Book Review: Birmingham 1963: How a Photograph Rallied Civil Rights Support

Birmingham 1963: How a Photograph Rallied Civil Rights Support
Shelley Tougas

Birmingham 1963 focuses on the controversial Children’s Crusade through which civil right leaders launched Project C (for Confrontation) to jumpstart desegregation in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. In May, 1965 the Children’s Crusade became a model for nonviolent protest when African American children marched for their rights. This account tells how Charles Moore’s photograph of teenagers being brutally assaulted with fire hoses against a building started up enough controversy to bring attention to the level of discrimination occurring, which effectively obliged the oppressive, white Birmingham establishment to move forward in civil rights. Moore effectively became a protester himself because his picture’s details imparted a power that changed history. All Americans became witnesses to the hate and prejudice that were on trial. The photo rallied the Civil Rights Movement and energized the public by highlighting civil rights as a national problem needing a national solution. Lastly, the picture encouraged Congress to finally pass laws to give all citizens equal rights regardless of the color of their skin.

Additional, information can be found on African-American History Online databases.