Civil Rights Tour - Birmingham Alabama

3/7/19

Toby and Lina Tighe and Susan Zarchin agreed to join me on this exciting road trip to experience the museums and landmarks of the Civil Rights  Movement. We met in Birmingham, Alabama on Thursday and started our journey at SAW’s barbeque - an acronym for Sorry Ass
Wilson...our kind of place. Great pulled pork, ribs, chicken and sides

We were anxious to see Birmingham so went to the historic district at night and walked through the Kelly Ingram Park right across from the 16th Street Baptist Church where the 4 girls were killed in the bomb blast set off by Ku Klux Klansman in 1963.  There was no one else around and we were immediately immersed in the brutality of the events and the courage of the congregants led by their Pastor, Rev. Shuttlesworth. The park has a series of statues honoring the girls and displaying the
vicious acts of Bull Connor and his policemen - the water cannons, the dogs, the shouting mobs.  At night the church was

illuminated and the dramatic statue of MLK shines brightly. We were struck by how clean and beautiful the city was...but so empty at night. We drove around looking for some nightlife and there was a beautiful restored theater (the Lyric) but not a lot of evidence of folks in the downtown.

3/8
Returned to the same corner on Friday morning and walked around the 4th Avenue historic district. This area had been designated as the black business district around the turn of the century due to Jim Crow laws. There is some commerce but a lot of empty buildings.  Fabulous markers throughout the district describing each building and its history. We were especially delighted to find the sculpture park dedicated to the Temptations. you wont be surprised that I needed to dance with them

We proceeded to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute a welcoming, beautiful building with multi-media exhibits detailing all of th events of the movement in Birmingham. Our hearts opened further as we studied the photos, films, models of the buses, jail cells, and the quotes from MLK and other leaders, poets, politicians.

• We were moved to tears again by MLK at the March on Washington.