16th Street Baptist Church Bombing
But the joy and excitement of the triumphs was short-lived in the city that was dubbed “Bombingham” due to the numerous bombings of churches and homes of African-Americans and their sympathizers. Just over two weeks after Dr. King’s inspiring speech in Washington, a horrific act shocked a city and a nation at its core.
For many years Birmingham had been terrorized by violence inflicted by a white supremacists group called the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), often times without any fear of prosecution for their crimes. Theophilus “Bull” Connor was the Commissioner of Public Safety for the city of Birmingham during the Civil Rights Movement and had confirmed ties to the KKK. Connor was a segregationist that had many known KKK members on the police force and vowed to keep the city segregated. Connor was behind the use of force on the students who protested in the Children’s …show more content…
Shortly after the Birmingham schools were ordered to desegregate, the group exacted a harsh awakening to those who thought that the fight for freedom was over. The 16th Street Baptist Church was a center of activity in the Civil Rights Movement, hosting meetings for the SCLC as well as civil rights leaders Dr. King and Ralph David Abernathy.
On the morning of September 15, 1963 a bomb detonated during Sunday school classes killing four and wounding many others. The victims of the blast were four little girls that were in a basement restroom changing into their choir robes for the 11:00a.m. service. The deaths of Addie Mae Collins (age 14), Carol Denise McNair (age 11), Carole Robertson (age 14), and Cynthia Wesley (age 14) sparked outrage nationwide but in the ultra-segregated city of Birmingham the investigation was slow moving and almost non-existent. Most suspected the KKK in the bombing, but there was not movement in the case until 1977 when three KKK members were tried and convicted of murder.
Although a tragic and senseless act, the 16th Street Church Bombing made an immediate impact on the Civil Rights Movement by increasing support in the cause and being a motivating factor in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of
For many years Birmingham had been terrorized by violence inflicted by a white supremacists group called the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), often times without any fear of prosecution for their crimes. Theophilus “Bull” Connor was the Commissioner of Public Safety for the city of Birmingham during the Civil Rights Movement and had confirmed ties to the KKK. Connor was a segregationist that had many known KKK members on the police force and vowed to keep the city segregated. Connor was behind the use of force on the students who protested in the Children’s …show more content…
Shortly after the Birmingham schools were ordered to desegregate, the group exacted a harsh awakening to those who thought that the fight for freedom was over. The 16th Street Baptist Church was a center of activity in the Civil Rights Movement, hosting meetings for the SCLC as well as civil rights leaders Dr. King and Ralph David Abernathy.
On the morning of September 15, 1963 a bomb detonated during Sunday school classes killing four and wounding many others. The victims of the blast were four little girls that were in a basement restroom changing into their choir robes for the 11:00a.m. service. The deaths of Addie Mae Collins (age 14), Carol Denise McNair (age 11), Carole Robertson (age 14), and Cynthia Wesley (age 14) sparked outrage nationwide but in the ultra-segregated city of Birmingham the investigation was slow moving and almost non-existent. Most suspected the KKK in the bombing, but there was not movement in the case until 1977 when three KKK members were tried and convicted of murder.
Although a tragic and senseless act, the 16th Street Church Bombing made an immediate impact on the Civil Rights Movement by increasing support in the cause and being a motivating factor in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of