American Experience (1988) s19e02 Episode Script

1
MADE POSSIBLE BY:
AND:
I DON'T THINK ANY WHITE PERSON
CAN REALLY UNDERSTAND
WHAT IT IS TO BE
A NEGRO IN AMERICA.
THERE WILL BE NEITHER RES
NOR TRANQUILITY IN AMERICA
AS HE TRIED TO ENROLL HIS
CHILDREN IN AN ALL-WHITE SCHOOL.
Man:
WE DIDN'T WANT TO BE
FORCED INTO DOING SOMETHING.
THIS IS, IN ONE SENSE,
IS WHAT IT WAS.
WE WERE INTIMIDATED,
WE WERE THREATENED.
SEGREGATIONISTS LEARNED TO BEA
THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMEN
AT ITS OWN GAME.
THE MOVEMENT LEADERS
HAD TO FIND
NEW WAYS TO FIGHT BACK,
BUT IT WAS STILL NO EASY WALK.
I KNOW THE ONE THING
WE DID RIGHT ♪
WAS THE DAY WE
STARTED TO FIGHT ♪
KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PRIZE,
HOLD ON ♪
KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PRIZE ♪
HOLD ON. ♪
( band playing military march)
( band playing "Dixie")
Man:
I DRAW THE LINE IN THE DUS
AND TOSS THE GAUNTLE
BEFORE THE FEET OF TYRANNY
AND I SAY SEGREGATION NOW,
SEGREGATION TOMORROW
AND SEGREGATION FOREVER.
Narrator:
ON JANUARY 14, 1963,
THESE WORDS MADE ALABAMA
GOVERNOR GEORGE WALLACE
THE SYMBOL OF
SOUTHERN RESISTANCE.
THAT YEAR, MOVEMENT LEADERS
TARGETED
THE LARGEST CITY IN HIS STATE
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA
A CITY THAT HAD ATTRACTED
NATIONAL ATTENTION
FOR ITS STRICT SEGREGATION
AND RACIAL HATRED;
A CITY THAT SOME CALLED
"BOMBINGHAM"
BECAUSE OF THE MANY BOMB
ATTACKS AGAINST BLACKS.
Man:
JESUS HOLD MY HAND ♪
Narrator:
FOR YEARS, REVEREND FRED
SHUTTLESWORTH AND OTHERS
HAD FOUGHT THE
SEGREGATED SYSTEM.
IN 1956, SHUTTLESWORTH
DEMANDED THE DESEGREGATION
OF CITY BUSES.
MANY OF HIS FRIENDS TRIED
TO TALK HIM OUT OF IT.
THEY SAID, "WE OUGHT TO STOP
AND THINK THIS THING OUT."
I SAID, "THERE'S NOTHING
TO THINK OUT.
WE SAY WE'RE GOING TO RIDE
AND WE RIDE."
WE DO WHAT WE SAY FOR A CHANGE.
SO WE RODE THE BUSES
AND OVER 250 PEOPLE GO
ARRESTED, I GUESS,
AND JOINED DESEGREGATED RIDING.
Narrator:
BECAUSE OF HIS EFFORTS,
HIS HOUSE AND CHURCH
WERE BOMBED AS HE SLEPT.
Shuttlesworth:
IT BLEW THE FLOOR
OUT FROM UNDER MY BED,
SPACE OF, I GUESS, 15 FEET.
THE SPRINGS THAT I WAS LYING
ON WE NEVER FOUND THEM.
I WALKED OUT FROM THIS.
INSTEAD OF RUNNING
AWAY FROM THE BLAST,
RUNNING AWAY FROM THE KLANSMEN,
I SAID TO THE KLANSMAN POLICE
THAT CAME,
HE SAID, "REVEREND,
IF I WERE YOU,
I'D GET OUT OF TOWN FAS
AS I COULD."
I SAID, "OFFICER, YOU'RE NOT ME.
"YOU GO BACK AND TELL
YOUR KLAN BRETHREN
"THAT IF GOD COULD KEEP
ME THROUGH THIS,
THEN I'M HERE FOR THE DURATION."
I THINK THAT'S WHAT GAVE
PEOPLE THE FEELING
THAT I WOULDN'T RUN,
I DIDN'T RUN
AND THAT GOD HAD TO BE THERE.
Narrator:
IN SEPTEMBER OF 1957,
SHUTTLESWORTH WAS ATTACKED AGAIN
THIS KIND OF VIOLENCE WAS NO
STOPPED BY CITY OFFICIALS.
THE MOST FAMOUS WAS
COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC SAFETY
THEOPHILUS EUGENE CONNOR,
"BULL" CONNOR,
WHOSE OPINIONS EARNED HIM
ELECTION TO SIX TERMS.
THE SO-CALLED NEGRO MOVEMEN
IS PART OF THE ATTEMPTED
TAKEOVER OF OUR COUNTRY
BY THE LAZY, THE INDOLENT,
THE BEATNIKS, THE IGNORAN
AND BY SOME MISGUIDED
RELIGIONISTS AND BLEEDING HEARTS
AND ALL ARE BEING LED BY THE
POLITICIANS WHO STAY IN OFFICE
BY APPEALING, REMEMBER, NOT TO
REASON, BUT TO THE MOST VOTES.
Narrator:
PUBLIC SENTIMENT TURNED
AGAINST CONNOR IN 1961
WHEN THE FREEDOM RIDERS
WERE ATTACKED IN BIRMINGHAM
ON MOTHER'S DAY.
CONNOR WAS LINKED
TO THE KLAN VIOLENCE
AND THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER
DEMANDED TO KNOW
WHERE HIS POLICE HAD BEEN.
THE INCIDENT ATTRACTED
NATIONAL ATTENTION,
AND THE CITY WAS EMBARRASSED
INTO TAKING ACTION.
SOMETHING HAD TO BE CHANGED.
THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY
WHEN THEY HAD SUPPORTED
BULL CONNOR FOR ELECTION
THEY REALLY HADN'T INTENDED
FOR HIM TO DO THINGS
LIKE ALLOWING THINGS LIKE THE
BUS STATION TO HAVE OCCURRED.
Narrator:
IT WAS TOO LATE
FOR AN EASY CHANGE.
BIRMINGHAM WAS ON
A COLLISION COURSE
WITH THE NATIONAL CIVIL
RIGHTS MOVEMENT,
AND MOVEMENT LEADERS WERE READY.
THEY HAD JUS
LEARNED SOME HARD LESSONS
IN A SMALL CITY IN
SOUTHWEST GEORGIA ALBANY.
Woman:
I'VE BEEN IN
THE STORM SO LONG ♪
I'VE BEEN IN THE STORM ♪
Narrator:
HERE, MARTIN LUTHER KING
SUFFERED WHAT SOME HAVE CALLED
ONE OF HIS GREATEST DEFEATS.
THE ALBANY CAMPAIGN
STARTED IN 1961.
YOUNG ORGANIZERS
FROM THE STUDENT NONVIOLEN
COORDINATING COMMITTEE,
OR "S.N.C.C.,"
CAME HERE TO HELP THE
BLACK COMMUNITY ORGANIZE
AGAINST SEGREGATION.
IN NOVEMBER, A FEDERAL AGENCY
ORDERED THE DESEGREGATION
OF ALL FACILITIES USED
FOR INTERSTATE TRAVEL.
S.N.C.C. REPRESENTATIVE
CHARLES SHERROD
SENT STUDENTS INTO THE
TRAILWAYS BUS STATION
TO SEE IF LOCAL AUTHORITIES
WOULD ARREST THEM.
Man:
SOME OF US REALLY DIDN'T THINK
THAT WE'D GET ARRESTED,
BECAUSE THIS WAS
A FEDERAL MANDATE.
THEY MESSING WITH US NOW,
THEY WERE GOING TO GET THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ON THEM.
NOBODY'S GOING TO MESS
WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,
WE THOUGHT.
Narrator:
BUT THE STUDENTS WERE ARRESTED.
SHERROD AND S.N.C.C. CONTINUED
TO WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY,
IN THE PEOPLE OF ALBANY.
WELL, I'M ON MY WAY ♪
AND I WON'T TURN BACK ♪
Woman:
IF YOU HAVE A GOLD MINE,
THEN THERE'S A POIN
IN THE GOLD MINE
WHERE YOU HAVE THE RICHEST PART.
AND THAT'S CALLED
THE MOTHER LODE.
THAT'S WHAT ALBANY IS
TO BLACK PEOPLE
IN TERMS OF
JUST THE CONCENTRATED ESSENCE
OF THE SPIRIT OF THE PEOPLE.
AND IF YOU CAN
IMAGINE BLACK PEOPLE
AT OUR MOST POWERFUL POIN
IN TERMS OF COMMUNITY
AND "PEOPLEHOOD,"
THEN THAT'S ALBANY, GEORGIA.
Narrator:
THE BLACK COMMUNITY ATTACKED
SEGREGATION WHEREVER IT EXISTED.
DEMONSTRATIONS TOOK PLACE
THROUGHOUT THE CITY
AT LIBRARIES, SCHOOLS,
MOVIE THEATERS AND CITY HALL.
AND WE JUST PUSH
PRESSURE, PRESSURE, PRESSURE.
WHO CONTROLS THE OTHER.
SO WE STOMP AROUND AND STOMP
AND SEE WHOSE FEET WE GET.
AND THEN SOMEBODY'S GOING
TO HOLLER, "YOU GOT ME!"
SO THEN WHEN HE HOLLERS,
THAT'S THE DIRECTION WE GO IN.
AND THAT WAS
THE GENERAL STRATEGY.
WE DIDN'T KNOW
WHAT WE WERE DOING.
YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE NEGRO
IN ALBANY'S GOING TO DO?
HE'S GOING TO DO
WHATEVER IS NECESSARY
TO ENSURE HIS FREEDOM.
Narrator:
DR. WILLIAM G. ANDERSON
WAS PRESIDENT OF
THE ALBANY MOVEMENT,
AN UMBRELLA ORGANIZATION FORMED
TO COORDINATE
ALL THE CIVIL RIGHTS
GROUPS IN THE COMMUNITY.
BY MID-DECEMBER,
DR. ANDERSON BECAME CONCERNED
BECAUSE MORE THAN 500
DEMONSTRATORS HAD BEEN JAILED.
THESE WERE COMMON,
ORDINARY, EVERYDAY PEOPLE
HOUSEWIVES, COOKS, MAIDS,
LABORERS,
CHILDREN OUT OF SCHOOL.
WE HAD MADE NO PROVISIONS
FOR THESE PEOPLE GOING TO JAIL
BECAUSE WE DID NOT ANTICIPATE
THE MASS ARRESTS.
SO WE CONCLUDED THAT NIGHT THA
WE WERE INTO SOMETHING
THAT REALLY,
WE NEEDED SOME EXPERT HELP IN.
Narrator:
DR. ANDERSON INVITED REVEREND
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
TO HELP IN ALBANY.
KING BROUGHT WITH
HIM THE S.C.L.C.,
THE SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN
LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE,
A CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION
BASED IN BLACK CHURCHES
AND LED BY MINISTERS.
THEY HAD ASKED MARTIN
TO COME DOWN
JUST TO MAKE A SPEECH.
AND HE WENT ONLY
TO MAKE A SPEECH.
SO DR. KING, RIGHT,
HE CAME THERE
WITH NOT EVEN AN OVERNIGH
BAG OR A TOOTHBRUSH.
RESPONDED TO MY CALL.
AND I DO NOT ANTICIPATE
THAT HE EXPECTED TO GE
AS INTIMATELY INVOLVED
WITH THE ALBANY
MOVEMENT AS HE DID.
DR. ANDERSON GOT CARRIED AWAY
AND, IN PUBLIC, ASKED MARTIN
TO DEMONSTRATE,
TO LEAD THE MARCH WITH HIM,
AND HE AGREED.
AND THEN HE GOT PUT IN JAIL.
AND WITH NO PLAN, NO THOUGH
OF WHAT WE WERE GOING TO DO.
Narrator:
KING ACCEPTED RELEASE FROM JAIL.
AS HE DIVIDED HIS TIME BETWEEN
ALBANY AND OTHER COMMITMENTS,
S.N.C.C. GREW UNHAPPY
WITH S.C.L.C.'s ROLE.
WHEN DR. KING WOULD COME IN,
WE'D GET 2,000 OR 3,000
PEOPLE WITHOUT MUCH EFFORT.
SO THAT WAS IN OUR FAVOR.
BUT WHEN HE LEFT,
IT WAS MORE DIFFICULT FOR
US TO GET PEOPLE TO COME.
SO THAT THIS PHENOMENON
OF DOC FLYING
INTO PLACES WHERE WE WORKED
AND THEN FLYING OUT TO ANOTHER
PLACE WHICH WAS NEEDED
MADE IT DIFFICUL
FOR US TO ORGANIZE.
WELL, IN ALBANY WE WERE
LIKE FIRE FIGHTERS.
THE FIRE WAS ALREADY BURNING
AND I'LL TRY TO SAY THIS
AS CHARITABLY AS I CAN
S.N.C.C. WAS IN OVER ITS HEAD.
AND THEY WANTED
THE INTERNATIONAL AND
NATIONAL ATTENTION
THAT MARTIN LUTHER KING'S
PRESENCE WOULD GENERATE,
BUT THEY DID NOT WANT THE
INPUT OF HIS ORGANIZATION.
I DON'T HAVE BUT ONE SPEECH.
I DON'T HAVE BUT ONE MESSAGE
AS I JOURNEY AROUND
THIS COUNTRY,
AND IT IS A MESSAGE WHICH
SAYS THAT I AM CONVINCED
THAT THE MOST POTENT WEAPON
AVAILABLE TO OPPRESSED PEOPLE
AS THEY STRUGGLE FOR
FREEDOM AND JUSTICE
IS THE WEAPON OF NONVIOLENCE.
Narrator:
AS THE MOVEMENT TOOK
THE NONVIOLENT STRUGGLE
INTO THE STREETS OF ALBANY,
ORGANIZERS EXPECTED
THE SAME REACTION
ENCOUNTERED IN MOS
SOUTHERN COMMUNITIES
POLICE BRUTALITY.
ALL RIGHT, LET'S
STOP IT RIGHT HERE.
Narrator:
BUT THEY HAD NEVER ME
A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER
LIKE THIS ONE
ALBANY'S CHIEF OF POLICE,
LAURIE PRITCHETT.
YOU'RE WELCOME TO PICKET.
THIS GROUPING UP HERE
IS GOING TO STOP.
YOU'LL BE ALLOWED TWO
HERE IN THIS BLOCK
AND THE OTHERS WILL MOVE OUT.
WE'LL ALLOW TWO PICKETERS
IN THIS BLOCK
IN FRONT OF THE CITY HALL
WHERE YOU'RE PICKETING.
YOU CAN LEAVE TWO
HERE OR YOU CAN GO.
OTHERS THAT DON'
GO AND CONTINUE,
YOU'LL BE ARRESTED.
NOW, LET'S HAVE
TWO IN THIS AREA
RIGHT HERE WHERE
YOU'RE PICKETING.
I DID RESEARCH.
I FOUND HIS METHOD
WAS NONVIOLENCE;
THAT HIS METHOD WAS
TO FILL THE JAIL
SAME AS GANDHI IN INDIA.
AND ONCE HE FILLED THE JAILS,
WE'D HAVE NO CAPACITY TO ARREST,
AND THEN WE'D HAVE TO GIVE
IN TO HIS DEMANDS.
Women:
AIN'T GONNA LET NOBODY ♪
TURN ME 'ROUND, TURN ME
'ROUND, TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
AIN'T GONNA LET NOBODY
TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
KEEP ON WALKIN',
KEEP ON TALKIN' ♪
MARCHIN' ON TO FREEDOM LAND ♪
AIN'T GONNA LE
CHIEF PRITCHETT ♪
TURN ME 'ROUND, TURN ME
'ROUND, TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
AIN'T GONNA LE
CHIEF PRITCHETT ♪
TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
Narrator:
PRITCHETT MADE SURE HIS
JAILS WOULDN'T FILL UP.
HE HAD PLANNED CAREFULLY.
I HAD SAT DOWN AND TOOK
A MAP AND WENT 15 MILES
HOW MANY JAILS WAS
IN A 15-MILE RADIUS
HOW MANY WAS IN
A 30-MILE RADIUS,
ON UP TO MAYBE A
50- OR 60-MILE RADIUS.
AND I'D CONTACTED
THOSE AUTHORITIES.
THEY'D ASSURED US THAT WE
COULD USE THEIR FACILITIES.
AND WE HAD, WHEN THE
MASS ARRESTS STARTED,
WE'D HAVE MARCHES
AND THERE'D BE 200, 300
AT ONE TIME THERE, I THINK
WE HAD ALMOST 2,000
BUT NONE IN OUR JAIL.
YOU'D HAVE TO UNDERSTAND
THAT GOING TO JAIL WAS PROBABLY
ONE OF THE MOST FEARED THINGS
IN RURAL GEORGIA.
THERE WERE MANY BLACKS
WHO WERE ARRESTED IN
SMALL TOWNS IN GEORGIA
NEVER TO BE HEARD FROM AGAIN.
WE HAVE EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE
MANY OF THESE WERE LYNCHED.
SO GOING TO JAIL
WAS NO SMALL THING.
King:
DR. STEELE, WHAT ARE
THE CONDITIONS THERE?
IS IT CROWDED?
Steele:
YES, VERY
CROWDED.
HOW MANY IS THAT CELL
SUPPOSED TO HOLD?
IT DON'T HAVE
VERY MANY BUNKS.
IS THAT SO?
TEN.
IT'S BUIL
TO HOLD TEN.
AND THEY HAVE 69
IN THERE.
YES, SIR.
Narrator:
BECAUSE CHIEF PRITCHET
SENT PRISONERS INTO THESE JAILS,
SOME QUESTIONED HOW
NONVIOLENT HE REALLY WAS.
I THINK THE AP
DESCRIPTION WAS SLICK.
HE DID HAVE ENOUGH INTELLIGENCE
TO READ DR. KING'S BOOK
AND HE CULLED FROM THA
A WAY TO AVOID CONFRONTATION
AND INDUCING THE GREAT FERMEN
IN THE NATIONAL COMMUNITY
BY BEING NONBRUTAL RATHER
THAN BEING NONVIOLENT.
IT'S ALMOST IT'S BIZARRE TO
SAY THAT A SEGREGATIONIST SYSTEM
OR A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL
OF A SEGREGATIONIST SYSTEM
COULD BE NONVIOLENT,
BECAUSE FIRST OF ALL,
NONVIOLENCE WORKS
IN A MORAL CLIMATE
AND SEGREGATION IS
NOT A MORAL CLIMATE.
I REMEMBER A STATEMEN
THAT CHIEF PRITCHETT MADE TO ME
ONE TIME WHEN HE SAID,
"YOU KNOW, SHERROD, IT'S JUS
A MATTER OF MIND OVER MATTER.
I DON'T MIND,
AND YOU DON'T MATTER."
AIN'T GONNA LET JUDGE ELLIOT ♪
TURN ME 'ROUND, TURN ME
'ROUND, TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
TURN ME 'ROUND ♪
KEEP ON WALKIN',
KEEP ON TALKIN' ♪
WALKIN' ON
TO FREEDOM LAND. ♪
Narrator:
AGAINST THE SOLID
RESISTANCE OF CITY OFFICIALS,
THE ALBANY MOVEMEN
FOUND STRENGTH
IN MASS MEETINGS AND SONG.
KEEP ON WALKIN',
KEEP ON TALKIN' ♪
WALKIN' ON
TO FREEDOM LAND. ♪
FREEDOM! FREEDOM! ♪
FREEDOM! FREEDOM! ♪
FREEDOM! FREEDOM! ♪
FREEDOM ♪
MOST OF THE MASS MEETING
WAS SINGING IN ALBANY.
THERE WAS MORE SINGING
THAN THERE WAS TALKING.
AND, SO MOST OF THE WORK
THAT WAS DONE
IN TERMS OF TAKING CARE
OF MOVEMENT BUSINESS
HAD TO DO WITH NURTURING
THE PEOPLE WHO HAD COME.
AND THERE WOULD BE TWO OR THREE
PEOPLE WHO WOULD TALK,
BUT BASICALLY SONG WAS
THE BED OF EVERYTHING.
WE SHALL GO TO JAIL ♪
WE SHALL GO TO JAIL ♪
WE SHALL GO TO JAIL SOMEDAY. ♪
Narrator:
JULY 1962.
DR. KING AND
REVEREND RALPH ABERNATHY
BEGAN SERVING A 45-DAY SENTENCE.
THEY WERE DETERMINED
TO STAY IN JAIL
TO PROTEST ALBANY'S SEGREGATION.
BUT THREE DAYS LATER,
THEY WERE RELEASED.
A STUNNED DR. KING
EXPLAINED THAT SOMEONE
HAD MYSTERIOUSLY
PAID THEIR FINE.
AT WHICH TIME
THE CHIEF SAID TO US
THAT WE HAD BEEN RELEASED;
IN OTHER WORDS, THA
OUR FINE HAD BEEN PAID.
I SAID, "WELL, CHIEF, WE
WE WANT TO SERVE THIS TIME."
HIS ONLY RESPONSE THEN WAS,
"GOD KNOWS, REVEREND, I
DON'T WANT YOU IN MY JAIL."
I KNEW THAT IF HE STAYED
IN JAIL,
WE'D CONTINUE TO HAVE PROBLEMS.
SO I TALKED TO SOME PEOPLE.
I SAID, "WE'VE GO
TO GET HIM OUT.
AND ONCE WE DO, I THINK
HE'LL LEAVE HERE."
AND ARRANGEMENTS WERE MADE.
FRANKLY, I DON'T KNOW WHO THE
MAN WAS THAT PAID THE BOND.
Interviewer:
BUT IT WAS DONE
AT YOUR REQUEST?
YES, IT WAS DONE AT MY REQUEST.
AND IT SORT OF SURPRISED
DR. KING.
THIS WAS THE ONLY TIME
I'VE EVER SEEN HIM
WHEN HE SEEMED WHEN HE DIDN'
KNOW WHICH WAY TO GO.
ALL RIGHT,
LET'S GO.
ON YOUR FEET.
SMILIN' FOR
THE BIRDIE.
Narrator:
IN LATE JULY,
THE ALBANY MOVEMEN
RECEIVED ANOTHER SETBACK.
AT THE CITY'S REQUEST,
FEDERAL JUDGE J. ROBERT ELLIO
ISSUED A RESTRAINING ORDER
TO END THE DEMONSTRATIONS,
WHICH HAD BEEN GOING ON
FOR ALMOST NINE MONTHS.
WHEN THE FEDERAL COUR
STARTED RULING AGAINST US,
THAT CREATED
A WHOLE DIFFERENT THING
IN TERMS OF WHAT STRATEGY
DO YOU USE NOW
BECAUSE UP TO THAT POINT,
MARTIN HAD BEEN WILLING TO BREAK
STATE LAWS THAT WERE UNJUST LAWS
AND OUR ALLY WAS
THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY.
AND SO IF WE WOULD TAKE OUR CASE
TO THE FEDERAL COUR
AND THE FEDERAL COUR
RULED AGAINST US,
WHAT RECOURSE DID WE HAVE?
Narrator:
FRUSTRATED BY THE
FEDERAL COURT ACTION,
DR. KING CALLED FOR
PRESIDENT KENNEDY TO INTERVENE,
BUT KENNEDY REMAINED DISTANT.
THE PRESIDENT HAD DECIDED
THAT HE WAS GOING TO DELEGATE
THE CIVIL RIGHTS MATTER
TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
AND THAT THAT WAS GOING TO BE A
PRIMARY AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY
FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.
AND THE PRESIDEN
WAS GOING TO SPEND HIS TIME
DEALING WITH OTHER PARTS OF
THE ADMINISTRATION POLICY,
ESPECIALLY FOREIGN AFFAIRS.
THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMEN
IS INVOLVED
IN SITTING DOWN AT GENEVA
WITH THE SOVIET UNION.
I CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY
THE GOVERNMENT OF ALBANY,
THE CITY COUNCIL OF ALBANY,
CANNOT DO THE SAME
FOR AMERICAN CITIZENS.
Narrator:
BY AUGUST, DR. KING REALIZED
THERE WOULD BE NO CLEAR-CU
VICTORIES IN ALBANY.
HE WAS DEPRESSED AS
HE LEFT THE CITY.
ALBANY REMAINED AS SEGREGATED
AS IT WAS THE PREVIOUS DECEMBER
WHEN HE FIRST ARRIVED.
I'M UNDER ORDERS
TO KEEP WALKING.
Narrator:
THE ALBANY MOVEMEN
CONTINUED WITHOUT HIM.
DON'T GET WEARY
ENDURE TO THE END.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE
SAY ABOUT IT?
"VICTORY IS NOT TO THE SWIF
"OR TO THE STRONG,
BUT TO HIM WHO HOLDS
OUT TO THE END."
WE'VE GOT TO HOLD OUT.
NOW, I CAN'T HELP HOW
DR. KING MIGHT HAVE FELT,
OR WYATT TEE MIGHT HAVE FELT,
OR BERNARD LEE
OR ANY OF THE REST OF THEM
IN S.C.L.C., N.A.A.C.P.,
C.O.R.E. OR ANY OF THE GROUPS
FELT.
BUT AS FAR AS WE WERE CONCERNED,
THINGS MOVED ON.
WE DIDN'T SKIP ONE BEAT.
Narrator:
THE MINISTERS OF
S.C.L.C. LEFT ALBANY,
BUT THEY TOOK WITH THEM
SOME IMPORTANT LESSONS
LESSONS THAT DEFINED MOVEMEN
STRATEGY FOR BIRMINGHAM.
THE STRENGTHS OF THE
ALBANY MOVEMENT WAS
IT WAS PERHAPS THE FIRST TIME
IN THIS PERIOD OF STRUGGLE
OF BLACK PEOPLE
THAT WE HAD MOBILIZED AN ENTIRE
COMMUNITY AGAINST SEGREGATION.
AND SECONDLY, WE LEARNED
THAT VALID AND CRUCIAL LESSON
THAT YOU MUS
PINPOINT YOUR TARGETS
SO THAT YOU DO NOT DILUTE
THE STRENGTH OF YOUR ATTACK.
COMING OUT OF ALBANY
WHICH WAS WHAT MANY PEOPLE
CONSIDERED NOT A VICTORY,
THEY NEEDED A VICTORY.
DR. KING'S IMAGE AT THIS TIME
WAS SLIGHTLY ON THE WANE
BECAUSE HE HAD NOT PROJECTED.
I SAY, "I ASSURE YOU,
IF YOU COME TO BIRMINGHAM,
"THIS MOVEMENT CAN
NOT ONLY GAIN PRESTIGE
BUT REALLY SHAKE THE COUNTRY."
Narrator:
S.C.L.C.'s LEADERS
ACCEPTED THIS CHALLENGE.
THEY ARRIVED IN BIRMINGHAM
IN THE MIDST OF A CAMPAIGN
TO REPLACE BULL CONNOR
AND THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS
WITH A NEW FORM OF GOVERNMENT.
I'M PLEASED TO HAVE
A CLOUD REMOVED
SO THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY
CAN GET DOWN
TO THE VERY SERIOUS BUSINESS
OF SECURING
THE VERY BEST MEN POSSIBLE
TO MAN THE NEW CITY GOVERNMENT.
REGARDLESS OF WHAT FORM
OF GOVERNMENT WE HAVE,
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE PUT IN
OFFICE MEN WHO HAVE RECORDS
WHICH SHOW THAT THEY ARE NO
OWNED OR CONTROLLED BY ANYBODY
OR BY ANY GROUP.
Narrator:
BULL CONNOR TRIED TO KEEP
POWER BY RUNNING FOR MAYOR,
BUT ON APRIL 2, 1963, HE
LOST TO ALBERT BOUTWELL,
A RACIAL MODERATE.
THE NEXT DAY, S.C.L.C.
LAUNCHED PROJECT C
"C" FOR CONFRONTATION.
LEARNING BY THE
ALBANY CIRCUMSTANCE,
I TARGETED THREE STORES.
PIZITZ WAS ONE.
I DON'T RECALL THE
OTHER TWO STORES NOW.
AND SINCE THE 16th STREE
BAPTIST CHURCH
WAS GOING TO BE
OUR HEADQUARTERS,
I HAD IT TIMED AS TO HOW LONG
IT TOOK A YOUNGSTER
TO WALK DOWN THERE,
HOW LONG IT WOULD TAKE AN OLDER
PERSON TO WALK DOWN THERE,
HOW LONG IT WOULD TAKE
A MIDDLE-AGED PERSON
TO WALK DOWN THERE.
AND I PICKED OU
WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST ROUTES.
UNDER SOME SUBTERFUGE, I VISITED
ALL THREE OF THESE STORES
AND COUNTED THE STOOLS,
THE TABLES, THE CHAIRS, ETC.
AND WHAT THE BEST METHOD
OF INGRESS AND EGRESS WAS.
Choir:
YES, WE WANT OUR FREEDOM ♪
YES, WE WANT OUR
FREEDOM, CHILDREN ♪
YES, WE WANT OUR FREEDOM ♪
WE WANT OUR FREEDOM,
AND WE WANT IT NOW ♪
YES, WE WANT OUR FREEDOM ♪
Narrator:
TWENTY-ONE DEMONSTRATORS
WERE ARRESTED
ON THE FIRST DAY OF PROTEST.
AND THE CITY OF BIRMINGHAM
DISCOVERED IT HAD
ANOTHER PROBLEM.
THE OUTGOING COMMISSIONERS
ANNOUNCED
THAT THEY HAD NO INTENTION
OF STEPPING ASIDE
FOR THE NEWLY
ELECTED GOVERNMENT.
Vann:
I REMEMBER NOW THE DAY
WE SWORE IN THE MAYOR.
BEFORE THE DAY WAS OVER
WE DISCOVERED WE HAD TWO MAYORS,
TWO CITY GOVERNMENTS
AND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING AND
THE S.C.L.C. STARTING MARCHES
UP AND DOWN THE STREET.
THE MARCHES OCCURRED
ALMOST ENTIRELY DURING
THE 37-DAY PERIOD
WHEN BIRMINGHAM HAD
TWO GOVERNMENTS.
ON TUESDAYS, THE COMMISSION ME
AND PROCEEDED TO GOVERN THE CITY
AND WHEN THEY FINISHED,
THEY WOULD MARCH OU
AND NINE COUNCIL MEMBERS
WOULD MARCH IN,
AND THEY WOULD PROCEED TO ADOP
LAWS AND SPEND MONEY
AND CONDUCT THE AFFAIRS
OF THE CITY.
Narrator:
UNTIL THE COURTS COULD DECIDE
WHICH CITY GOVERNMEN
WAS THE LEGAL ONE,
BULL CONNOR REMAINED IN CHARGE
OF THE POLICE AND
FIRE DEPARTMENTS.
AND CONNOR TOOK A LESSON
FROM LAURIE PRITCHETT,
SHOWING RESTRAIN
AS HE SUPERVISED THE ARRES
OF HUNDREDS OF DEMONSTRATORS.
IT WAS A WEEK AND
A HALF BEFORE EASTER.
AS PLANNED, THE DEMONSTRATIONS
AFFECTED BUSINESS
DURING A MAJOR SHOPPING SEASON.
MERCHANTS AND COMMUNITY
LEADERS WERE UPSET.
WE'VE GOT SOME MIGHTY
GOOD PEOPLE IN THIS COMMUNITY,
BOTH WHITE AND COLORED.
Narrator:
BUSINESSMAN A.G. GASTON
SUPPORTED THE NEW
ADMINISTRATION.
WE DIDN'T ANTICIPATE THE NEED
FOR MARTIN KING AT THAT TIME.
THIS MARTIN KING THING
CAME IN ALL OF A SUDDEN.
I WAS UPSET WITH DR. KING
BECAUSE HE WOULDN'T GIVE
US A CHANCE TO PROVE
WHAT WE COULD DO THROUGH
THE POLITICAL PROCESSES.
AND A YEAR AND A DAY AFTER
CONNOR HAD BEEN ELECTED
WITH THE LARGEST VOTE
IN HISTORY,
A MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE
IN THIS CITY VOTED
TO TERMINATE HIS OFFICE.
WHEN HE RAN FOR MAYOR,
THEY REJECTED HIM.
I BELIEVE A REPRESENTATIVE
OF MY OFFICE AT THE DEPARTMEN
OF JUSTICE
Narrator:
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMEN
ALSO THOUGH
THE PROTESTS WERE ILL-TIMED.
Kennedy:
THE FACT THAT THERE WAS
A CHANGE IN ADMINISTRATION
IN BIRMINGHAM,
THAT THE NEW ADMINISTRATION
HAD NOT YET TAKEN OVER
IN THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES
AND THEIR DUTIES,
AND THAT PERHAPS THE TIMING
OF THESE DEMONSTRATIONS
COULD BE RECONSIDERED.
Narrator:
ON APRIL 10,
BIRMINGHAM OBTAINED
A STATE COURT INJUNCTION,
ORDERING AN END
TO THE DEMONSTRATIONS.
DR. KING GREW DISCOURAGED,
WORRIED THAT THE CAMPAIGN HERE,
AS IN ALBANY, WOULD STALL.
WE HAD ABOUT 500 OR
600 PEOPLE IN JAIL,
BUT ALL OF THE MONEY WAS GONE
AND WE COULDN'T GE
PEOPLE OUT OF JAIL,
AND THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY,
BLACK BUSINESS COMMUNITY
AND SOME OF THE WHITE CLERGY
WERE PRESSURING US TO CALL
OFF THE DEMONSTRATIONS
AND JUST GET OUT OF TOWN.
AND WE DIDN'T KNOW
WHAT TO DO.
AND HE SAT THERE
IN ROOM 30 IN THE GASTON MOTEL
AND MARTIN DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING.
AND THEN FINALLY, HE GOT UP
AND HE WENT IN THE BEDROOM
AND HE CAME BACK WITH HIS BLUE
JEANS ON AND HIS JACKET,
AND HE SAID, "LOOK," HE SAID,
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO."
HE SAID, "I JUST KNOW THA
SOMETHING HAS GOT TO CHANGE
"I DON'T KNOW WHETHER
I CAN RAISE MONEY
"TO GET PEOPLE OUT OF JAIL.
I DO KNOW THAT I CAN GO
INTO JAIL WITH THEM."
AND NOT KNOWING HOW I
WAS GOING TO WORK OUT,
HE WALKED OUT OF THE ROOM
AND LED A DEMONSTRATION
AND WENT TO JAIL.
THAT WAS, I THINK, THE BEGINNING
OF HIS TRUE LEADERSHIP.
( crowd chanting, clapping)
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM ♪
FREEDOM. ♪
Narrator:
AT THIS TIME, LOCAL WHITE CLERGY
WERE CRITICIZING KING
AND THE CAMPAIGN.
Young:
THE MINISTERS PUBLISHED
IN THE NEWSPAPERS
A DIATRIBE AGAINST MARTIN,
CALLING HIM A TROUBLEMAKER
AND SAYING THAT HE WAS THERE
STIRRING UP TROUBLE
TO GET PUBLICITY.
AND HE SAT DOWN AND TOOK
THAT NEWSPAPER,
AND HE HAD NO PAPER AND HE WAS
IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT,
AND HE STARTED WRITING AN ANSWER
TO THAT ONE-PAGE AD
AROUND THE MARGINS
OF THE NEW YORK TIMES.
King:
I HAVE YET TO ENGAGE IN
A DIRECT ACTION CAMPAIGN
THAT WAS WELL TIMED
IN THE VIEW OF THOSE
WHO HAVE NOT SUFFERED UNDULY
FROM THE DISEASE OF SEGREGATION.
FOR YEARS NOW, I HAVE
HEARD THE WORD "WAIT."
IT RINGS IN THE EAR OF EVERY
NEGRO WITH PIERCING FAMILIARITY.
THIS WAIT HAS ALMOS
ALWAYS MEANT "NEVER."
WE MUST COME TO SEE, WITH ONE
OF OUR DISTINGUISHED JURISTS,
THAT JUSTICE TOO LONG DELAYED
IS JUSTICE DENIED.
Narrator:
AS KING SAT IN BIRMINGHAM JAIL,
THE DEMONSTRATIONS
LOST SUPPORTERS.
EIGHT DAYS AFTER HIS ARREST,
KING ACCEPTED RELEASE ON BOND
TO PLAN THE NEX
PHASE OF PROJECT C.
IT WOULD BE THE MOS
CONTROVERSIAL MOVE YET.
WE WANTED TO GET THE BLACK
COMMUNITY IN BIRMINGHAM INVOLVED
AND THE WAY YOU GET PEOPLE
INVOLVED
THEY WERE TAKING THE KIDS OU
OF SCHOOL, YOU KNOW, MARCHING.
AND I THOUGH
THAT WAS UNNECESSARY.
IN FACT, MY IDEA WAS
THAT THE KIDS,
MANY OF THEM DIDN'
KNOW WHAT THIS WAS ALL ABOUT.
MOST ADULTS HAVE BILLS TO PAY,
HOUSE NOTES, RENTS, CAR NOTES,
UTILITY BILLS,
BUT THE YOUNG PEOPLE,
WHEREIN THEY CAN THINK
AT THE SAME LEVEL,
ARE NOT AT THIS POINT HOOKED
WITH ALL
THOSE RESPONSIBILITIES.
SO A BOY FROM HIGH SCHOOL,
HE GETS THE SAME EFFEC
IN TERMS OF BEING IN JAIL
IN TERMS OF PUTTING PRESSURE
ON THE CITY AS HIS FATHER
AND YET HE'S NOT THERE'S NO
ECONOMIC THREAT ON THE FAMILY,
BECAUSE THE FATHER'S STILL
ON THE JOB.
Narrator:
THURSDAY, MAY 2 WAS D-DAY,
THE DAY THE CHILDREN
BEGAN TO MARCH IN BIRMINGHAM.
AT FIRST, THE GROUPS WERE SMALL.
POLICEMEN ARRESTED THEM,
LOADED THEM IN PADDY WAGONS
AND TOOK THEM AWAY
TO BIRMINGHAM JAIL.
Woman:
I ASKED MY MOTHER ♪
COME AND GO WITH ME ♪
I ASKED MY MOTHER ♪
COME AND GO WITH ME ♪
Narrator:
AS THE CHILDREN CONTINUED TO
MARCH IN INCREASING NUMBERS,
PADDY WAGONS BECAME INADEQUATE.
FINALLY, SCHOOL BUSES
WERE BROUGHT IN
TO GATHER THE DEMONSTRATORS.
IF MY MOTHER DON'T GO ♪
I'LL GO ANYHOW ♪
IF MY MOTHER DON'T GO ♪
I'LL GO ANYHOW ♪
IF MY MOTHER DON'T GO ♪
I'LL GO ANYHOW ♪
I'M ON MY WAY, OH, LORD ♪
TO FREEDOM LAND. ♪
THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO ♪
TO TURN ME AROUND ♪
THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO ♪
TO TURN ME AROUND ♪
Narrator:
BY THE END OF THAT THURSDAY,
700 CHILDREN WERE TAKEN
TO BIRMINGHAM JAIL.
Woman:
I'M ON MY WAY, OH, LORD ♪
FOR A MAJOR CIVIL
RIGHTS CONFRONTATION,
TO FREEDOM LAND. ♪
Narrator:
FRIDAY.
MORE THAN A THOUSAND
CHILDREN STAYED OUT OF SCHOOL
AND ARRIVED AT THE 16th
STREET CHURCH TO MARCH.
BULL CONNOR TRIED TO STOP
THE MARCHERS BEFORE THEY BEGAN
AND BROUGHT OUT THE
CITY'S POLICE DOGS.
( dogs barking,
people screaming)
Narrator:
NEXT, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS
BROUGHT IN
AND BULL CONNOR
ORDERED WATER HOSES
TURNED ON THE DEMONSTRATORS.
WITH 100 POUNDS OF
PRESSURE PER SQUARE INCH,
THE WATER HIT WITH ENOUGH FORCE
TO KNOCK THE BARK OFF TREES.
AS WATER POUNDED
THE DEMONSTRATORS,
AND HE WAS EXPRESSING
A GREAT DEAL OF RESENTMEN
ABOUT KING COMING IN
AND MESSING UP THINGS
JUST WHEN WE WERE
GETTING A NEW START.
AND THEN HE SAID TO ME,
"BUT LAWYER VANN,
THEY'VE TURNED FIRE HOSES
"ON A LITTLE BLACK GIRL.
"THEY WERE ROLLING
THAT LITTLE GIRL
"RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE
OF THE STREET.
NOW, I CAN'T TALK
TO YOU NO MORE."
I WAS STANDING UP ON MY BUILDING
LOOKING DOWN ON BULL CONNOR
AND THEM SHOOTING WATER
IN THE PARK RIGHT ACROSS FROM MY
OFFICE THERE, IN THAT PARK.
I GUESS THAT'S THE MOS
OUTSTANDING THING IN MY MIND,
RIGHT THERE.
I JUST COULDN'T IMAGINE
WHAT COULD HAPPEN.
Narrator:
BULL CONNOR'S WHITE TANK
PATROLLED THE CITY'S STREETS
AS THE FIRE HOSES
STOPPED THE DEMONSTRATORS.
SOME HID BEHIND THE TREES
OF KELLY INGRAM PARK.
OTHERS FROLICKED IN DEFIANCE.
THE CONFLICT GAINED
NATIONAL ATTENTION
AND NEWS COVERAGE OF THE EVEN
SHOCKED THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.
AND IT WAS A MASTERPIECE
OF THE USE OF MEDIA
TO EXPLAIN A CAUSE TO THE
GENERAL PUBLIC OF A NATION.
BECAUSE IN THOSE DAYS, YOU HAD
15 MINUTES OF NATIONAL NEWS
AND 15 MINUTES OF LOCAL NEWS.
AND IN MARCHING ONLY ONE BLOCK,
THEY COULD GET ENOUGH NEWS FILM
TO FILL ALL THE NEWSCASTS
OF ALL THE TELEVISION STATIONS
IN THE UNITED STATES.
Narrator:
PHOTOGRAPHS APPEARED IN
NEWSPAPERS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
AND THE BIRMINGHAM STORY
WAS TOLD IN MANY LANGUAGES.
THE RUSSIAN NEWSPAPER PRAVDA
RAN A CARTOON
OF POLICE INTIMIDATING
A BLACK CHILD.
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WORRIED
ABOUT AMERICA'S IMAGE
IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD.
GOVERNOR WALLACE
SAW IT DIFFERENTLY.
IT SEEMS THAT OTHER PARTS OF
THE WORLD OUGHT TO BE CONCERNED
ABOUT WHAT WE THINK OF THEM
INSTEAD OF WHA
THEY THINK OF US.
AFTER ALL,
WE'RE FEEDING MOST OF THEM.
AND WHENEVER
THEY START REJECTING
25 CENTS OF EACH DOLLAR
OF FOREIGN AID MONEY
THAT WE SEND TO THEM,
THEN I'LL BE CONCERNED ABOU
THEIR ATTITUDE TOWARD US.
BUT UNTIL THEY REJECT THA
25 CENTS OUT OF EACH DOLLAR
THAT SOUTHERN TAXPAYERS PAY FOR
FOREIGN AID TO THESE COUNTRIES,
I WILL NEVER BE CONCERNED
ABOUT THEIR ATTITUDE.
IN THE FIRST PLACE,
THE AVERAGE MAN
IN AFRICA AND ASIA
DOESN'T EVEN KNOW WHERE HE IS,
MUCH LESS WHERE ALABAMA IS.
Narrator:
ON SATURDAY,
THE DOGS AND WATER HOSES
PROVOKED ANGRY
RESPONSES FROM BYSTANDERS,
SOME OF THEM CARRYING WEAPONS.
SEEING THE BEGINNINGS
OF VIOLENCE,
JAMES BEVEL BORROWED A BULLHORN
FROM A NEARBY POLICEMAN.
Bevel:
SO I TOOK THE BULLHORN
AND SAID, "OKAY, GET OFF
THE STREETS NOW.
"WE'RE NOT GOING
TO HAVE VIOLENCE.
"IF YOU'RE NO
GOING TO RESPECT POLICEMEN,
YOU'RE NOT GOING
TO BE IN THE MOVEMENT."
SO IT WAS STRANGE,
I GUESS, TO THEM.
I'M WITH THE POLICE, TALKING
THROUGH THE BULLHORN
AND GIVING ORDERS, AND EVERYBODY
WAS OBEYING THE ORDERS, SEE.
( chuckling)
IT WAS WILD.
BUT WHAT WAS AT STAKE WAS
THE POSSIBILITY OF A RIOT,
AND IN A MOVEMENT, ONCE A RIO
BREAKS OUT, YOU HAVE TO STOP.
IT TAKES YOU FOUR OR FIVE
MORE DAYS TO GET REESTABLISHED
AND I WAS TRYING TO AVOID
THAT KIND OF SITUATION.
Narrator:
MONDAY, THE FIFTH DAY OF
THE CHILDREN'S CAMPAIGN.
COMEDIAN DICK GREGORY
ARRIVED IN BIRMINGHAM
AND MARCHED WITH THE
YOUNG DEMONSTRATORS.
LIKE HUNDREDS BEFORE HIM,
HE WAS ARRESTED.
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS
WERE WORKING OVERTIME
TO KEEP UP WITH THE ARRESTS.
THERE WAS NO SUCH THING
AS "OFF DAYS."
EVERYBODY WORKING SEVEN DAYS,
SLEEPING, CATNAPPING,
AND JUST HOLDING FIRE.
WE ALL HAD THE CONFIRMED BELIEF
THAT THIS COULDN'T GO ON
FOR LONG
BECAUSE IT WAS PRESSING
THE ISSUE TO THE WALL.
Narrator:
THE CONFRONTATION MOVED
OUTSIDE THE PARK.
ONCE AGAIN, BULL CONNOR
SUMMONED HIS FIREMEN.
( people screaming)
WITH NO PLACE TO RUN,
NO TREES FOR PROTECTION,
THE DEMONSTRATORS WERE HIT WITH
THE FULL FORCE OF THE WATER.
BY MONDAY NIGHT,
2,500 DEMONSTRATORS
HAD BEEN ARRESTED,
OVER 2,000 OF THEM CHILDREN.
ALL JAILS IN THE CITY
AND COUNTY WERE FILLED.
AT ONE TIME, I HAD,
HERE IN THIS BUILDING
ON THE SEVENTH AND EIGHTH FLOOR,
WE HAD OVER 1,200
MALE JUVENILE BLACKS
ON TOP OF OUR REGULAR COMPLEMEN
OF PROBABLY NEAR 1,000.
AT THE SAME TIME,
I HAD 600 FEMALE JUVENILES
IN THE 4-H DORMITORY
AT THE FAIRGROUND.
Narrator:
MEANWHILE, THE
JUSTICE DEPARTMEN
TRIED TO MOVE
NEGOTIATIONS FORWARD.
I PARTICIPATED IN ALL OF THEM,
IN ORDER TO TRY TO GE
SOME KIND OF AGREEMEN
BETWEEN PEOPLE
THAT OFTEN WOULDN'T TALK
TO EACH OTHER AT ALL.
I DON'T MEAN THAT THE BLACKS
WOULDN'T TALK TO ANYBODY.
BUT I MEAN THERE WERE
MANY WHITES
THAT WOULDN'T TALK TO ANY BLACKS
AND THERE WERE SOME AND THERE
WERE MANY MORE WHITES
THAT WOULDN'T TALK
TO CERTAIN BLACKS,
AND THERE NO WHITES, I THINK,
EXCEPT FOR DAVID VANN,
WHO WOULD TALK TO MARTIN KING.
Narrator:
TUESDAY, MAY 7.
FIGHTING BROKE OU
BETWEEN BLACKS AND WHITES
IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.
BURKE MARSHALL AND
THE BUSINESS LEADERS
HAD JUST LEFT THE
NEGOTIATING TABLE FOR LUNCH.
THE SITUATION WAS FAST REACHING
THE RIOT PROPORTIONS
THE BUSINESSMEN QUICKLY RETURNED
TO NEGOTIATIONS, READY TO TALK.
SO WE BEGAN ANALYZING:
WHAT ARE YOUR PROBLEMS?
WHAT ARE OUR PROBLEMS?
WE'VE GOT TO RECOGNIZE, ONE,
THAT WE DON'T HAVE A GOVERNMENT.
WE'VE GOT TWO GOVERNMENTS;
NEITHER OF THEM
CAN BE EFFECTIVE.
WE'VE GOT TO FIND A WAY
TO WORK THIS THING OU
WITHIN PRIVATE-SECTOR FORMATS.
Narrator:
BOTH SIDES AGREED
TO A DAY OF TRUCE.
A RESOLUTION WAS REACHED, BU
THERE WAS A LAST-MINUTE HITCH.
AFTER WE REACHED
THE SETTLEMENT
AND IT LOOKS LIKE
A MOLEHILL TODAY
TO SAY THAT WE WERE GOING
TO TAKE DOWN THE SIGNS
AND HAVE A 60-DAY
COOLING-OFF PERIOD
AND DESEGREGATE LUNCH COUNTERS
AND BEGIN A PROGRAM
OF EMPLOYMEN
IN DOWNTOWN BIRMINGHAM
WITH AT LEAS
THREE CLERKS HIRED,
I THINK SOMEBODY IN NEW YORK
ASKED REVEREND SHUTTLESWORTH
WHY HE WOULD SETTLE
FOR JUST THREE CLERKS
IN DOWNTOWN BIRMINGHAM.
HE SAID, "I MEAN
THREE IN EVERY STORE."
AND THE THING
ALMOST CAME UNGLUED.
BY THAT TIME, REVEREND
SHUTTLESWORTH WAS SO WORKED UP
THAT I CAN REMEMBER FRED
CUSSING AND DAVID VANN CRYING.
AND IT JUST SEEMED LIKE WHEN
DAVID VANN WANTED TO SETTLE,
FRED WASN'T READY TO SETTLE.
YOU MUST REMEMBER THAT THERE'S
ALWAYS SOME DISAGREEMEN
WHEN IT LOOKS AS IF YOU'RE NO
GETTING WHAT YOU'RE AIMING AT.
AND THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO WAN
VICTORIES, SOCIAL VICTORIES,
TO COME QUICKLY.
Narrator:
ON FRIDAY, MAY 10,
38 DAYS AFTER PROJECT C BEGAN,
AN AGREEMENT WAS REACHED
WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY.
REVEREND SHUTTLESWORTH
HAD BEEN RIGHT
WHEN THE MOVEMEN
CAME TO BIRMINGHAM,
IT WON A MUCH-NEEDED VICTORY
AND IT GAINED
NATIONAL ATTENTION.
THE NEXT NIGHT, THE KU KLUX KLAN
MET OUTSIDE THE CITY
AND GRAND DRAGON ROBERT SHELTON
GAVE THIS OPINION
OF THE BIRMINGHAM AGREEMENT.
NO BUSINESS PEOPLE IN
BIRMINGHAM OR ANY OTHER CITY
HAS THE AUTHORITY TO ATTEMP
ANY TYPE OF NEGOTIATION
WHEN IT DEALS IN GOVERNMENTAL
AFFAIRS WITH MUNICIPALITIES.
MARTIN LUTHER KING,
IN MY OPINION,
HIS EPITAPH CAN BE WRITTEN HERE
IN BIRMINGHAM.
Narrator:
SEVERAL HOURS LATER,
A BOMB EXPLODED OUTSIDE
MARTIN LUTHER KING'S ROOM
AT THE GASTON MOTEL.
KING HAD ALREADY
LEFT BIRMINGHAM,
AND NO ONE WAS IN THE ROOM
AT THE TIME.
AS A LARGE CROWD GATHERED,
THE ALABAMA STATE POLICE
MOVED IN
AND BEGAN BEATING BLACKS
WITH CLUBS AND RIFLES.
IN RESPONSE, ANGRY BLACKS RIOTED
AND SET FIRE
TO SEVERAL BUILDINGS.
OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS,
THE RIOTS THA
BEGAN IN BIRMINGHAM
SPREAD TO OTHER CITIES.
RACIAL TENSIONS
GRIPPED THE COUNTRY
AND PRESIDENT KENNEDY
WAS MOVED TO ACTION.
ON JUNE 11, HE TOOK
A STRONGER POSITION
THAN ANY PRESIDEN
SINCE LINCOLN,
CALLING CIVIL RIGHTS
A MORAL ISSUE.
NOW THE TIME HAS COME FOR THIS
NATION TO FULFILL ITS PROMISE.
THE EVENTS IN BIRMINGHAM
AND ELSEWHERE
HAVE SO INCREASED
THE CRIES FOR EQUALITY
THAT NO CITY OR STATE
OR LEGISLATIVE BODY
CAN PRUDENTLY CHOOSE
TO IGNORE THEM.
THE FIRES OF
FRUSTRATION AND DISCORD
ARE BURNING IN EVERY CITY,
NORTH AND SOUTH.
WHERE LEGAL REMEDIES
ARE NOT AT HAND,
REDRESS IS SOUGHT IN THE STREETS
IN DEMONSTRATIONS,
PARADES AND PROTESTS,
WHICH CREATE TENSIONS
AND THREATEN VIOLENCE
AND THREATEN LIVES.
NEXT WEEK, I SHALL ASK
THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED
STATES TO AC
TO MAKE A COMMITMENT IT HAS
NOT FULLY MADE IN THIS CENTURY
TO THE PROPOSITION
THAT RACE HAS NO PLACE
IN AMERICAN LIFE OR LAW.
Narrator:
KENNEDY PUSHED
FOR A NEW CIVIL RIGHTS BILL,
BUT WAS TROUBLED WHEN
THE MOVEMENT ANNOUNCED PLANS
FOR A MASS MARCH ON WASHINGTON.
FEARING MORE VIOLENCE,
ATTORNEY GENERAL ROBERT KENNEDY
HAD TRIED TO PREVENT THE MARCH,
WITHOUT SUCCESS.
THERE WILL BE A MASS MARCH;
THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT.
AND IT IS OUR PURPOSE
AND IT IS OUR HOPE
THAT THIS MARCH
WILL CARRY ON IN A MANNER
THAT WILL BE DEFINITELY
AND EFFECTIVELY IN SUPPOR
OF A CIVIL RIGHTS PROGRAM.
Man:
"FREEDOM NOW"
MOVEMENT, HEAR ME
WE ARE REQUESTING ALL CITIZENS
TO MOVE INTO WASHINGTON.
( cheering)
Narrator:
THE MOVEMENT THAT HAD LEARNED
TO MOBILIZE COMMUNITIES
NOW SET ABOUT TRYING
TO MOBILIZE A NATION.
ACROSS THE COUNTRY,
PEOPLE MADE PLANS
TO ATTEND
THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON,
DEMONSTRATING FOR
JOBS AND FREEDOM.
AMONG THE THOUSANDS
WHO TRAVELED TO WASHINGTON,
THERE WERE BLACK
AND WHITE ACTIVISTS,
LABOR LEADERS, CLERGY
AND HOLLYWOOD STARS.
Man:
THEY CAME FROM EVERY STATE.
THEY CAME IN JALOPIES,
ON TRAINS, BUSES,
ANYTHING THEY COULD GET.
SOME WALKED.
Narrator:
BAYARD RUSTIN WAS
THE MASTER ORGANIZER
BEHIND THE DAY'S EVENTS,
COORDINATING
HUNDREDS OF DETAILS.
VOLUNTEERS PAINTED
SIGNS TO STATE THE ISSUES.
THEY MADE 80,000 CHEESE
SANDWICHES TO FEED THE MARCHERS.
SECURITY WAS CAREFULLY SET UP SO
VIOLENCE WOULD NOT MAR THE DAY.
AS THE DAY BEGAN,
MARCH ORGANIZERS WORRIED
THAT THE TURNOU
WOULD NOT BE LARGE ENOUGH
TO ATTRACT THE
NATION'S ATTENTION.
Choir:
WE SHALL OVERCOME ♪
Narrator:
BY EARLY AFTERNOON,
MORE THAN 200,000 PEOPLE
GATHERED FOR THE SYMBOLIC MARCH
FROM THE WASHINGTON MONUMEN
TO THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL.
IT WAS A TRIUMPHANT DAY
FOR MR. RANDOLPH,
WHO HAD FIRST PROPOSED THE IDEA
FOR SUCH A MARCH IN 1941,
DURING FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S
ADMINISTRATION.
Choir:
DEEP IN MY HEART ♪
I DO BELIEVE ♪
LORD,
WE SHALL OVERCOME SOMEDAY. ♪
WE ARE NOT ALONE ♪
WE ARE NOT ALONE ♪
WE ARE NOT ALONE TODAY ♪
OH, DEEP IN MY HEART ♪
Narrator:
BUT THERE WAS TROUBLE
BEHIND THE SCENES
AS THE MARCHERS GATHERED
AT THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL.
THE WHITE HOUSE WAS
UPSET ABOUT A SPEECH
THAT WAS TO BE GIVEN BY
JOHN LEWIS, NATIONAL CHAIRMAN
FOR THE STUDENT NONVIOLEN
COORDINATING COMMITTEE.
IN THE FIRST PART OF THE SPEECH,
I SAID SOMETHING LIKE
"WE CANNOT SUPPOR
THE PROPOSED BILL
BEING INTRODUCED OR BEING
PRESENTED BY PRESIDENT KENNEDY."
IT WAS TOO LITTLE AND TOO LATE.
AND JOHN'S SPEECH WAS
THE ONLY SPEECH
AT THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON
THAT CRITICIZED
THE KENNEDY ADMINISTRATION
FOR LACK OF CIVIL
RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT,
BECAUSE S.N.C.C. PEOPLE WERE
BEING BRUTALIZED IN THE SOUTH.
BAYARD ASKED US
TO CHANGE HIS SPEECH,
AND WE TOLD HIM THAT WE WEREN'
GOING TO CHANGE THE SPEECH
AND THAT, YOU KNOW,
HE WOULD HAVE TO DO I
OVER OUR DEAD BODIES.
WE WEREN'T GOING TO CHANGE IT.
THEN HE WENT DOWN IN THE CROWD
AND GOT A. PHILIP RANDOLPH.
Narrator:
LEWIS WAS TO BE SPEAKER
NUMBER SIX ON THE PROGRAM.
THE OPENING SPEECHES WERE
ALREADY UNDER WAY,
AND THE CONFLIC
REMAINED UNSOLVED.
A. PHILIP RANDOLPH FINALLY
MADE A PERSONAL APPEAL
TO THE YOUNG MEN FROM S.N.C.C.
HE WAS 75, AND HERE WE WERE,
YOU KNOW, ONE-THIRD HIS AGE,
AND HE WAS ASKING US
TO DO THIS FOR HIM.
HE SAID, "I WAITED ALL MY LIFE
FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
PLEASE DON'T RUIN IT."
AND WE FELT THAT, FOR HIM, THA
WE HAD TO MAKE SOME CONCESSIONS.
Man:
SO THE THREE OF US JOHN LEWIS,
COURTLAND COX AND MYSELF
WE HUDDLED AND SAT TOGETHER
AND THE REWRITING TOOK PLACE
AT THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL
AND IT WAS DONE OU
OF A SPIRIT OF UNITY.
WE WANTED THE MARCH
ON WASHINGTON TO GO FORWARD,
AND WE WANTED, YOU KNOW,
THE S.N.C.C.'s PARTICIPATION
TO BE VERY VISIBLE,
AND WE CERTAINLY WEREN'
INTERESTED
IN WITHDRAWING FROM THE MARCH
ON WASHINGTON.
Lewis:
IF WE DO NOT GET MEANINGFUL
LEGISLATION
OUT OF THIS CONGRESS,
THE TIME WILL COME
WHEN WE WILL NOT CONFINE
OUR MARCHING TO WASHINGTON.
WE WILL MARCH
THROUGH THE SOUTH,
THROUGH THE STREETS OF JACKSON,
THROUGH THE STREETS OF DANVILLE,
THROUGH THE STREETS
OF CAMBRIDGE,
THROUGH THE STREETS
OF BIRMINGHAM!
( applause)
HOW LONG CAN WE BE PATIENT?
WE WANT OUR FREEDOM,
AND WE WANT IT NOW!
Narrator:
THE DISAGREEMENT OVER THIS
SPEECH WAS CONTAINED SO WELL,
FEW PEOPLE KNEW OF THE PROBLEM.
THE SPEECH THAT CAPTURED
THE NATION'S ATTENTION
WAS THE STIRRING ORATORY
OF MARTIN LUTHER KING.
SO LET FREEDOM RING
FROM THE PRODIGIOUS
HILLTOPS OF NEW HAMPSHIRE.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM THE
MIGHTY MOUNTAINS OF NEW YORK.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM
THE HEIGHTENING ALLEGHENIES
OF PENNSYLVANIA.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM THE
SNOW-CAPPED ROCKIES OF COLORADO.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM THE
CURVACEOUS SLOPES OF CALIFORNIA.
BUT NOT ONLY THAT
LET FREEDOM RING FROM
STONE MOUNTAIN OF GEORGIA.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM LOOKOU
MOUNTAIN OF TENNESSEE.
LET FREEDOM RING FROM EVERY HILL
AND MOLEHILL OF MISSISSIPPI.
FROM EVERY MOUNTAINSIDE!
LET FREEDOM RING,
AND WHEN THIS HAPPENS
WHEN WE ALLOW FREEDOM TO RING,
WHEN WE LET IT RING FROM
EVERY VILLAGE AND EVERY HAMLET,
FROM EVERY STATE AND EVERY CITY,
WE WILL BE ABLE
TO SPEED UP THAT DAY
WHEN ALL OF GOD'S CHILDREN,
BLACK MEN AND WHITE MEN,
JEWS AND GENTILES,
PROTESTANTS AND CATHOLICS
WILL BE ABLE TO JOIN HANDS
AND SING IN THE WORDS
OF THE OLD NEGRO SPIRITUAL,
"FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST,
THANK GOD ALMIGHTY,
WE ARE FREE AT LAST."
( wild cheering)
Narrator:
ONLY ONE YEAR AFTER THE DOUBTS
AND DESPAIR OF ALBANY, GEORGIA,
MARTIN LUTHER KING
HAD TRIUMPHED.
MUCH OF THE NATION NOW SAW HIM
AS THE LEADER OF THE MOVEMENT.
IN THE WHITE HOUSE,
PRESIDENT KENNEDY SAW THE MARCH
AS SUPPORT FOR PASSAGE
OF HIS CIVIL RIGHTS BILL.
( crowd singing
"We Shall Overcome")
( man shouting in megaphone)
Narrator:
THAT EVENING,
REVEREND RALPH ABERNATHY
RETURNED TO THE
LINCOLN MEMORIAL.
WHERE 250,000 PEOPLE
HAD SAT THAT DAY,
THERE WAS NOTHING BUT THE WIND
BLOWING THE LEFTOVER PROGRAMS
AND SCATTERED LITTER
ACROSS THE WAY.
ACROSS THE REFLECTION POOL,
THE WIND WAS MOVING
AND BLOWING AND BLOWING
AND KEEPING MUSIC.
AND WE WERE SO PROUD OF THE FAC
THAT NO VIOLENCE HAD
TAKEN PLACE THAT DAY
AND WE WERE SO PLEASED.
BUT THIS BEAUTIFUL SCENE
OF THE WIND DANCING
IN THE SANDS OF
THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL
I WILL NEVER FORGET.
THIS WAS THE GREATES
DAY OF MY LIFE.
( sirens wailing)
Narrator:
18 DAYS AFTER THE MARCH
ON WASHINGTON,
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA
A BOMB EXPLODED IN THE
16th STREET BAPTIST CHURCH
JUST BEFORE A SUNDAY
MORNING SERVICE.
15 PEOPLE WERE INJURED.
FOUR CHILDREN WERE KILLED.
( no audio)
Crowd:
WE SHALL OVERCOME ♪
WE SHALL OVERCOME ♪
WE SHALL OVERCOME SOMEDAY ♪
OH, DEEP IN MY HEART ♪
( woman sobbing)
Narrator:
THE MURDER OF THESE CHILDREN
SHOOK THE NONVIOLEN
MOVEMENT TO ITS CORE.
AS THE PEOPLE BURIED THEIR DEAD,
THEY SANG "WE SHALL OVERCOME,"
BUT, IN ANGER AND IN RAGE,
MANY WONDERED HOW.
Crowd:
GOD IS ON OUR SIDE ♪
GOD IS ON OUR SIDE ♪
GOD IS ON OUR SIDE TODAY ♪