The New York Instances and the Smithsonian Institute will provide excursions of Alabama’s civil rights landmarks
The 16th Street Baptist Church will be a stop on the New York Times and Smithsonian Institute civil rights tours. Photo via Pat Byington for Bham Now
Almost four years ago to this day, the former President Obama built the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument. It’s now paying off – The New York Times and Smithsonian Institute are planning tours of Alabama’s civil rights landmarks in 2021, including our own monuments.
Following the history of Birmingham in the civil rights movement
16th Street Baptist Church and the rectory. Photo by Pat Byington for Bham Now
I grew up in Birmingham and still remember the first time I visited civil rights landmarks like the 16th Street Baptist Church and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Seeing Birmingham’s role as the “center of the civil rights movement” was impressive and I can only imagine how new visitors will feel when they see these monuments and hear stories from people who lived through the movement.
The tours will follow the steps of the civil rights movement in Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma and Tuskegee. Planned stops in Birmingham are the 16th Street Baptist Church and the Historic Bethel Baptist Church.
With the designation of the Civil Rights National Monument, the area received more than just attention. Thanks to a number of grants, renovations and new exhibits are coming to the 16th Street Baptist Church. People are also encouraged to visit the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, a Smithsonian subsidiary.
We can imagine that the tour will also bring new attention to the AG Gaston Motel, the motel where civil rights activists gathered to discuss strategies. The motel renovations are expected to be completed in December 2021.
Scheduled stops on the tours include civil rights landmarks across Alabama
Memorial to three pastors in Kelly Ingram Park in the Birmingham Civil Rights District. Photo by Pat Byington for Bham Now
Outside of Birmingham, the tours include the historic Bloody Sunday suffrage march, Edmund Pettus Bridge and Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma. Other planned stops on the program are the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts to see the African American collections, the Freedom Rides Museum and the Tuskegee Airmen Historic Site.
The Alabama African-American Civil Rights Heritage Sites consortium helped the Smithsonian plan their itinerary. Most of the stops on the Smithsonian tour are on the US Civil Rights Trail.
The tours will testify to the history of Birmingham as the epicenter of the civil rights movement
Statue of four little girls at the entrance to Kelly Ingram Park in front of the 16th Street Baptist Church. Photo by Pat Byington for Bham Now
In addition to stops at major attractions, the tours will include discussions with local experts such as staff from the Equal Justice Initiative and the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Hear from foot soldiers who took part in the 1965 suffrage campaign on the Smithsonian Tour in Selma. The Times trip will include a conversation with Peggy Wallace Kennedy, daughter of former Governor George Wallace, who denounced her father’s policies.
These tours are big news for Birmingham. As visitors learn about the city’s role in the civil rights movement, they will also see the thriving culture of Birmingham from Birmingham’s historic Fourth Avenue business district to the June 19th celebration of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.
Here is everything you need to know about the tours that are planned:
- Length: Each tour lasts six days with itineraries full of planned stops at civil rights attractions.
- Costs: The Smithsonian tour starts at $ 4,795 and the Times tour starts at $ 5,195. The cost includes hotel accommodation, most meals, and air transfers.
- When: The tours should start in March with further tours in autumn.
- The New York Times Civil Rights Tour | Smithsonian Civil Rights Tour
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