings non violent lead-ership was recognizedwith the 1964 NobelPeace Prize.

Voting rights advo -cates in Selma decidedto take action by present-ing their grievances tothe governor, walking54 miles along U.S. 80

The city that had been known as the Cradle ofthe Confederacy has the dual distinction of beingthe Birthplace of Civil Rights.

Shortly after marrying his college sweetheartin Marion, Ala., 24-year-old Martin Luther KingJr., preached his first sermon at Dexter AvenueBaptist Church , a block from the Alabama StateCapitol where Southern secessionists had formedthe Confederacy in 1861.

The next year in 1955, 42-year-old seamstressRosa Parks was arrested for refusing to relinquishher seat on a city bus to whites as required by cityordinance. Negro ministers and lawyers, who had been waiting for a test case on the constitutionalityof the law, recruited the reluctant young minister tolead a boycott of city buses.

Kings stirring oratory galvanized the blackcommunity and made him the spokesman for thefledgling movement. Some 50,000 Negroes refusedto ride the citys buses for 381 days until theU.S. Supreme Court struck down laws segregating public transportation.

A young tourist poses with Eric Blomes sculpture of Rosa Parks at the Rosa Parks Library and Museum.

Rosa Parks on city bus

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to the State Capitol in Montgomery. After policehalted the first attempt, the federal courts becameinvolved and provided protection to marchers sothat they could go forward and finish their landmark journey.

As the Selma-to-MontgomeryVoting Rights March, which beganMarch 21, 1965, streamed into down-town Montgomery five days later enroute to the Capitol, marchers passedthe bus stop where Mrs. Parks had beenarrested a decade earlier.

Some 25,000 marchers and out-of-state sup- porters, including Mrs. Parks, filled Dexter Avenue.The throng stretched from Kings former church tothe steps of the Capitol. Segregation is on its death bed, King told the crowd.

Montgomery changed dramatically in the 50years following Rosa Parks arrest. The Rosa ParksLibrary and Museum opened on the 45th anniver-sary of her arrest.

Visitors to the citycan now ride a replicaof the 1953-era bus onwhich Mrs. Parks wasarrested.

Interpretive panelsoutside the formerGreyhound BusStation in Montgomerytell the story of the 1961 Freedom Rides, usingquotes and images of the people who participated.Mob violence that met interracial student bus ridersat this station on May 20, 1961, shocked the nationand led to the ruling by the Interstate CommerceCommission that effectively ended segregationin interstate bus, train and air transportation. 210South Court Street. 334-242-3184. Free.

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Interior of the Civil Rights Memorial Center

Bus exhibit, Rosa Parks Museum

Interpretive panels outside the former Greyhound Bus Station

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Sanctuary at Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church

Dexter Parsonage MuseumRev. Martin and Mrs. Coretta Scott King

lived in the Dexter church parsonage a few blockssoutheast of the church from Sept. 1, 1954, untillate 1959 when they moved to Atlanta. Mrs. Kingand their baby, Yolanda, were home when a bombdamaged the front porch one night during the

boycott. The minister quickly arrived and quelledangry neighbors demanding revenge.The Interpretive Center next door offers a short

video presentation prior to tours of the parsonage.The house is fur -nished with periodfurniture, some dat-ing from the resi-dency of the Kings.A photo of Gandhiin the study recallsthe famed pacifist

whose teachingswere an inspirationto King.

303 S. Jackson Street south of Monroe Street.334-261-3270. Admission charged (discount withDexter Avenue King Memorial ticket). Tues.-Fri.,10 am -4pm , Sat. 10 am -2pm . Tours by appointment atother times. www.dakmf.org

Dexter Avenue KingMemorial Baptist Church

The church isa National Historic Landmark because of its status as the birthplace of the Civil RightsMovement. It is the only

church where MartinLuther KingJr., served assenior pastor.Enter throughthe ground-leveldoors to the

basement whereRev. DavidAbernathy , NAACP activist

E.D. Nixon , Kingand others vowed a bus

boycott following the arrest of Mrs. Parks. Kings predecessor, Dr. Vernon Johns , had long advocatedsuch action.

A large mural depicts the struggles of themovement and landmark moments in Kings life.Construction on the church began in 1833.

A block behind the church is the Civil RightsMemorial designed by renowned sculptor MayaLin, whose other best-known work is the VietnamMemorial in Washington, D.C.

454 Dexter Avenue a block west of the StateCapitol. 334-263-3970. Admission charged. Groupsschedule at least a week ahead of visit.www.dexterkingmemorial.org

Parsonage kitchen

Dexter Parsonage

worldheritage site

nominee

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The Civil Rights Memorial Center

The Civil Rights Memorial designed by inter-

national artist Maya Lin is a block south of thechurch where Martin Luther King Jr. was pastor.It honors 40 individuals who died between 1954and 1968 and encourages visitors to reflect on thestruggle for equality.

After you read the names of the martyrs and atimeline of landmark events etched on its blackgranite table, walk up the entrance at mid block toenter the Civil Rights Memorial Center and learnthe stories of the martyrs.

The Here I Stand exhibits chronicle important

events that occurred downtown during the CivilRights Movement. A short film in the 60-seatauditorium provides an overview of the movement.Visitors can sign a pledge to work for justice on theWall of Tolerance.

400 Washington Avenue at South Hull Street.334-956-8200. Admission charged. Mon.-Fri.,10 am -4:30 pm , Sat. 10 am -2pm . www.splcenter.org

Rosa Parks Library & Museum& Childrens Annex

Multimedia presentations, period photographyand several dioramas bring to life the story of RosaParks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. A vintagemunicipal bus used in themovie The Long Walk Home is used to reenact the arrest ofthe respected Negro communityleader. Visitors can have their photographs made while seatednext to a life-size bronze sculp-ture of the Mother of the CivilRights Movement.

A replica of the 1953 buson which Mrs. Parks was arrestedoperates in downtown Montgomery and makes stopsat, or near, major attractions in the area.

Troy University. 252 Montgomery Street . 334-241-8615. Admission charged. Mon.-Fri., 9 am -5pm , Sat.9am -3pm www.montgomery.troy.edu/museum

Additional SitesHolt Street Baptist Church was the site of massmeetings leading to the bus boycott. 903 South HoltStreet. 334-263-0522. By appointment only.

The National Center for the Study of CivilRights & African-American Culture highlightsthe involvement of the local community andAlabama State University students during the boycott and the Civil Rights Movement.1345 Carter Hill Road. 334-229-4824.

City of St. Jude was the last campsite of the 1965Selma-Montgomery March. 2048 West Fairview Ave.

334-265-6791. Mon.-Fri., 9am

-4pm

by appointment.

Civil Rights Memorial

Rosa Parks Museum

A restored 1953-era bus transports passengers to downtown destinations

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During the first half of the 20th century, blackscould not use the same public accommodationsas whites, vote, or try on clothes in white-ownedshops. Those who complained were often harassedor beaten by gangs linked to the police.

Dr. King and community leaders, includingRev. Fred Shuttlesworth , targeted the cityssegregation laws in 1963. Police disrupted demon -strations with dogs and fire hoses. White-owned

stores suffered economically and city leadersagreed to end discrimination.

Within days of Kings I Have a Dreamspeech at the March on Washington, racists bombed a black church active in the movement,killing four little girls. The bombing promptedmany reluctant whites to oppose the brutality

directed against Negroes. Many years later, threewhite men were convicted of the bombing.

Because many whites moved to Birminghamsaffluent suburbs, African-Americans havedominated local government for the past severaldecades and electedRichard Arrington,the citys first blackmayor. As a way to heal

past divisions over race,Arrington encouragedturning former battle-fields into shrines that arenow visited by touristsfrom around the world.www.birminghamal.org

Sixteenth Street Baptist Church

Civil Rights Institute

irminghamB

worldheritage site

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The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

One of the Souths finest museums is part his-tory lesson, part audience participation and partdemonstration of how the city has evolved since the1960s. Photos, videos, audio recordings and exhibits put visitors inside the integration movement.

Look for the cell where King wrote the famousLetter from the Birmingham Jail that urgedreligious bystanders to become active in themovement. Visitors can see white and coloreddrinking fountains and a 1950s lunch counterthat symbolized segregation in public places. Areplica of a Greyhound bus that was torched nearAnniston, because black and white riders chal-lenged the states segregation laws, is also dis- played. A statue of Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth honorsthe leader of Birminghams 1963 demonstrations.

520 16th Street adjacent to Sixteenth Street BaptistChurch and Kelly Ingram Park. 205-328-9696.Admission charged (except Sundays). Tues.-Sat.,10 am -5pm , Sun. 1-5 pm . ww.bcri.org

Sixteenth Street Baptist Church

The church suffered the deadliest moment in thehistory of the civil rights era. Days after a six-yearcourt battle ended in favor of integrating Birminghamschools, and climaxing four months of demonstrations by blacks, Klansmen retaliated. On Sept. 15, 1963,they bombed the church, killing four girls in the base-ment who were preparing for Sunday School.

Photos on display in the basement show thedamage of the dynamite blast. In the sanctuary,look near the pulpit for school pictures of the fourgirls. Look up in the balcony for a stained-glassdepiction of a black crucified Christ and the wordsYou do it unto me. It was a gift from the peopleof Wales after the tragedy. The congregation ofabout 300 members holds an annual memorial ser-vice. Spike Lees 1997 film Four Little Girls wasnominated for an Oscar for best documentary.

1530 Sixth Avenue North . 205-251-9402.Admission charged. Tues.-Fri., 10 am -2pm , Sat. byappointment and during church Sunday services.

Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

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Kelly Ingram Park

Blacks gathered in the public park in thespring of 1963 to march four blocks to City Hallto oppose racial discrimination. Walk through thenow peaceful park to see artists interpretations.The Freedom Walk sculptures include twochildren seen through jail bars, a trio of pray-ing ministers, and an image of a dog menacinga man. Alabamas largest statue of Dr. MartinLuther King Jr., faces the Sixteenth Streetchurch. The park was named in 1932 for a localwhite fireman who was the first American sailorkilled in World War I.

Bordered by 16th and 17th Streets and Fifth andSixth Avenues .

Bethel Baptist ChurchUnder the

leadership ofRev. Fred L.Shuttlesworth,Bethel BaptistChurch servedas a stagingground for civilrights activities.It was headquartersfor the AlabamaChristian Movementfor Human Rights(1956-1961), whichfocused on non violent protest against segregatedaccommodations, trans - portation, schools andemployment discrimina-tion. Built in 1926, thechurch was bombed three times between 1956 and1962. The congregation moved to a new sanctuarya block away in North Birmingham.

33rd Street at 29th Ave. N. 205-322-5360. Open

by appointment.

Trio of ministers at Kelly Ingram Park

Bethel Baptist Church

I Aint Afraid of Your Jail sculpture, Kelly Ingram Park

worldheritage site

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Activists held a series ofmarches in 1965 to protest the fail-ure of white politicians to allow Negroes to vote. During a march30 miles away in Marion on Feb.18, police shot 26-year-old JimmieLee Jackson who was protectinghis mother and grandfather fromassault. His death inspired voting rights advocatesto march to Montgomery and present their demandsto Gov. George Wallace.

On March 7, 1965, Rev. Hosea Williams andJohn Lewis stepped from the pulpit of BrownChapel Church and led a group of 600 towardMontgomery. After just six blocks, when theycrossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge over theAlabama River, Sheriff Jimmy Clarks mounteddeputies and state troopers dispatched by Wallaceattacked the group with nightsticks and tear gas,

injuring dozens. Television networks interruptedregular programming to show film of what becameknown as Bloody Sunday. The scene stunnedAmericans and national political leaders.

Two weeks later, religious leaders joinedDr. Martin Luther King Jr., to support thelocal marchers. Under the watchful protection ofAlabama National Guardsmen and Army troops, acourt-ordered limit of 300 marchers walked alongU.S. Hwy. 80 during the day and slept in the fieldsat night. They covered the 54 miles between Selmaand Montgomery in four days and gathered withoutincident in front of the State Capitol.

Viola Liuzzo , a 39-year-old white mother offive from Detroit, was shot while shuttling march-ers back to Selma. Her death outraged moderates,and President Lyndon Johnson was embold-ened to push through Congress the stalled VotingRights Bill .

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The public is invited to experience the Bridge Crossing Jubilee in Selmathe first full weekend in March each year.


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Selma-to-MontgomeryNational Historic Trail

The National Historic Trail begins at Brown Chapel AMEChurch and ends some 54 milesto the east at the State Capitol inMontgomery. A bust of Dr. Kingis in front of the church. From theEdmund Pettus Bridge, turn eastonto Water Avenue and then lefton Martin Luther King Street. Go

four blocks to the church.

Open by appointment. 410 Martin Luther KingStreet. 334-874-7897. www.selmaalabama.com

Voting Rights Trail Interpretive Center

The National Park Service center at the midpointof the trail displays photographs and memorabilia.

U.S. 80, between mile markers 105 and 106 inWhite Hall in Lowndes County. 334-877-1984.Open daily from 9 am -4:30 pm . www.nps.gov

Edmund Pettus BridgeThe southern approach of the Edmund Pettus

Bridge is where a sea of blue law enforcementofficers attacked marchers with tear gas and night -sticks on Bloody Sunday, March 7, 1965. Visitorscan walk across one of the most recognized symbolsof the Civil Rights Movement. USA Weekend includesthe bridge, along with Ellis Island, Jamestown and

the Lincoln Memorial, among the ten historic land-marks that bear proud witness to our nations enduringfreedoms. The bridge built in 1940 is named for aConfederate general and U.S. senator from Selma.

African-Americans return to Selma the firstfull weekend of March for the Bridge CrossingJubilee. U.S. Sen. Barack Obama attended theevent in 2007. U.S. 80 at Water Avenue.334-875-7241.

Barack Obama at Brown Chapel AME Church

Voting Rights Trail Interpretive Center

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Edmund Pettus Bridge

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National Voting Rights Museum

The modest museum showcases items and participants stories related to the voting rightsmovement. Volunteer guides share their recollec-tions of the struggle to gain the right to vote.Look for the window at the rear of the museum(pictured above) that overlooks the river and thePettus Bridge to see names of civil rights leaderswho were active in Selma.

After President Lyndon Johnson signed the1965 Voting Rights Act on Aug. 6, some 7,000 Negroes registered to vote in Dallas County anddefeated the segregationist sheriff who led theBloody Sunday attack on marchers.

1012 Water Avenue , a half-block west of the PettusBridge. 334-418-0800.Admission charged. Openweekdays; weekends byappointment. www.nvrmi.org

Old Depot Museum is housed in a restored 1891railway depot. It includes artifacts from the CivilWar and voting rights eras, plus rare African-American photography of early 1900s life. 4 MartinLuther King Jr. Street. 334-874-2197.

The Safe House Black History Museum

The house provided a safe haven for Dr. MartinLuther King Jr., from Ku Klux Klansmen during theCivil Rights era. See newspapers, photos, an 1860slave auction document, and cement imprints of thehands of Lewis Black, founder of the Hale CountyCivil Improvement League, one of the rst civilrights groups in the country. 2401 Davis St.334-624-2030 or 334-624-4228.

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Names of civil rights leaders are painted on the window at the National Voting Rights Museum. The Edmund Pettus Bridge is in the background.

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Alabama Tourism Department1-800-Alabama www.Alabama.travel

03/09 Printed in USA For free distribution only

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Civil Rights Trail

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Transcript of Civil Rights Trail