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Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
 

Southern Resistance

March Route for Education

— Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail —

 
 
Southern Resistance Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Mark Hilton, December 5, 2021
1. Southern Resistance Marker
Inscription. In Alabama, White parents used the 1956 Alabama Pupil Placement Act that let them “choose” which public schools their children would attend. When Black parents in Birmingham tried to use the same law to send their children to White schools, school board officials used procedural rules to stall the application process and turn them away. The first school desegregation lawsuit, filed in 1957 by Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth and his foot soldiers, against the school board failed. In 1960, barber James Armstrong, a lieutenant among Shuttlesworth's foot soldiers, sued the school board for operating a biracial school system that kept two of his four children from attending all-White Graymont Elementary. Armstrong's lawyers convinced judges that Birmingham school officials would not integrate public schools without a federal court order. By 1961, South Carolina, Mississippi and Alabama were the last remaining Southern states with racially segregated school systems.

Paired marker
September 1963
In 1963, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Birmingham's separate school system violated the 1954 Brown rule. The federal judges ordered the Birmingham school board to submit a plan to begin integrating public schools by September 1963. This would allow parents to send children to their school of choice,
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regardless of race. Armstrong and a few other Black parents were the first to enroll their children in three all-White schools. Large crowds staged loud anti-integration demonstrations outside these schools. In this picture, parents and students hold picket signs to protest against Armstrong's sons Floyd and Dwight attending Graymont Elementary. Gov. George Wallace sent Alabama troopers to block the Armstrong boys and their supporters from entering Graymont on September 10, 1963.

"Something had to be done, so I asked myself,'Why not me?'"
James Armstrong
On why he stayed in the legal battles to integrate Birmingham city schools.

Lesson D10: What does the phrase "equal opportunity under the law" mean? Do you favor equal opportunity for all Americans? Why or why not?
 
Erected by the Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail. (Marker Number D10.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African AmericansCivil RightsEducation. In addition, it is included in the Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail series list. A significant historical month for this entry is September 1963.
 
Location. 33° 31.318′ N, 86° 48.399′ W. Marker is in Birmingham, Alabama, in Jefferson County. Marker is on 7th Avenue
Southern Resistance paired marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Mark Hilton
2. Southern Resistance paired marker
North west of 23rd Street North, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Birmingham AL 35203, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Integration Begins: Desegregating Graymont School (a few steps from this marker); Children's Crusade for Education (a few steps from this marker); School Integration Now (within shouting distance of this marker); Desegregating West End School (within shouting distance of this marker); The Schoolhouse Stand at Alabama (within shouting distance of this marker); Alabama's Rebel Yell (within shouting distance of this marker); Desegregating Ramsay School (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Hope Arrives (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Birmingham.
 
Regarding Southern Resistance. The Civil Rights Activist Committee “Home of the Foot Soldiers“ is the Information Center for the Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail.
 
Southern Resistance Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Mark Hilton, December 5, 2021
3. Southern Resistance Marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on January 8, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 7, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 123 times since then and 9 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on December 7, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.

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Mar. 29, 2024