Nov. 5, 1989

The Southern Poverty Law Center Civil Rights Memorial and Memorial Center, designed by artist Maya Lin, was dedicated in Montgomery. The memorial honors 40 people who were killed between the 1950s and the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. It is similar to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., which also was designed by Lin. Constructed of black granite, it is inscribed with the names and dates of 40 individuals who were killed during the civil rights movement. A continuous stream of water washes over its table, and the large wall behind it also features recirculating water.  It is located near the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church, where King once served as pastor.

Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.

The Southern Poverty Law Center Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of the Southern Poverty Law Center)

Montgomery Civil Rights Memorial, 1997. (Eric Hunt, Wikipedia)

The Wall of Tolerance is one of the exhibit areas in the Civil Rights Memorial Center, which is operated by the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Montgomery County. Visitors may type their name into a display and sign a pledge to work for justice and tolerance and against hate. The name is then added to others that scroll continuously on the large screen. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of the Southern Poverty Law Center)

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