Bombingham | |
---|---|
Part of the Civil Rights Movement | |
Location | Birmingham, Alabama |
Attack type | Bombings, arson, shootings |
Victims | Arthur Shores and other local African Americans |
Perpetrators | Ku Klux Klan |
Motive | Prevent African Americans from moving to white segregated neighborhoods. |
Bombingham is a nickname for Birmingham, Alabama during the Civil Rights Movement due to the 50 dynamite explosions that occurred in the city between 1947 and 1965. [1] The bombings were initially used against African Americans attempting to move into neighborhoods with entirely white residents. Later, the bombings were used against anyone working towards racial desegregation in the city. [1] One neighborhood within Birmingham experienced so many bombings it developed the nickname of Dynamite Hill. [2]
By the 1940s, black families were trying to purchase homes in segregated white areas of Birmingham. The local Ku Klux Klan began a terror campaign against black families attempting to move to the west side of Center Street, sometimes firing shots or bombs at houses or lighting a home's door on fire. Center Street became known as Dynamite Hill because of these attacks. From the late 1940s to the 1960s, over 40 unsolved bombings occurred in Birmingham. Klan members specifically targeted civil rights lawyer Arthur Shores who lived in Birmingham. Some families refused to leave, instead tolerating the attacks in an effort to support desegregation efforts. [3]
Bombingham | |
---|---|
Part of the Civil Rights Movement | |
Location | Birmingham, Alabama |
Attack type | Bombings, arson, shootings |
Victims | Arthur Shores and other local African Americans |
Perpetrators | Ku Klux Klan |
Motive | Prevent African Americans from moving to white segregated neighborhoods. |
Bombingham is a nickname for Birmingham, Alabama during the Civil Rights Movement due to the 50 dynamite explosions that occurred in the city between 1947 and 1965. [1] The bombings were initially used against African Americans attempting to move into neighborhoods with entirely white residents. Later, the bombings were used against anyone working towards racial desegregation in the city. [1] One neighborhood within Birmingham experienced so many bombings it developed the nickname of Dynamite Hill. [2]
By the 1940s, black families were trying to purchase homes in segregated white areas of Birmingham. The local Ku Klux Klan began a terror campaign against black families attempting to move to the west side of Center Street, sometimes firing shots or bombs at houses or lighting a home's door on fire. Center Street became known as Dynamite Hill because of these attacks. From the late 1940s to the 1960s, over 40 unsolved bombings occurred in Birmingham. Klan members specifically targeted civil rights lawyer Arthur Shores who lived in Birmingham. Some families refused to leave, instead tolerating the attacks in an effort to support desegregation efforts. [3]