Culture

Leroy Stover, Bham’s First Black Police Officer, Dies at 90

Leroy Stover, the first Black to serve as a patrolman on the Birmingham Police Department, died Thursday. He was 90. “Today, our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of former Deputy Chief Leroy Stover,” the police department released via social media. “As the first Black officer to integrate the Birmingham force, his legacy and work at the Birmingham Police Department paved a way for others to follow in his footsteps. We offer our full condolences to the family and know that he would forever be in our hearts and mind.” Johnnie Johnson, who later became the first Black chief, immediately followed Stover onto the force one day later, in March 1963. They were followed by Bob Boswell and Frank Horn. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Birmingham Residents Reflect on 60th Anniversary of Church Bombing

At exactly 10:22 a.m. on Friday, church bells – and the shofar at Temple Beth-El synagogue – rang out across Birmingham to honor those killed in the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church. It’s the 60th anniversary of the deadly attack that killed four young girls — 11-year-old Denise McNair, Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley, all 14 — and injured dozens more. Inside the historic church, a crowd heard a message from Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Outside, small groups of people gathered all over the city to commemorate the anniversary and reflect on the violence of the past and the progress the community has made over the decades. Read more.

by The Gulf States Newsroom

The Birmingham Zoo wants to build a new cat exhibit. First it must deal with unmarked graves

The zoo has filed for a permit with the Alabama Historical Commission to professionally exhume the graves and reinter them nearby. Read more.

by Miranda Fulmore, WBHM

Through Social Clubs and Education, Birmingham Woman Creates Community

Delena Chappel works to extend a sense of community to her students and other Black women. Read more.

by Rachel Parker, Gulf States Newsroom

60 Years Later, Kids Still March in Birmingham

Sixty years ago, thousands of children took to the streets in Birmingham to protest against racism and discrimination. On Friday, teens from around the city gathered to reenact this historic moment, known as the Children’s Crusade. Read more.

by Kyra Miles, WBHM

‘Injustice, Inc.’ Uncovers How Some in the Legal System Use Poor Families to Get Rich

Daniel L. Hatcher discusses his book, which looks at how state agencies exploit impoverished families to make money through the U.S. juvenile justice system. Read more.

by Bobbi-Jeanne Misick Gulf States Newsroom

‘Unreformed’ Podcast Tells the Largely Untold Story of an Abusive Alabama Reform School

A conversation with journalist and podcast host Josie Duffy Rice details the troubled history of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children, or Mt. Meigs. Read more.

by Bobbi-Jeanne Misick Gulf States Newsroom

Advocacy Group Helps Mexican Families in Alabama Reunite After Decades Apart

Some Mexican immigrants living in the U.S. hadn't seen their parents for decades. An advocacy group in Alabama is working with Mexican officials to reunite dozens of families in time for the holidays. Read more.

by Mary Scott Hodgin, WBHM

Traveling Exhibit Goes ‘Deeper’ Into Emmett Till’s Story, Civil Rights History of Host Cities

The story of Emmett Till’s brutal murder and the activism of his mother, Mamie Till Mobley, afterward are being told again thanks to a recent TV miniseries and a new Hollywood film. Till’s story has been told before, and there are details that are pretty widely known. Till was 14 years old when he was

by Taylor Washington, WBHM/Gulf States Newsroom

The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute Celebrates 30 Years

For decades, the BCRI has educated everyone from local students to global leaders about Birmingham's role in the Civil Rights movement. Read more.

by Miranda Fulmore, WBHM