Birmingham Church Bombing Victims
By Kiersten
Addie Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Denise McNair were four young and innocent students who were active in their community. They were volunteering in the Children’s Crusade which was a march to help end segregation in Birmingham, Alabama. The four girls were killed during Sunday School at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church on September 15, 1963. Their deaths helped the world realize just how bad racism was in parts of the United States.
Cynthia Wesley was one of eight children. She was born into poverty. Her birth mother’s name was Estelle Morris. Estelle wanted what was best for her, so she let Claude Wesley and his wife Gertrude raise her as their own. Claude worked as a school principal, and Gertrude was a nursery school teacher. Cynthia went to live with the Wesley family when she was only six years old. She was their only child. When Cynthia got a little older, she joined the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Choir. She was very small, and she made friends easily. She used to invite all of her friends over, and she would have lawn parties with them. Cynthia was very involved in her community. In addition to playing the saxophone in her school marching band, she also participated in dance programs and sang in a choir. When she got to Ullman High School, she got straight A’s and was an honors student. On top of all of the things that Cynthia did, she also donated lots of items to charity. She would donate things like music books for kids who might not be able to afford them. One of her friends Dr. Freeman Hrabowski III said that she was a caring person because she befriended him even though he was “fat.” Most people didn’t want to be bothered with a fat boy like him, but she was very nice to him and she treated him like a human being.
Addie Mae Collins was another person that passed away in the bombing. Born on April 18, 1949, she was the seventh of eight children. Addie was in eighth grade at Hill Elementary. She loved to play games with her brothers and sisters. Her siblings said that whenever the family got into an argument, she always tried to come up with a solution to the problem. One of Addie’s sisters, Janie, said that if Addie had lived, she would have majored in a job that required being socially active. People that knew Addie Mae said that she was very loving to all of the people that she met, and she was trying to make people as happy as possible.
Denise McNair was born November 17, 1951. According to Denise’s friends, she was always trying to support people that were going through hard times. At one point, Denise was invited to join a club. The other club members were going to exclude a girl because they didn’t think that she could pay the five cents that was required to join the club. Denise didn’t think that it was fair to exclude anyone, so she offered to pay the fee for her. A couple of years later, Denise heard about an organization that helped people that had a disease called Muscular Dystrophy. She was so moved by what the organization did, that she started a neighborhood fundraiser to help the organization. She enjoyed putting on shows for her friends and family. Her parents tried to keep her from finding out about segregation in Birmingham, but she found out about the Children’s Crusade. When she asked her cousin if she could join, he said that she was too young. Her parents thought that the marches should be for adults only, but eventually her mother mother agreed to let her join.
Another one of the victims in the bombing was Carole Robertson. Carole was the youngest of three children. She was born on April 24, 1949 to Alvin (father) and Alpha (mother.) Alvin was a bandmaster at an elementary school and Alpha was a librarian. Carole was raised in a loving home with good surroundings. One of her friends, Carolyn Lee, said that she was very giving and outgoing. She loved to read and was a straight-A student at Parker High School. Like Denise McNair, Carole was very active in her community. She participated in dance class (ballet and tap dance) and was a member of Girl Scout Troop 264. Carole played the clarinet in the school marching band, and was a member of the choir and science club. Carole was supposed to march in her first game the Monday after the bombing, but sadly, she never got the chance.
After the girls were killed in the bombing, it made people frustrated with how hateful some people are. It motivated people to fight harder for their rights, and it attracted more citizens, black and white to join the movement. Some people were joining because they didn’t want the girls to have died for nothing. They wanted something good to come out of a sad thing. Some people joined because they realized that the white racists had taken their cruelty to a completely new level. This tragedy strengthened the Civil Rights Movement and eventually led to the end of segregation.
By Kiersten
Addie Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Denise McNair were four young and innocent students who were active in their community. They were volunteering in the Children’s Crusade which was a march to help end segregation in Birmingham, Alabama. The four girls were killed during Sunday School at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church on September 15, 1963. Their deaths helped the world realize just how bad racism was in parts of the United States.
Cynthia Wesley was one of eight children. She was born into poverty. Her birth mother’s name was Estelle Morris. Estelle wanted what was best for her, so she let Claude Wesley and his wife Gertrude raise her as their own. Claude worked as a school principal, and Gertrude was a nursery school teacher. Cynthia went to live with the Wesley family when she was only six years old. She was their only child. When Cynthia got a little older, she joined the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Choir. She was very small, and she made friends easily. She used to invite all of her friends over, and she would have lawn parties with them. Cynthia was very involved in her community. In addition to playing the saxophone in her school marching band, she also participated in dance programs and sang in a choir. When she got to Ullman High School, she got straight A’s and was an honors student. On top of all of the things that Cynthia did, she also donated lots of items to charity. She would donate things like music books for kids who might not be able to afford them. One of her friends Dr. Freeman Hrabowski III said that she was a caring person because she befriended him even though he was “fat.” Most people didn’t want to be bothered with a fat boy like him, but she was very nice to him and she treated him like a human being.
Addie Mae Collins was another person that passed away in the bombing. Born on April 18, 1949, she was the seventh of eight children. Addie was in eighth grade at Hill Elementary. She loved to play games with her brothers and sisters. Her siblings said that whenever the family got into an argument, she always tried to come up with a solution to the problem. One of Addie’s sisters, Janie, said that if Addie had lived, she would have majored in a job that required being socially active. People that knew Addie Mae said that she was very loving to all of the people that she met, and she was trying to make people as happy as possible.
Denise McNair was born November 17, 1951. According to Denise’s friends, she was always trying to support people that were going through hard times. At one point, Denise was invited to join a club. The other club members were going to exclude a girl because they didn’t think that she could pay the five cents that was required to join the club. Denise didn’t think that it was fair to exclude anyone, so she offered to pay the fee for her. A couple of years later, Denise heard about an organization that helped people that had a disease called Muscular Dystrophy. She was so moved by what the organization did, that she started a neighborhood fundraiser to help the organization. She enjoyed putting on shows for her friends and family. Her parents tried to keep her from finding out about segregation in Birmingham, but she found out about the Children’s Crusade. When she asked her cousin if she could join, he said that she was too young. Her parents thought that the marches should be for adults only, but eventually her mother mother agreed to let her join.
Another one of the victims in the bombing was Carole Robertson. Carole was the youngest of three children. She was born on April 24, 1949 to Alvin (father) and Alpha (mother.) Alvin was a bandmaster at an elementary school and Alpha was a librarian. Carole was raised in a loving home with good surroundings. One of her friends, Carolyn Lee, said that she was very giving and outgoing. She loved to read and was a straight-A student at Parker High School. Like Denise McNair, Carole was very active in her community. She participated in dance class (ballet and tap dance) and was a member of Girl Scout Troop 264. Carole played the clarinet in the school marching band, and was a member of the choir and science club. Carole was supposed to march in her first game the Monday after the bombing, but sadly, she never got the chance.
After the girls were killed in the bombing, it made people frustrated with how hateful some people are. It motivated people to fight harder for their rights, and it attracted more citizens, black and white to join the movement. Some people were joining because they didn’t want the girls to have died for nothing. They wanted something good to come out of a sad thing. Some people joined because they realized that the white racists had taken their cruelty to a completely new level. This tragedy strengthened the Civil Rights Movement and eventually led to the end of segregation.