Visiting Civil Rights Ground Zero

Montgomery, AL--This past Saturday I had the distinct privilege of visiting the only church that Martin Luther King, Jr pastored--the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, AL. It was in the basement of this historic church that the Montgomery Improvement Association in 1954 voted to initiate the landmark bus boycott after the arrest of Rosa Parks when she refused to give up her seat to a white man boarding the bus.

It is not often that one get the opportunity to tread on the ground where great historical events take place. Some have done so in the ruins of Greece and across the dusty trails of the Holy Land or the sacred ground known as Gettysburg. But just seeing the red brick church in the bright luminance of the Alabama sunshine made my heart flutter for just a while. This was enhanced all the more by sitting in that very basement for a civil rights video presentation and then walking upstairs to see the historic church itself.

Some things that I learned during my visit:

• The original pews that were in the church during the famed weekly civil rights meetings are still installed in the church and are used each week (albeit with soft cushions) during worship services.
  
• The original pulpit podium, chairs and communion table selected by Dr King during his pastorate are still in use today.
  
• The church was renamed a few years ago to honor Dr King to Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church.
  
• You have to pay to take the tour of the church which can be combined with a tour of the Church Parsonage where Dr King and his family lived. An adult combination ticket is $7 and $5 for children 12 and under.
• Dr King was only 24 years old when he was called to pastor Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.
  

Want to know more?

• Montgomery Bus Boycott on Wikipedia, The African American History page, or The Eyes On The Prize PBS website.
  
• The Church & Parsonage at The Church & Parsonage Website, Historic Places Of The Civil Rights Movement.
  
• Life at Dexter Ave Baptist Church from Dr King's Autobiography.