Yesterday marked another passing: Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, civil-rights leader, dies at age 89 [View All]

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Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, civil-rights leader, dies at age 89
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In his 1963 book Why We Can’t Wait, King called Shuttlesworth “one of the nation’s the most courageous freedom fighters … a wiry, energetic and indomitable man.”

He survived a 1956 bombing, an assault during a 1957 demonstration, chest injuries when Birmingham authorities turned fire hoses on demonstrators in 1963, and countless arrests.

“I went to jail 30 or 40 times, not for fighting or stealing or drugs,” Shuttlesworth told grade school students in 1997. “I went to jail for a good thing, trying to make a difference.”

He visited frequently and remained active in the movement in Alabama even after moving in 1961 to Cincinnati, where he was a pastor for most of the next 47 years. He moved back to Birmingham in February 2008 for rehabilitation after a mild stroke. That summer, the once-segregated city honored him with a four-day tribute and named its airport after him; his statue stands outside the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.

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http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/national_world/2011/10/05/civil-rights-leader-shuttlesworth-dies.html

RIP Reverend Shuttlesworth!