May 2, 2018

In April 1963, the fight for civil rights in Birmingham was beginning to hit a wall. Efforts organized by the Revs. Fred Shuttlesworth and Martin Luther King Jr. to desegregate public areas were not gaining traction. One area of concern was the lack of media attention to the protests.

From this came discussions by the organizers to find new faces for the movement. The plan called for schoolchildren of various ages to skip school and walk in large groups from participating churches to City Hall. On this day, the children were taken peacefully into custody, but ended up filling the detention facilities.

The next day, the eyes of the world were on Birmingham, as the second day of the crusade was met with fire hoses and police dogs – and the movement changed forever.

Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.

Birmingham police arrest Parker High School student Mattie Howard in front of the Carver Theatre on the sixth day of the Children’s Crusade in May 1963. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, photograph by Norman Dean, photo courtesy of The Birmingham News)

The May 2, 1963, launch of the Children’s Crusade during the Birmingham Campaign of the civil rights movement saw City Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor authorize the arrest of young protesters, as well as crowd control with fire hoses and police dogs. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of The Birmingham News)

In spring 1963, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led demonstrations in Birmingham. Police Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor had King and other leaders arrested, prompting King to pen his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of The Birmingham News)

For more on Alabama’s Bicentennial, visit Alabama 200.