Birmingham 1963

On September 15, 1963, an explosion rocked the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. This explosion was a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement and in the words of Martin Luther King Jr., it was "one of the most vicious and tragic crimes ever perpetrated against humanity." Children in churches were thought to be safe, but four girls were killed that day as they got ready in their Sunday best. The congregation knew that this was an act of terrorism, not an accident. At that time, Birmingham was known as "Bombingham" because of the number of explosions that affected the city. 

Photo: nydailynews.com

In January 1963, George Wallace gave his inauguration speech as governor of Alabama. He famously said, "I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever." His words set the stage for Birmingham to be a battleground between staunch segregationists and civil rights activists. 

Photo: washingtonpost.com

May 2, 1963 saw the beginning of something new: the participation of children in the peaceful Civil Rights Movement. Starting at the 16th Street Baptist Church, children marched in peaceful protest for equal rights. Police Chief Bull Connor responded with violence: he ordered that police dogs be used to attack the children, for fire hoses to be blasted at them and to hit them with batons. Connor's tactics were televised and shocked the nation. 

Photo: blackhistorycollection.org

When the 16th Street Baptist Church was bombed, the nation was horrified and the federal government became more involved in the Civil Rights Movement. The nation had witnessed violence towards children but this attack was too much because it took the lives of four innocent girls. 

Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Carol Denise McNair were attending church on Youth Day, when children had the opportunity to attend with the adult congregation. They were in the basement of the church, getting themselves ready in anticipation for an exciting day. 

Photo: apr.org

The actions of Ku Klux Klan members Thomas Blanton, Bobby Frank Cherry, Herman Frank Cash and Robert Edward Chambliss changed the emotions from excitement to grief. By 1965 the FBI knew that these men were Klan members and had bombed the church, but did nothing.

Finally, in 1977 Robert Chambliss was charged and convicted of the murder of Carol Denise McNair. Thomas Blanton was charged and convicted on four counts of murder in 2001 and Bobby Cherry was also charged and convicted on four counts of murder in 2002. Herman Cash died in 1994 and was never charged.

Their actions were meant to terrorize the members of the 16th Street Baptist Church. Instead, they spurred the Nation on towards the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

Photo: learnnc.org (President L. B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964)