In the mid-20th century, Birmingham, Alabama was known as the key that opened the door to the civil rights movement. Over a long period of American history, racial inequality gave rise to many conflicts between citizens of different cultures. There were countless racial viewpoints in the South, which led to brutality and inequality. In August 1963, Martin Luther King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech spoke to many citizens throughout the historic march. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The March on Washington was a massive protest that saw an estimated 250,000 people gather at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. and to listen to Martin Luther King's speech. advocacy to end racial inequality. Located in Birmingham, Sixteenth Street Baptist Church has been recognized as the first place of worship for African Americans. Throughout the 1960s, the church held several organizational meetings with many notable African American intellectuals, including WEB Du Bois and Mary McLeod Bethune. (“Sixteenth Street Baptist Church” Encyclopedia of Alabama). In the mid-20th century, Sixteenth Street Baptist Church represented a turning point for many civil rights extremists. Local communities felt that everyone needed equality and decided that an agreement was the only solution. The extremists negotiated an agreement with the local jurisdiction to begin consolidating schools; the deal angered countless people, leading to an attack. Initially, the attack was intended to disrupt African-American extremists who hoped to end segregation; instead, the attack caused quite the opposite. Birmingham was also the central headquarters of the Ku Klux Klan. The influence of the Ku Klux Klan had a powerful effect on society in the mid-20th century. Many African American families could not go to the library, the park, or even walk to school. In some cases, many children's books have been banned from sale due to racial concerns. Issues of brutality against Birmingham's black community were not unusual, but the deliberate bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church took this violence to a new level. In the early 20th century, the church was a platform for African-American society and the civil rights movement in Birmingham. The church hosted many assemblies and became the headquarters for many protests against segregation. Serving as the headquarters of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the church became the central location for racial tensions and white hatred of the civil rights movement. Tensions peaked around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, September 15, 1963, when the church was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan. The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was not only a gathering place for civil rights meetings, but also a place of worship. Churches are seen as refuges; they are places free from brutality and considered peaceful. African Americans viewed the church as a safe place; in reality, the violence took place here. On September 15, 1963, the lives of many families changed forever. On Sunday morning, before worship, a bomb exploded, killing four innocent girls. Ku Klux Klan members killed Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley. In total, at least twenty people were injured in the attack. However, imagine that you know a few minutes before all theworld that an explosion was about to occur. Carolyn McKinstry was a fifteen-year-old secretary who answered the phone minutes before the explosion. McKinstry said that morning felt like any typical Sunday, except for the phone call she received. She said: “When I got to the office the phone was ringing and the caller on the other end said, 'three minutes. “It was a male caller, but he hung up as quickly as he said that” (Joiner, Lottie L. “4 Little Girls: The Bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church”). McKinstry said the four girls took maybe fifteen minutes. enters the church when the bomb explodes. The building collapsed as people searched for their family members. September 15, 1963 haunted many survivors for nearly fifty-five years. , a moving and distraught image of the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Sarah Collins Rudolph was a survivor who lost her sister in the bombing. She was twelve years old when her older sister, Addie Mae, died in the explosion. standing there, right there, bleeding," recalls Rudolph, 62. "And someone came and they just took me and took me out through the hole and put me in [a ] ambulance” (Ott, Tanya. “Long Forgotten, 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivor Speaks Out”). Rudolph was struck by a window, causing him to lose sight in his right eye. She was hospitalized for months and told to put it all behind her, but it wasn't that easy. The investigation into the attack took a long time. Many people came to work on the case, but the investigation was difficult due to lack of evidence. Most of the evidence had been destroyed along with the church. Eventually, the FBI discovered that the bombers were four members of the Ku Klux Klan. The members' names were Thoman Edwin Blanton, Jr., Herman Frank Cash, Robert Edward Chambliss and Bobby Frank Cherry. Unfortunately, the case was closed in 1968 and the men were never arrested. In 1971, William Baxley, a new attorney general of Alabama, decided to reopen the case in search of old evidence. The attorney general's efforts led to the conviction of the group's leader, Robert Chambliss, who was sent to prison in 1977 ("The 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing"). By 2002, Bobby Cherry had died, but Thomas Blanton and Herman Cash were both convicted. The tragedies in Birmingham, Alabama have not only left the city distraught, but many people helpless. The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was not the first church bombing. Between 1947 and 1965, approximately nineteen bombings involved places of worship or ministers' homes. “Birmingham had earned the nickname 'Bombingham' in recognition of the fifty bombings against the homes and places of worship of black citizens which had taken place since 1947” (Thorne, TK p. 12). The scars that survivors have suffered are not only visible, but they are also mental and financial. Many people supported the idea of ​​creating a foundation within the city to help families and survivors. However, many survivors were excluded from the many occasions that honored the tragedy at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Many citizens of Birmingham do not know some of the survivors' stories. The bombing of the church not only provided everyone with a mental image, but it also reminded everyone how tragic Birmingham was. The church served as a foundation for the field of civil rights and a reminder to..