The Birmingham campaign was a nonviolent direct action protest that brought worldwide attention to the racial segregation that persisted in the South. It burnished King’s reputation, forced the ousting of the racist judge Connor, and led to desegregation in Birmingham. It also laid the groundwork for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Desegregation of public libraries
The Desegregation of Public Libraries (DPL) campaign in Birmingham, Alabama was a significant milestone in the struggle for civil rights. In 1954, the Birmingham Public Library was segregated by color. The campaign was initiated by a group of students who wanted to change the city’s racial segregation laws. This group organized sit-in demonstrations and walked to city hall. They were arrested for their protest.
In 1963, a group of Miles College students staged a “read-in” at the Birmingham Public Library to promote library desegregation. A year later, the library in Anniston was integrated. The librarian at the Selma Public Library was a democrat, and the library eventually became integrated. But until 1965, the Alabama Library Association still excluded blacks from membership. Ultimately, Tuskegee librarians convinced the organization to change its policy and Desegregation of Public Libraries in Birmingham began in 1964.
Desegregation of public libraries was a pivotal moment in the Birmingham Civil Rights Movement, but the story was different in Jackson, Mississippi. In Jackson, racial segregation at public libraries fueled racial violence against blacks, and the desegregation was ultimately resolved after federal intervention and a class-action lawsuit brought by the National Association for Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In Birmingham, the desegregation of public libraries was relatively peaceful.
Desegregation of 16th Street Baptist Church
The desegregation of 16th Street Baptist Church played a major role in the Civil Rights movement in Birmingham, Alabama. It was the city’s first predominantly Black church and was situated near city hall, in the center of Birmingham’s commercial district. It became the central meeting place for the African American community in the city. Civil rights meetings were regularly held there.
The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing took place in 1963 and was a tragic act of domestic terrorism carried out by members of the Ku Klux Klan. The church was a predominantly Black congregation, and the bombing killed four Black girls. The blast also injured fourteen other members of the congregation. The bombing heightened the civil rights movement’s public profile and acted as a tipping point for the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964.
During the Birmingham civil rights movement, Fred Shuttlesworth, a prominent SCLC organizer, invited Martin Luther King, Jr. to help desegregate Birmingham. King, who had become a local icon, joined the SCLC and worked with other activists to help desegregate Birmingham.