Alabama: Beyond the Photographs
by Colleen Morrison HN 300: Arts, Politics, and Social Justice (Dr. McEvoy-Levy) 10 March 2019 Visual art gave a voice to those persistent in the fight for justice and voting rights during the Civil Rights Movement. The rhetoric and non-violent measures that protesters used caught the attention of photographers who saw beauty in the pain, seeking to help bring the struggle for equality to a national level. Across the country, state laws and regulations oppressed and rejected the full participation of African American minorities in democracy. Civil rights leaders relied on the power of photographs to persuade and motivate, creating a culture of change in the relationship between the camera and politics. Many Americans outside the South opted to outright ignore the segregation of the Jim Crow era but confronted the brutal reality of struggles in photographs. Today, the legacy of the movement lives on in the communities most impacted by discrimination and racial stereotyping. Through reflecting on the photos taken during events of the movement, such as the Selma to Montgomery march and non-violent protest in Birmingham, Alabama, it becomes evident that the struggle for justice persists. Birmingham, Alabama played a pivotal role in the nationwide call for civil rights. Kelly Ingram Park became the epicenter of the civil rights rallies and demonstrations. Charles Moore, an American photographer, captured the brutal response of law enforcement and officials in the face of African Americans demanding equality. His 1963 photograph shows an African American man being physically attacked by a police dog on a street adjacent to Kelly Ingram Park (Moore, 1963 – Figure 1). In the face of violence, the actions of this young African American man speak volumes to what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and many others preached of non-violence throughout the movement. Dr. King, Jr. saw no choice between violence and nonviolence, but rather a choice between “nonviolence or nonexistence” (“I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”). As the world began to hear the voice of Dr. King, these photographs surfaced and touched the hearts of millions of Americans by exposing them to the visibility of injustice. James Stewart, a participant in the nonviolent events in Birmingham, remembers the success of nonviolence: "We were being abused and no one was paying attention…and non-violence proved to be, I think, a much more powerful weapon than violence. We felt victorious, in a sense" (Miller). Today, three blocks from Kelly Ingram Park, Ms. Paulette Roby heads the Civil Rights Activist Committee at the Foot Soldiers Headquarters in honor of the men and women, such as the young boy depicted in the photograph, who fought so diligently for a seat at the table. She too fought and marched in the Birmingham Children’s Crusade in 1963. In her office, a mural depicts many scenarios and faces of the Civil Rights movement reminding her and those who visit the fearless courage of the people who paved the way for generations to come, like her uncle. The political and social atmosphere for minorities in America today often eerily reflects that of the one in the 1960’s. Ms. Roby, a firsthand witness to the Civil Rights Movement, carries a beacon of hope for a better future. Moore’s photograph reminds all of the events that took place at Kelly Ingram Park and how they reflect the overall atmosphere of the struggle. Much like Birmingham and the cultural and historical value it shares, Selma, Alabama too, proved as a notable location during the Civil Rights movement. The Edmund Pettus Bridge connects the two sides of the city over the Mississippi river. On March 26th, 1965, better known as Bloody Sunday, the Edmund Pettus Bridge saw the escalation of violence that dramatically shifted the momentum of the Civil Rights Movement. Photographer Charles Moore, once again, captured the raw emotion of the marchers before they set off towards the Edmund Pettus Bridge in his photo “Freedom Singers” (Moore 1965 – Figure 2). John Lewis, a future congressional representative, and other foot soldiers gather in prayer and song in front of Brown Chapel, in Selma, Alabama. Lewis describes the importance of churches as gathering places as he remembers the events at Selma, "Selma, these churches and these people, gave it everything they had. We wouldn't be where we are today as a nation and as a people (if it) hadn't been for this community." (Jones). Brown Chapel served as the safe haven and meeting place for marchers under the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and other notable leaders of the movement and a gathering place further intensified by song. Song and singing served as a unifying factor during the Civil Rights Movement, and the songs sung then continue to be sung today as the fight for rights and equality continues. Charles Moore’s image take in 1963 is not a rare sight today in Selma. "Without music, the movement would have been like a bird without wings," as Lewis recalls. The annual jubilee of the Edmund Pettus Bridge crossing invites peoples nationwide to come to Selma to walk in the footsteps of those who risked their lives to cross the bridge and feel the power of these songs and the movement. Songs continue to match the passion of a new generation of activists who use the humble legacy of those captured in Charles Moore’s photograph to propel forward in the face of adversity. The tilting point of the civil rights movement found place in Montgomery, Alabama. The capital city of Alabama, Montgomery, sits fifty-six miles from Selma, Alabama. From Brown Chapel in Selma, across the Edmund Pettus bridge and all along US-80 highway, the 1965 marchers marched in search of voting rights. As the marchers arrived in Montgomery, William Lovelace captured a photograph of six young children sitting on the porch watching the marchers make their way to the capitol (Lovelace, 1965 – Figure 3). Many of the children who witnessed first-hand the events unravel throughout the movement dedicate their life today to continuing fight for equality and rights. The children born during the height of the movement in places such as Selma, Birmingham and Montgomery were exposed at a young age to the importance of civil and nonviolent protest in the attainment of civil rights. Many of their parents were heavily involved in the events. Eddie Madison, a foot soldier, highlights the importance of her involvement with the movement for her children, “It helped me to raise my children and to teach my children…I tell them they need an education” (Daileda). The early exposure and socialization to the courageous actions of regular citizens and the success of the movement in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 continues to inspire generations to continue this fight. The children captured on the front porch in Lovelace’s photograph symbolize the millions of young girls and boys that never strayed far from the mind of those who marched towards Montgomery. Children played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement, as they held the potential of a better and equal future. Freeman Hrabowski remembers the importance of the marching and the legacy it would leave, “by marching in the movement, children would help end segregation and improve education” (Stewart). Today, many of those children of the movement see the importance of passing the fight for equality onto the next generation. The photographs that captured the Civil Rights Movements share a story of pain, triumph and hope as they continue to relate to the world today. The events across the country, predominantly in Birmingham, Selma and Montgomery should not be overlooked in understanding the struggle that persists. These locations hold a painfully honest part of the dark history of America but continue ever so dedicated to the passion of equal voting and civil rights for all American citizens. The passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, revered as the triumph of the work and dedication of those who marched from Selma to Montgomery should not be seen as the end of the Civil Rights Movement. The oppression and discrimination towards minorities in America is not as blatantly obvious as it was in the photographs captured throughout the movement. Yet, the songs continue to be sung across the Edmund Pettus Bridge by the children of the movement. Until the Edmund Pettus Bridge can serve as a location of remembrance and not inspiration, the struggle persists. The children who watched their mother and father vote for the first time in 1965 face new barriers in their right to vote. The power of the photographs is not in their portrayal of the past, but rather their relevance to the present. Reference List Daileda, Colin. “Foot Soldier Stories: Bloody Sunday Marchers Talk Past and Present.” Mashable. 7 March 2015. Web. 6 March 2019. Jones, Athena. “Selma 50 Years Later: John Lewis’s Memories of the March.” CNN Politics. 6 March 2015. Web. 6 March 2019. King, Martin Luther, Jr. “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop; April 3, 1968.” The King Institute, Stanford University, https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/ive-been-mountaintop-address-delivered-bishop-charles-mason-temple Lovelace, William. Children Watch a Black Voting Rights March in Alabama. 1965. Print. Getty Images. Miller, Michelle. "The Children Who Marched into Civil Rights History." NBC News. 3 May 2013. Web. 6 March 2019. Moore, Charles. Freedom Singing, Selma, Alabama. 1965. Gelatin silver print. High Museum of Art. Art, Atlanta, Georgia. Moore, Charles. Policemen Use Police Dogs During Civil Rights Demonstrations, Birmingham Protests. 1963. Gelatin silver, printed later. Steven Kasher Gallery. Art, New York. Stewart, Denise. “Children’s March 1963: A Defiant Moment.” The Root. 5 January 2013. Web. 6 March 2019. Comments are closed.
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