JSU group to honor victims of 16th Street bombings

Taylor Bembery
Staff Writer

A group of Jackson State University students and faculty members are bound for Birmingham, Ala. On Sunday, Sept. 15, 2013 to honor and remember the tragic 16th Street bombing that took place almost 50 years ago. The bombing took the lives of four little girls; Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Denise McNair.
The 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala. was bombed on Sunday, Sept. 15, 1963 as an act of racially motivated terrorism. The explosion at the African-American church, marked a turning point in the 1960s Civil Rights Movement and contributed to support for passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
This trip is in conjunction with the COFO Center and will include students from the College of Liberal Arts at JSU and Tougaloo College. Rhonda Cooper, a political science professor at JSU, organized the trip because she thought it would be beneficial for the educational development of students.
“The trip was actually my idea, I spoke with Dean Potter in April of last semester and thought it was something that we could do and he said yes. He suggested that I speak with Dr. Chamberlain who was the former director of the COFO Center and she and I met before we broke for the summer. We just collaborated to bring this trip about,” said Cooper.
Cooper also added that it is most important for students to be exposed to the energy that this event will have.
“We have to ensure and secure our future progress and integrity for all of our participants, particularly our students, especially some who are coming from unrepresented areas. We want to expose our students to the political and social culture that currently is being plagued by violence. We know that the violence has plagued all of our societies and communities which has an impact on human and civil rights,” said Cooper.
Students attending will be able to use their experience from the trip to support them in course projects for grade credit.
Sunny Fridge, a mass communications professor at JSU, is taking her students to gain expertise in their skills while also learning about the importance of the civil rights movement.
“My students are excited. They are taking the lead in gathering information to prepare them for the trip. We are planning to do a multimedia story telling project in Birmingham. This will give students an opportunity to utilize their skills even though many of them weren’t born during the civil rights movement. This is a way for our students to tell the story,” said Fridge
Winston Curry, a senior mass communications major from Houston, Texas at JSU, plans to travel to Birmingham with the group.
“It’s an honor to be going to historical grounds and being able to capture the moment. I hope to learn more about filming documentaries and this trip will give me the chance to do that,” said Curry.
The group will depart from Jackson, Miss. on Sunday, Sept. 15 at 6:00 a.m. and arrive in Birmingham, Ala. at 10:00 a.m. to participate in the Birmingham chapter of the NAACP Wreath Laying Ceremony in Kelly Ingram Park.