On May 2, 1963, children marched from the 16th Street Baptist Church, and 600 were arrested on that first day of demonstrations. So, we can assess it based on the truth or the facts in the matter and not just conspiracy as my father had called. And I wanted so much for him, not just to be a grandfather for grandfather's sake, but for him to find healing in himself and to come to some peace in himself so that he could be a grandfather and father. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. whose influence spurred a pivotal event of the civil rights movement, the "children's crusade" in Birmingham, Ala., but whose reputation was later marred by fringe political associations and a criminal conviction this year on incest charges involving a teenage daughter, died Friday in Springfield, Va. He helped plan the 1963 March on Washington and the Selma-to-Montgomery marches in 1965. Bevel also served as pastor and adviser to Chicago's Council of Mothers; the West Side Baptist Minister's Conference; WorkShip Coalition; and the Nation of Islam. His brother - and we were all present, either on the phone or live. ); and chairman of the Camden, New Jersey, County Economic Development Board. But, you know, I was sad because I knew that he wouldn't be a grandfather. They were severely penalized for missing work and were trying to support their families. That it's supposed to be only for procreation, and you have to be forced to see that, just like you have to be forced to accept nonviolence by getting beaten. [citation needed] During his speech to the crowd that day, Bevel called for a larger march in Washington D.C., a plan that evolved into the October 1967 March on the Pentagon. What is the name of Steve on minecraft's name. Ms. MILLS: Her - the exact statement was that I spelled molest wrong. Some protesters were jailed, but the movement kept the pressure on. James Bevel was born on October 19, 1936 and died on December 19, 2008. Harold Middebrooks at Bailey's Tabernacle Church . And we have to find a way, because they exist. Charismatic and eloquently quick-witted in a vernacular style, Mr. Bevel was known as a man of passion and peculiarity. They would have two children. By signing up, you'll get thousands of step-by-step solutions to your homework questions. [14], The Open Theater Movement, led by Bevel, had success in Nashville, the only city in the country where SCLC activists had organized such an action. How should we think about those two James Bevels? What if I do, we do remove my little sister from the environment and what if she decides to go back when she's 17 or 18 to see her dad, and he does the same thing and she gets wrapped up in his spell. I've never known him to be a liar. We know that James E Bevel had been residing in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana 46012. James Bevel Civil Disobedience 746 Words | 3 Pages. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). James Bevel. We didn't know each other really, and we were just getting to know each other, but I didn't know how difficult it would be. Screenshots are considered by the King Estate a violation of this notice. Weeks of demonstrations and marches resulted in King, Ralph Abernathy, and Shuttlesworth being arrested and jailed. [12] He was one of 17 children and grew up in rural LeFlore County of the Mississippi Delta and in Cleveland, Ohio. How much you describe it? Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. [39] Bevel's attorney appealed the denial of the abatement motion to the Supreme Court of Virginia. He was 72. on the Alabama project (Bevel, 13 April 1964). While a seminarian, he participated in two forms of nonviolent protest against institutionalized racial segregation: sit-ins by African American youths at department-store lunch counters in 1960 and the Freedom Rides on bus lines throughout the South in 1961. Practices such as requiring payment of poll taxes and literacy tests administered in a discriminatory way by white officials maintained the exclusion of blacks from the political system in the 1960s. He initiated the 1967 March on the United Nations as part of the anti-war movement. While in the Seminary, Bevel joined the Nashville chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), then led by the Reverend . MARTIN: Some people would call it intervention. In 1963, as the Alabama project director for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the organization led by Dr. King, Mr. Bevel persuaded Dr. King to allow children to participate in antisegregation demonstrations, in which they would almost surely face arrest. When the winds from the East. And I was always buffering between my father, I never let her be alone with him. Memorialize James's life with photos and stories about him and the Bevel family history and genealogy. MARTIN: One thing I want to point out is that one of the reasons that you decided to move forward with pressing charges is that there was a young woman in the house or a young girl in the house, with your father at the time your parents marriage had ended. Bevel was born in 1936 in Itta Bena, Mississippi, the son of Illie and Dennis Bevel. Civil Rights Activist. Eventually Bevel and his colleagues won a hard-fought, nonviolent victory; soon after, as chairman of the Nashville student movement, Bevel participated in Freedom Rides to desegregate interstate travel and public accommodations throughout the South. The news coverage, which featured children being water-hosed by police and more than 600 youth being arrested, prompted a groundswell of support for the civil rights movement. Bevel was born to sharecroppers on Oct. 19, 1936, in Itta Bena, Miss., one of 17 children. In 1962, Bevel was invited to meet in Atlanta with Martin Luther King Jr, a minister who was head of the SCLC. Besides being a leader in the Children's Crusade in which police turned fire hoses and dogs on child protesters, Bevel was also an organizer at other civil rights movement events, including the 1965 march at Selma, Ala. After the verdict, Bevel claimed that the charges were part of a conspiracy to destroy his reputation, and said that he might appeal. So, I really felt powerless. A one-time top lieutenant to Martin Luther King Jr. was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison for having sex more than a decade ago with his then-teenage daughter. [28][29], Bevel moved to Omaha, Nebraska, in November 1990 as the leader of the "Citizens Fact-Finding Commission to Investigate Human Rights Violations of Children in Nebraska", a group organized by the Schiller Institute. Ms. MILLS: The hardest part was learning of everyone's story. But he was also a child predator, who exploited the trust of his family by molesting his daughter Aaralyn Mills. When Bevel died in December 2008, he had served a few months of a 15-year sentence. Bob Fitch photography archive, Stanford University Libraries. And I realized that, one, that it wasn't just you know, one way to live. Originally planned as a rally in Central Park, the United Nations Anti-Vietnam War March became the largest demonstration in American history to that date. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. These quality collectors pieces are designed for visual appeal. After the scare, James says it took a month of "intensive therapy" before he could get back on stage. James Luther Bevel, one of 17 children, was born on Oct 19, 1936, in Itta Bena, in central Mississippi, and divided his childhood between there and Cleveland, where he worked in the steel mills as a teenager. After serving seven months he was freed awaiting an appeal; he died of pancreatic cancer in December 2008. At the time, Bevel was living in Leesburg, Virginia, and working with LaRouche's group, whose international headquarters was a few blocks from Bevel's apartment. MARTIN: Aaralyn Mills tells her powerful story of rape and recovery in the pages of the Washington Post Magazine. In September 1963, a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham killed four young girls attending Sunday School and damaged the church. Bevel was forced from his position in the SCLC after exhibiting erratic behaviour. Ms. MILLS: Well first of all, I had that feeling, too, that I didn't want to touch it, that I have moved on with my life. There a lot of people who have - who didn't go through what you went through, who would not had been able to do what you did. This was followed by a number of erratic-seeming episodes in his life. John Lewis, another King confidant who has been a Georgia congressman for more than 20 years, recalled in a memoir that at Spelman College in Atlanta, Mr. Bevel once declared himself a prophet and made his student disciples drink urine to signal their loyalty. James Luther Bevel, (born Oct. 19, 1936, Itta Bena, Miss., U.S.died Dec. 19, 2008, Springfield, Va.), American minister and political activist who played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement in the early 1960s. And he used his historical background in the civil rights as an example of see what I did so far, I'm still doing that. Ms. MILLS: Perhaps. After buses and riders were severely attacked, including a firebombing of a bus and beatings with police complicity in Birmingham, Alabama, CORE suspended the rides. A loud opponent of American involvement in Vietnam, which he viewed as an extension of white oppression of nonwhites, Mr. Bevel was instrumental in Dr. Kings increasingly vocal opposition to the war. A young man, he died a few days later. I am equally as devastated and disgusted by his pedophilia," Orrin said. Ms. MILLS: I mean we have to look at a lot of aspects of life, in those parallels. At the sentencing hearing, the victims said they were hoping that Bevel would apologize for his actions and seek forgiveness and reconciliation. Ms. MILLS: I don't, I don't think he's mentally ill. [5] Together the groups became collectively known as the Selma Voting Rights Movement, with James Bevel as its director. [38], Bevel's attorney requested that the Court of Appeals of Virginia abate the conviction on account of Bevel's death. WASHINGTON - The Rev. James Luther Bevel (October 19, 1936 - December 19, 2008) was a leader of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement who, as the Director of Direct Action and Director of Nonviolent Education of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), i . How did James bevel die? But it's this idea that he was teaching all his daughters to look at the evils in the world and within men whatever - whoever the man was, whether it's your father or the guy next door or your husband. During the trial, Bevel's daughter testified that she was repeatedly molested by Bevel beginning when she was just 6 years old, culminating in sexual intercourse in 1993 or 1994 that formed the basis of the incest charge. He earned extensive . And being there for two years, I was saturated in the environment where family values and just you know, I grew up where there was a lot of talked about love and peace, and happiness, and family values. James Bevel died on December 19, 2008 in . Far from be-ing "secondary," King's popular essays and incandes-cent oratory made him unique. Bevel also served as pastor and adviser to Chicago's Council of Mothers; the West Side Baptist Minister's Conference; WorkShip Coalition; and the Nation of Islam. MARTIN: How many siblings do you believe were abused by your father? We have great country we live in that had slavery. In Birmingham when Dr. Martin Luther King was jailed, Bevel organized what became known as the Children's Crusade and faced Police Commissioner Bull Connor's fire hoses and police dogs. Related Videos Bloody Sunday(TV-14; 4:10) Civil Rights Foot Soldiers(TV-14; 4:10) March from Selma to Montgomery(TV-14; 4:13) Don't think I thought about James Bevel until he died in 2008 at age 72. Naval Reserve in 1954 and 1955 before entering the American Baptist Theological Seminary in Nashville, Tennessee. James found out he had a gallbladder infection and needed emergency surgery. A minister and civil right activist who was the Director of Direct Action and the Director of Nonviolent Education of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference during the 1960's. James Bevel was born in MS. She was not able to deal with it. Although Bevel initially intended to pursue a recording career, he felt called to Christian ministry. [13] While at seminary, Bevel reread Leo Tolstoy's 1894 book The Kingdom of God Is Within You, which had previously inspired his decision to leave the military. Do you have any idea where you were able to find that within yourself to do this? As the Chicago movement neared its conclusion A. J. Muste, David Dellinger, representatives of North Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh, and others asked Bevel to take over the directorship of the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam. Aaralyn Mills, good luck to you. Ms. MILLS: I feel almost as if it's something I had to do. "Everyone dies. Bevel suggested recruiting students in the campaign. This information, his behavior in now also part of history. On Saturday, she told The Associated Press she's still processing her "very complicated" feelings about his death. And what really helped me was the fact that I had such a support system. James I died on this day in 1625. . The Rev. During what was later called the Birmingham Children's Crusade, President John F. Kennedy asked King to stop using children in the campaign.