1. Unit 10: Civil Rights Movement

2. Freedom Riders Freedom Rides May 4, 1961
13 activists recruited by CORE (Congress of Racial Equality), both black & white
Departed from Washington, D.C.; attempted to integrate facilities at bus terminals along the way into the Deep South
African-American Riders tried to use “whites-only” restrooms and lunch counters, and vice versa.

3. Freedom Riders Freedom Rides
Encountered tremendous violence from white protestors along the route, but also drew international attention to their cause.
Over the next few months, several hundred Freedom Riders engaged in similar actions.
In September 1961, the Interstate Commerce Commission issued regulations prohibiting segregation in bus and train stations nationwide

4. Freedom Riders Eyes On The Prize “I Ain’t Scared of Your Jails”
27:35- 53:45

5. King organizes in Birmingham
MLK decided to focus on Birmingham, one of the most segregated cities
Had closed its parks, pools and golf courses rather than integrate them

6. Birmingham In 1963, people began to march demanding desegregation
Arrested for marching without a permit
On May 2 & 3, 1000 Birmingham youths marched for equal rights
“The Children’s Crusade”

7. Birmingham Police chief “Bull” Connor
Arrested so many marchers that the jails could not hold any more
Unleashed police dogs & sprayed the children with fire hoses with 700 lbs. of pressure

8. The Images

13. Responses
How do you think people around the country would have responded to seeing these images?

14. Responses to MLK
8 white Alabama clergymen wrote public letter about the Marches in Birmingham - "A Call for Unity"
Agreed that social injustices existed but argued that the battle against racial segregation should be fought solely in the courts, not in the streets
Called King an “outsider” who was causing trouble on the streets of Birmingham

15. Letter from Birmingham Jail
MLK was arrested for marching in Birmingham
While in jail, he wrote a letter to the ministers of Birmingham who called him an “outsider”
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

16. Effects of Marches in Birmingham
Across the U.S., people were horrified by the images of the violence in Birmingham
Kennedy administration intervened and pushed businesses to negotiate
Ultimately, after tense negotiations, the signs mandating segregation came down
The Civil Rights Movement had gained an important victory

17. 16th St. Baptist Church
Meeting place for Southern Christian Leadership Conference
A man placed a box under the steps of the church
At 10:22 AM a bomb exploded, killing four children who were attending Sunday School

18. Violence in Birmingham
Birmingham proved resistant to change – and violent
Bombings
First an integrated motel was bombed
Then MLK’s brother’s home was destroyed by a bombing
Shootings
NAACP field rep. Medgar Evers was shot in the back
16-year-old black Birmingham youth was shot from behind by a police shotgun
13-year-old boy was shot while riding his bicycle