Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, and Cynthia Wesley were then interred during joint funeral attended by over 8,000 mourners. That part of the story is pretty well-known. The innocent blood of these little girls may well serve as the redemptive force that will bring new light to this dark city. LEGAL INNOVATION | Tu Agente Digitalizador; LEGAL3 | Gestin Definitiva de Despachos; LEGAL GOV | Gestin Avanzada Sector Pblico She attended the 16th Street Baptist Church with her parents, Julius and Alice, as well as her six siblings. This is different from intentionally seeking out the bodies of black people because you think they're less human or that their consent matters less, Washington writes. Steve Chiotakis (Chee-uh-TAKE-iss) reports from member station W-B-H-M. The whole church shook. The song "Birmingham Sunday," recorded by Joan Baez memorialized the victims of the bombing. Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, & Cynthia Wesley, Includes text, author, text categories, vocabulary terms, text dependent questions with answers, Includes text, author, vocabulary terms, text dependent questions. The murders touched off nationwide outrage. Her family says someone is responsible . license. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. She sang in her elementary school chorus, played the clarinet, and was a member of Jack and Jill of America, a civic-minded youth and family organization. This crime marked a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement. Original caption: NEWS FILE/TOM SELF A stained glass window bears testament to a bomb's damage; Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, September 15, 1963. The whole world had watched in awe as the children in Birmingham made history. The Wales Window for Alabama, Unveiling Ceremony, Thomson House, Cardiff, Wales, Thursday 4th February 1965. . The girls had been dressed in their Sunday best, ready to sing and act as ushers at the adult service, and only a few minutes before the explosion they had been together in the basement women's room, talking about the new school year. To honor the girls sacrifice and the powerful impact it had on the civil rights movement, their names were inscribed on the circular black granite table of theCivil Rights Memorialacross the street from the SPLCs headquarters in Montgomery. Addie Mae's sister) The Collins family appears in the 1997 Spike Lee film 4 Little Girls, a documentary on the bombing and its political significance. Another two suspects were charged and convicted in 2001 and 2002, a fourth suspect died before charges were brought. Her sister, Sarah, then 12, survived but lost one of her eyes and her dream of becoming a nurse. This photo shows President Kennedy's visit to Redstone Arsenal on Sept. 11, 1962. Four Black schoolgirls killed in Birmingham church bombing, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/four-black-schoolgirls-killed-in-birmingham. More than 20 other members of the congregation were injured in the blast. Gangs of black and white youths battled in the street, and businesses went up in flames. Ten months later, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which legally ended more than 70 years of Jim Crow segregation. At least one man who says he marched with the accused gunman before the shooting was immersed in white supremacist propaganda,an SPLC investigationhas found. Photo by Horace Cort/AP Images. One of them was Addie Mae Collins sister Sarah, who was blinded in one eye. The notion that they were wearing fancy dresses highlights the idea that the service was important and something they dressed up for. Despite the outrage and an FBI investigation, however, no one was charged with the crime. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. This account has been disabled. Four girls, Addie Mae Collins (age 14), Denise McNair (age 11), Carole Robertson (age 14), and Cynthia Wesley (age 14), were killed in the bomb blast. Three men were convicted of murdering Addie Mae Collins long after her death, in trials held between 1977 and 2002. Weve updated the security on the site. The missing body of Addie Mae Collins, one of the four Birmingham girls. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. Death Year: 1963, Death date: September 15, 1963, Death State: Alabama, Death City: Birmingham, Death Country: United States, Article Title: Addie Mae Collins Biography, Author: Biography.com Editors, Website Name: The Biography.com website, Url: https://www.biography.com/crime/addie-mae-collins, Publisher: A&E; Television Networks, Last Updated: September 4, 2019, Original Published Date: April 3, 2014. They've filed suit against the funeral home, and have filed a claim against the city of Birmingham. In the basement ladies lounge of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, four girls were chatting nervously and straightening their fancy white dresses. cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. In 1992, nearly 30 years after the bombing, the Collins family decided to move Addie Mae's remains to Elmwood Cemetery. Carole and Cynthia both 14 were going to be ushers. This is how we can honor Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, Cynthia Wesley and the countless others who have lost their lives to the hands of hate. Verify and try again. "We've been expecting this all along.". Before this day was over, the whole world would mourn. Wallace and Birmingham, meanwhile, faced growing criticism nationwide. We have set your language to Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? Unexplainably, no one was charged with the crime. Failed to report flower. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Denise McNair performed in plays, dance routines and poetry readings to raise money for muscular dystrophy research. 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. "The answer should be, "We all did it." Herman Frank Cash, a fourth suspect, died in 1994 before ever being tried. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. Try again later. Three Ku Klux Klan members were later . Her family says someone is. A former Ku Klux Klansman, Thomas Blanton Jr., 62,. On Sunday, September 15, 1963, Ku Klux Klan members bombed the Church. After Alabama Attorney General Bill Baxley reopened the case, Chambliss was convicted in 1977 and sentenced to life in prison. This decision was later reversed. Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). You need a Find a Grave account to continue. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6433296/cynthia-dionne-wesley. The lives of all four girls intertwined and tragically ended at 10:21 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15, 1963,when a bomb planted by Klansmen outside the ladies lounge at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham exploded, instantly killing them and injuring 20 others. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? "Wow. In 1998, when her sisters visited her grave, and saw its neglected state, they immediately requested that Addie Mae's body be exhumed and moved to another better-maintained cemetery. But more importantly, it made the pain of racism felt among whites who would never experience it themselves. This essay was first published in Free At Last: A History of the Civil Rights Movement and Those Who Died in the Struggle in 1989. (Tom Self/ Birmingham News), Original caption: Destruction is seen in the immediate aftermath of the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., Sunday, Sept. 15, 1963. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. The benefits of learning to play READ THE REST, We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. Sarah Collins, Addie Mae's sister, lost her right eye. At 10:22 a.m., a bomb exploded under the steps of the church. The tragedy sparked a surge of support for federal civil rights legislation, and it led to an intensive voting rights campaign in Selma, Alabama. SPLC is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization (EIN: 63-0598743), Local Policing and Immigration Enforcement, Request for Legal Assistance Economic Justice, plays, dance routines and poetry readings, good student who loved reading and dancing. The man at right is unidentified. You by your suffering have paid another installment in this great thing called freedom," said the Rev. The bomb collapsed a basement wall, killing Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson - all 14 - and Denise McNair, 11, in a lounge they used for changing into their choir robes. A stretcher waits to carry away any more victims found. In Birmingham, attorney Charles Morgan, Jr. spoke before the Birmingham Young Men's Business Club, identifying the people responsible for the attack. Trivia (1) In 1998, it was revealed to the horror of the Collins family that her grave was empty. Make sure that the file is a photo. Denise McNair, 11, staged plays, dance routines and poetry readings in her familys carport to raise money for muscular dystrophy research. Two other perpetratorsThomas Blanton Jr. and Bobby Frank Cherrywere convicted in 2001 and 2002, respectively. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Learn more about managing a memorial . The Rev. Alvin and Alpha Robertson, parents of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing victim Carole Robertson at the funeral for their daughter; Sept. 17, 1963. He asked his audience: Who did it? and gave his own anguished answer: We all did it every person in this community who has in any way contributed to the popularity of hatred is at least as guilty as the demented fool who threw that bomb.. All Rights Reserved. Try again later. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. Try again later. The bombing that killed Collins and her friends was a racially motivated hate crime. There is a problem with your email/password. Failed to remove flower. The blood of four little children is on your hands, he wrote in a telegraph to Wallace. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters. Addie Mae, 14, and Denise, 11, were preparing to sing in the church choir. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. The Coelacanth species of fish has been READ THE REST, We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. In 1997 a documentary film on the bombing called "4 Little Girls" was released. Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church, a major event in the history of civil rights in the United States. But there had been nothing so evil as the dynamiting of children during Sunday School.. Failed to delete memorial. "It was just a matter of time," said Pastor John H. Cross of the bombing. Although a subsequent FBI investigation identified three other menBobby Frank Cherry, Herman Cash and Thomas E. Blanton, Jr.as having helped Chambliss commit the crime, it was later revealed that FBI chairman J. Edgar Hoover blocked their prosecution and shut down the investigation without filing charges in 1968. sales You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. The Sixteenth Street bombing, perhaps more than any other event of the period, brought national attention to the evil of racism. He then attended read more, On September 15, 1858, the new Overland Mail Company sends out its first two stages, inaugurating government mail service between the eastern and western regions of the nation. In October 1963, Chambliss was cleared of the murder charge and received a six-month jail sentence and a $100 fine for the dynamite. based on information from your browser. Martin Luther King, Jr., eulogized her, and her tombstone bears the rousing inscription "She Died So Freedom Might Live.". If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Chambliss was sent to prison, where he died. Collins' murder remained officially unsolved until the 1970s. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6433252/addie-mae-collins. The location had been criticized as too risky, but U.N. Supreme Commander Douglas MacArthur insisted on carrying out the landing. Addie Mae Collins was 14 when she became one of the civil rights movement's most lamented victims. GREAT NEWS! Sarah Collins Rudolph was in the bathroom with her sister Addie Mae Collins during Sunday School when a bomb exploded in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Photo by AP Images. Photo by AP Images. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. The SPLCidentifiedwhite nationalists and neo-Nazis at Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Knoxville, Tennessee; Washington, D.C.; and Dallas just days after police killed George Floyd in Minneapolis. The murders touched off nationwide outrage. To counter this hate, we must all work vigilantly together against white supremacy to bring the hope, equity and inclusion that will lead to true justice for all. Born April 18, 1949 Died September 15, 1963 (14) Add to list Credits IMDbPro Archive Footage Previous 3 The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song Idaho Murders: What Led Police to Bryan Kohberger, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads, Name: Addie Mae Collins, Birth Year: 1949, Birth date: April 18, 1949, Birth State: Alabama, Birth City: Birmingham, Birth Country: United States. Despite an FBI investigation, however, no one was immediately charged with the crime. The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. Civil rights leader the Rev. Resend Activation Email. In May 1963, city and civil rights leaders negotiated the integration of public spaces, sparking widespread violence. Who will be eaten first? When the crew dug up the grave there was nothing in it. Then, 14 years later, Alabama Attorney General William Baxley reopened the case. Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, and Cynthia Wesley were interred during joint funeral attended by over 8,000 mourners. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Best Known For: Addie Mae Collins was a 14-year-old murder victim whose 1963 death focused public attention on racial violence in the South.
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