Black History Month

WHEREAS, Alabamians of all backgrounds and experiences have contributed to the rich history of the state of Alabama, and African Americans hold a special place in the history of the state of Alabama as the birthplace of the Civil Rights movement; and

WHEREAS, Dexter Avenue Baptist Church is a National Historic Landmark located just steps away from the Alabama State Capitol; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., served as pastor where, in its basement, he organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which ultimately led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; and

WHEREAS, the state of Alabama served as the lightning rod for freedom across the nation on March 7, 1965, when the world witnessed 600 civil rights marchers standing up for freedom and being attacked on the Edmund Pettus Bridge as they attempted to march from Selma to Montgomery; and

WHEREAS, the citizens of Alabama came together to complete the historic march on March 24, 1965, at the Alabama State Capitol; and

WHEREAS, Alabama was the home to many great African American educators and inventors such as George Washington Carver, who devised more than 100 products from the peanut, and the founder of Tuskegee University, Booker T. Washington; and

WHEREAS, in December 1873, the State Board of Education accepted the transfer of title to the Lincoln Normal School, the predecessor of Alabama State University, after a legislative act was passed authorizing the state to fund the school making it America’s first state-sponsored education institution for African Americans; and

WHEREAS, Tuskegee University is the home of the Tuskegee Airman who were the first African-American military aviators in the United States armed forces, who served with dignity and honor in World War II and later became known as the Red Tail Angels by the bomber crews they protected:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert Bentley, Governor of the State of Alabama, do hereby observe the 38th Black History Month and declare February 2014, as

Black History Month

in the state of the Alabama.

Provided by the Office of the Governor of Alabama | governor.alabama.gov