In The Shadows of Birmingham:
The 1962-1963 Huntsville Civil Rights Movement


by Brandon Curnel
Seventh Grade Social Studies Teacher, Sparkman Middle School

Abstract

This historical study examines the Huntsville Civil Rights Movement and what made the movement both unique and an overwhelming success. The work analyzes the impact Project Paperclip, the relocation of Nazi scientists, had on the Huntsville area and the movement toward civil rights and social justice for African Americans living in the "Rocket City". The book details why Huntsville was a prime location for a groundbreaking movement leading to Huntsville being the first desegregated city in the state of Alabama and home to the first integrated public school system in the "Heart of Dixie". This examination of events involving Huntsville and Madison County concludes that because of the influx of Nazi scientists coupled with the development of NASA and the businesses that followed, Huntsville was more apt to accept a civil rights movement, ultimately leading to the achievement of integration compared other cities in the Deep South.



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