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FD-350 (Rev. 5-8-81) (Mount Clipping in Space Below) {Indicate page, name of newspaper, city and state.) THE BIRMINGHAM NEWS |BIRMINGHAM, AL. Date. 9/12/93 Edition: SUNDAY Title. "BAPBOMB" Character: or 157-352 Classification: Submitting Oftice. BH Indexing: Working toward justice © By Mike Harper weekend at a church camp on the Sunday afternoon of Sept. 15, $963 I have vivid memories of hearing on the radio the news of the sombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Now, in my 46th year, that event continues to stand as a major turning point in my life and, in a rea] sense, the beginning of my adulthood. I was a senior at West End High School that fall. The city was in turmoil! and my school, along with Graymont and Ramsay. became the first three in the Birmingham school syste to become desegregated. Much has changed since that tumultuous time 30 vears ago. In many ways our city is more whole, more just, and more complete because of the growing, if grudging, acceptance of our racial diversity. Needless to say, however, racia! justice is still a distant goal for us. Ours is a beautiful city, graced with talented and skillful ie a 16-year-old returning to Birmingham from a Copy Sent residents. In our early days we became known as “The Magic City” because of our industrial promise and quick growth. In more recent days a number of us have sought to help Birmingham be known for a different kind of magic. The Metropolitan Area Justice Interfaith Committee, or MAJIC, was formed earlier this year as an interfaith and biracial! committee of religious leaders and lay people committed to strengthening our community, especially in the areas of racial and economic justice. We initially came together at the time of the heightened community tensions caused by the federal investigation of Mayor Richard Arrington, the Los Angeles riots after the Rodney King case, and the Skinhead murder of a homeless man in our Community. Many will remember the real sense of dread and uncertainty in the air during the unfolding of those events. We wanted then, as we seek now, to enable people of faith with a common commitment to justice to have not only a place to stand in crisis, but an ongoing vehicle for reflecting on and working in the area of justice. The hope is to do that before another crisis arises. ; Our initial gathering was a worship service at the downtown First Presbyterian Church in early May. Our theme was “Remembering Our Past and Claiming Our Future.” We [502 3822 SPI 1B a woe 1 GeMabie eh - sep 18 1993 To FBIHQ eee Far No5