FABC P.A.S.S. Grant Press Release The Alabama Historical Commission has awarded Tuscaloosa’s First African Baptist Church located at 2621 Stillman Blvd in downtown Tuscaloosa, a $402,000 grant to aid in preserving a site where some of the most important moments in the city’s Civil Rights story took place—moments such as the birth of Selma University at an Alabama State Baptist Convention held at First African Baptist Church. Other historical moments such as "The Visit" occurred when Booker T. Washington gave a speech at First African Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa on February 20, 1910. Another visit and sermon were given by the Rev. Dr. Martin L. King as he installed his minister Rev. T.Y. Rodgers a pastor of the church. History further recorded on June 9, 1964, there was the not-so-recognized “Bloody Tuesday” event that took place. In 1963, Tuscaloosa Civil Rights pioneer, the Rev. T.Y Rodgers Jr. then pastor at First African Baptist Church; and other ministers and civil rights activists gathered at the church (FABC) to organize the Tuscaloosa Citizens for Action Committee (TCAC), which played a pivotal role in the long struggle to end racial segregation in the city. Bloody Tuesday began as a peaceful march of over 500 people that occurred, at the First African Baptist Church, during the Civil Rights Movement. The march was both organized and led by Rev. T. Y. Rogers and was to protest segregated drinking fountains and restrooms in the county courthouse. Protesters started arriving at The First African Baptist Church around 9:00 a.m. that morning. The protest consisted of a group of peaceful African Americans walking from The First African Baptist Church to the Tuscaloosa County Courthouse located downtown. Rev. Rogers was confronted by Chief of Police William Marable and asked if he still planned to march. Rogers answered affirmatively, then he and the other TCAC leaders were subsequently arrested. The rest of the demonstrators marched on, attempting to reach the courthouse. However, protesters did not get very far before being beaten with Billy clubs, baseball bats, sticks, cattle prods, and even water hoses. Furthermore, they were arrested, and tear-gassed by not only police officers standing outside the church but a mob of deputized angry white citizens as well. In addition, the police also fired tear gas through the stained-glass windows and attempted to arrest all protesters both inside and outside the church, but a few managed to escape the scene. These events were like Bloody Sunday during the Selma to Montgomery marches, which took place a year later and received an extensive amount of media coverage, while there were no journalists to capture the events of Bloody Tuesday. During Bloody Tuesday thirty-three men, women, and children had to be hospitalized, and ninety-four African Americans were arrested by police, this all taking place right outside the church with the marchers not having an opportunity to get to the courthouse. The Alabama Historical Commission's P.A.S.S. grant will support the restoration of a historical building, preserving Alabama's civil rights history and creating a positive impact on the community. Dr. Michael A. Foster, current pastor of First African Baptist Church, expresses his eternal gratitude to the Alabama Historical Commission for granting the funds. He also emphasized that maintaining old and historical buildings can be very costly, and this grant will provide us with an opportunity to preserve some of the State’s rich history of the African American Civil Rights movement. Dr. Foster stated that the history of First African Baptist Church and its contribution to the civil rights movement in Tuscaloosa had been somewhat forgotten. Still, the grant provides another chance for people of all ages to revisit the past positively.