Synthesis of 16th Street Church Bombing Birmingham, AL got its notorious name of “Bombingham” due to the many racist bombings throughout the 1940’s-1960’s during the Civil Rights Movement (Temple & Hansen, 2000). The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church of Birmingham, AL was used as a site to host civil rights meetings (McMillan). Different marches, including the famous March on Washington, were headed at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church (Hampton & Fayer, 1990). The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church functioned as the head office for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). The church became well known a the supporter of the African Americans and civil rights leaders and this created much hostility towards the church from the Ku Klux Klan and white community (Brooks, 2008). The racial tension that had been building up was finally brought to a head on September 15, 1963 at approximately 10:22, a bomb exploded in the basement of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. The bomb injured twenty-three innocent people and killed four innocent girls, Denise McNair (11), Addie Mae Collins (14), Carole Roberston (14), and Cynthia Wesley (14) (McMillan). Witnesses recall seeing a notorious Klan member, Robert Chambliss, standing on the corner of a street just watching the chaos unfold. As David Vann recalls, “Chambliss looked like a firebug watching his fire”, (Hampton & Fayer, 1990). No one was convicted of the bombing and murders until years later. There was much controversy and secrecy behind this case. Finally on November 18, 1977, Chambliss was tried and convicted of murder. Chambliss was sentenced to life in prison (Brooks, 2008).
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("Four little girls:," Four little girls: The sixteenth street baptist church bombing)
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