THE CHILDREN'S MARCH

I spent this weekend in Birmingham Alabama watching my grandson Russell who was playing in a wheelchair basketball tournament. Although I have passed through Birmingham many times over the years I have never had the opportunity to visit the site of the May 1963 Children's March. Before leaving town I was able to walk through the Kelly Ingram Park and visit the historic 16th Street Baptist Church just across the street. When Martin Luther King arrived in Birmingham in April 1963 he was smarting from a defeat in Albany Georgia. The reason that most people have not heard about Albany is because of a very smart police chief there named Laurie Pritchett. He was not your run of the mill redneck Southern cop like Eugene (Bull Connor) of Birmingham, or Jim Clark of Selma. He was the chief of police of Albany, Georgia from 1959 to 1966. Pritchett was an Auburn graduate and besides possessing many other law enforcement credentials he was a graduate of the FBI academy. He used Kings own tactics of non-violence against him during the Summer of 1962. Pritchett ordered his officers to arrest all protesters but to do it without violence. Even King considered Pritchett a decent man but he said that Pritchett used moral means to uphold immoral laws.

It was King's goal to desegregate the white business district in downtown Birmingham. When King arrived in April he was promptly arrested for participating in a demonstration. While in jail he would write his famous letter from the Birmingham jail which defended his use of direct action and nonviolence as opposed to waiting on the courts to end segregation. King was calling for hundreds of Black people to demonstrate and willingly fill the jail cells in Birmingham just as they did in Albany. Most Black adults in Birmingham were worried about White retaliation such as being fired from their jobs. Blacks worked menial jobs for White people like being gardeners, maids, nanny's, etcetera. King asked James Bevel, who had been part of the Nashville student movement, to find demonstrators to fill the jails. Bevel said that he would but King was not prepared for what Bevel had in mind. With the help of a popular Black DJ, who spoke in a code that local Blacks understood he organized the majority of Birmingham's children to show up at the 16th Street Baptist Church on May 2, 1963 just across from Kelly Ingram city park. Most of them left Black schools all over Birmingham to be there. When King found out that Bevel intended to use children instead of adults he was against the plan. Ignoring Kings fears Bevel sent these children, some as young as four years old out to confront Birmingham's racist police commissioner Bull Connor and his racist police officers who ringed the park in waves.

Connor was no Laurie Pritchett. He played right into Bevels hands. On the first day Connor arrested nearly a 1000 students. The next day May 3rd he arrested nearly 2,000 and brought out the infamous police dogs and the Fire department water cannons. The news media posted pictures of children being attacked by dogs and blasted by high pressure water hoses that knocked them off of their feet. These images went out all over the world and President Kennedy was both horrified and angered by the pictures. On May 4th 4,000 more students were arrested and Connor was out of jail space. As soon as kids were released they would return to the park and be rearrested. Connor was not prepared for so many arrests and was overwhelmed by the situation. Unlike Pritchett who had arranged in advance with surrounding police departments to use their jail space when his became full. The children adapted to the water hoses and made a game out of it. Taunting the firemen and some even came to the protests in their bathing suits. On May 10th the city government decided to end segregation in it's restaurants and diners after a meeting with Martin Luther King. To top it off Bull Connor was fired from his job as police commissioner.

Birmingham was the catalyst for the 1964 Civil Rights Act in much the same way as the violence associated with the March on Selma the following year was the catalyst for the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Kennedy proposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act but did not live to see it's passage. Just before services began at the 16th Street Baptist church at 10:22 AM on Sunday September 15, 1963 a powerful bomb exploded killing four girls in a restroom on the east side of the building. They were Addie Mae Collins 14, Cynthia Wesley 14, Carole Robertson 14, and Denise McNair age 11. Ten year old Sarah Collins lost her right eye and 20 others were injured. The Klan did this in retaliation for the church's role in the Children's March of the previous May and it was the site for so many civil rights meetings over the years. Protests broke out across Birmingham as a result of the bombing and there would be clashes with the police. No one would be arrested for the church bombing until 1977 when Robert Chambliss was charged with the murder and would die in prison in 1985. Thomas Blanton would not be convicted until 2001 and Bobby Cherry would be convicted in 2002. Herman Cash would die in 1994 before he could be brought to trial.

Martin Luther Kings mug shot

Press conference in Birmingham

Statue to Martin Luther King in Kelly Ingram Park

James Bevel

MLK with Laurie Pritchett

Eugene (Bull) Connor

Bull Connor

The 16th Street Baptist Church

16th Street Baptist Church on March 4, 2018

Kelly Ingram Park

Kelly Ingram Park on March 4, 2018

Kelly Ingram Park March 4, 2018

Police arresting demonstrators

Monument to the children March 4, 2018

Monument depicting the above picture March

March 4, 2018

Monument to the children hit with fire hoses March 4, 2018

March 4, 2018

Water cannon March 4, 2018

The preachers monument in Kelly Ingram Park March 4, 2018

16th Street Bombing

Statue to the 4 girls killed in the bombing March 4, 2018

March 4, 2018

Memorial to the bombing victims March 4, 2018

Bombing suspect Robert Chambliss

March 6, 2022

My wife and I were in Birmingham yesterday March 5th to watch my grandson Russell play wheelchair basketball in a tournament there. We were there last in March 2018 for the same reason and I wrote the above article on March 5th of that year. Yesterday was a beautiful warm day and I suggested to my daughter Melanie after his last game of the day that we take Russell over to visit the Kelly-Ingram park and the 16th Avenue Baptist church. Russell loves history and when I get the opportunity I take him to historical places. When we pulled up to the park several streets were blocked off and we had a difficult time finding a parking place. In the middle of the park a tour guide was explaining the Childrens March to a large group of people. Our group consisted of my daughter Melanie and her husband Kenny Qualls, Russell, my grandson Gabe, and my wife Debbie. Debbie and Kenny found a comfortable place to sit while the rest of us walked around the park looking at the monuments.

As we neared the church there was some kind of film production going on. A large group of people were singing and clapping on the front steps of the church. My intention was to take Russell over to the church and show him where the four little girls died in the bombing. As we were walking by several people and the director of the video ran over and asked Russell to be in their music video. They were very nice but they seemed desperate to have Russell take part in it. Russell was acting shy and refused several times. I even tried to bribe him by saying that I would give him 20 dollars if he would but to no avail. Finally, they were able to convince him and he was placed right up front with Nick Sellers. I was a very proud grandfather at that point. After several takes the director shouted, "thats a wrap". People just seem to be drawn to Russell. I believe that the hand of God is on that boy. Every where he goes people just want to be around him. I was good as my word and paid him the 20 dollars.

Afterwards my daughter received this email from the CEO Nick Sellers of the World Games which is sponsoring the music video and who asked Russell to participate: Melanie, it was so great to meet y'all. Please tell Russell how much I appreciate him being in our music video for the song "Hope of Alabama". We needed someone who was an athlete but looked like a movie star-and he is definitely is that. He's got a bright future! The song will feature so many music stars from Alabama including the band Alabama, Sara Evans, Jamey Johnson, Nelly, Taylor Hicks, Reuben Studdard, Bo Bice, and many many more. And we will release it right before The Grammys in April. Please know that you and family are our VIP guests for TWG2022 if you'd like to attend. Check out the website, look at the calendar of events, and let me know anytime if you can make it down to Bham.