Bull Connor FBI Files

Description

Bull Connor and the Birmingham Civil Rights Protests

Detailed Timeline of Events Related to Bull Connor

• July 11, 1897: Theophilus Eugene “Bull” Connor is born in Selma, Alabama.
• 1960s: Bull Connor serves as the Public Safety Commissioner of Birmingham, Alabama.
• 1960s (Specific dates not provided in source): During this period, Birmingham becomes a major center of civil rights protests. As Public Safety Commissioner, Bull Connor aggressively confronts these protests.
• 1960s (Specific dates not provided in source): Connor utilizes tactics such as fire hoses, police dogs, and even a small tank against civil rights marchers in Birmingham.
• 1960s (Specific dates not provided in source): The brutal tactics employed by Bull Connor against peaceful protestors are broadcast on national television, bringing the reality of racial injustice in the South to a wider audience.
• Mid-1960s (Implied): The national outrage and attention generated by the events in Birmingham, largely due to Connor’s actions, serve as a significant catalyst for social and legal change in the South.
• July 2, 1964: The United States Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The source indicates that the events involving Bull Connor played a large role in ensuring its passage.

Cast of Characters

• Theophilus Eugene “Bull” Connor: Born on July 11, 1897, in Selma, Alabama. In the 1960s, he was the Public Safety Commissioner of Birmingham, Alabama. He became a symbol of hard-line Southern racism due to his aggressive and brutal tactics against civil rights protestors, including the use of fire hoses, police dogs, and a small tank. Ironically, the national broadcast of his actions is credited with galvanizing support for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Bull Connor FBI Files

Theophilus Eugene “Bull” Connor was born on July 11, 1897 in Selma, Alabama. In the 1960’s he was the Public Safety Commissioner of Birmingham, Alabama. In this position he countered civil rights protest actions with fire hoses, police dogs, and even a small tank against protest marchers. His aggressive tactics lead to him becoming a symbol of hard-line Southern racism.

Connor efforts backfired when the spectacle of the brutality being broadcast on national television served as one of the catalysts for major social and legal change in the South and helped in large measure to assure the passage by the United States Congress of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.