Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Terri A. Sewell (D-AL) released the following statement applauding the National Park Service’s announced investment of roughly $1.5 million in historic civil rights sites in Birmingham and Selma, Alabama:

“I am beyond thrilled that the $7.5 million we worked hard to get into the National Park Services budget last year has borne fruit for our district with the National Park Services investing a half million dollars each in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham and the historic Brown Chapel Church in Selma, as well as approximately $50 thousand dollars in the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute,” states Congresswoman Sewell. “These investments being announced just as we learned that President Obama had designated the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument, shows the resolute commitment of this administration to preserving the story of civil rights for future generations.”

“We are truly grateful for the Congresswoman’s leadership and support in this effort. This is just a Godsend for the church,” states Dr. Leroy Maxwell, who is Board Chair of the Historic Brown Chapel A.M.E. Preservation Society Inc., a foundation that oversees preserving the historic site that played a pivotal role in the Voting Rights Movement in Selma. “The money will be used for a number of repairs, and we hope to get started on them as soon as possible. The church really needs some work. We look forward to restoring this iconic civil rights site to its full glory as the rally point for organizers in the struggle for human dignity and the right to vote.”

"The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church is honored to be named a recipient of the National Park Service African American Civil Rights Grant, along with our neighbor The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute,” states Rev. Arthur Price, Jr., who is Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. This grant will help us to continue the preservation and restoration of the Historic Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. We are grateful to Congresswoman Sewell for her diligent work in making sure we were aware of this grant program. We count it a privilege to continue to show the world God’s redemptive power in the midst of human struggle and the tragedies endured here in Birmingham during the Civil Rights Movement.”

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