Alabama: birth place of the Civil Rights Movement

The only reason we're visiting Alabama is because it's on the way to Tennesse. But as we're gonna have to drive through it we decide we might as well check out two cities asscoiated with the Civil Rights struggle in the U.S.

The first is Montomery which turns out to be a very pleasant little town. A trolley bus takes you round the sights for $1. These include the capitol building, the Civil Rights Memorial and the church where Dr Martin Luther King was pastor, at Dexter Avenue.

Dexter Avenue Baptist Church

Civil Rights Memorial

There was a superb film shown at the Civil Rights Memorial center that celebrates those that died for the struggle. The focus of the center is to the highlight those less well known than Dr King and Rosa Parks, such as Michael Donald. Learning that his murder by the Klu Klux Klan took place as recently as 1981 (in our lifetime) was trully shocking. One positive outcome from his death was that the Klan was found guilty of wrongful death and ordered to pay Michael Donald's mother $7 million, which put them out of business.

Montgomery was also famously the site of the bus boycott sparked off by Rosa Parks. For a whole year black people refused to ride the busses in Montgomery in protest against segregation. The Selma to Montgmery march (where Jimmie Lee Jackson was shot by a state trooper) also ended here at the impressive Capitol Building.


From Montgomery we travel north to Birmingham to see the 16th Street Baptist church, which was the site of a bombing in 1963, which killed four little girls.

The church was closed as it was monday but Robert (who can just be seen seeted on the right of the picture) told us a bit about it. He lived just down the street and was 13 when he heard the bomb go off. He recalled that the police were on the scene suspiciously quickly to close off the area. He also told us about the police beatings and admitted that he was less willing than some to be subjected to them! Kelly Ingram park across the street has several sculptures relating to the time, including vicious police dogs, and water cannons. Four wells symbolise the four girls who died in the bombing: Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley.