 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
On a cloudy afternoon, I found my way to the Birmingham Jail.
 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
Bail bondsmen storefronts give off a cheery cottage vibe, like a clutch of souvenir shops and cafes in a beachside village.
 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
Today's carceral campus design presents us with both Old Testament damnation and New Testament salvation, revealed by the implacable, brutalist architecture adjacent to a pastoral woodland warmed by a heavenly light.
 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
 |
| Birmingham Jail site, South Titusville, Birmingham, Alabama. November 2020. |
Letters From Birmingham Jail
Dr. Martin Luther King's Letter From Birmingham Jail is, of course, what brought me to the jail site in the South Titusville neighborhood of Birmingham.
I have read the Letter many times. With each reading, I discover something new and brilliant in the Letter about standing up for human rights, for civil rights. Every time I read some crazy-ass allegation about Black Lives Matter or when people paint protests as "riots," I can refer to the Letter From Birmingham Jail, written more than 50 years ago, for a precise, on-point response to whatever fear-filled, ignorant point they think they're making.
I have created a lesson plan for my ESL students from the letter. In addition to content, we can talk about the Letter as a work of fine literature.
Here is a recording of Dr. King's reading of the letter.
The song
When we were young, my mother sang to me and my siblings in her clear, quiet alto voice. One of the songs in her repertoire was an Appalachian folk song, Down in the Valley.
I didn't know until I moved to Alabama that the song also went under the title, Birmingham Jail. This came about because of a stanza added in the 1920s by Jimmy Tarleton, who passed some time in the jail. What a surprise! Here is an early (the first?) recording of the song in its Birmingham Jail iteration, performed by Jimmy Tarleton and Tom Darby.
"Down in the levee; levee so low
Late in the evening, hear that train blow
Hear the train blow love, hear the train blow
Late in the evening, hear the train blow.
Roses love sunshine; violets love dew
Angels in heaven know I love you
Write me a letter; send it by mail
Send it in care of Birmingham jail
Birmingham Jail, love, Birmingham jail
Send it in care of Birmingham jail
Bessie my darlin; Bessie my dear
Bessie I love you, oh yes I do
Down in the meadow, down on my knees
Praying to heaven, give my heart ease
Lighting a candle, singin' so low
Kiss me once more, love, that I might go."
And below is Leadbelly's version of the song, Birmingham Jail, whose lyrics expand on the jail experience:
Leadbelly's lyrics:
Hear the wind blow boys
Hear the wind blow
Put your head out the window
And hear the wind blow
Write me a letter
Send it by mail
Address it all over
That Birmingham Jail
Birmingham Jail boys
The Birmingham Jail
Address it all over
That Birmingham Jail
High sheriff will arrest you
Bond you over in jail
Can't get nobody
To go your bail
To go your bail boys
To go your bail
Can't get nobody
To go your bail
Send for your lawyer
Come down to your cell
He'll swear he can clear you
In spite of all hell
In spite of all hell boys
In spite of all hell
He'll swear he can clear you
In spite of all hell
Give the biggest your money
Come back for the rest
Tell you to plead guilty
For he knows that it's best
He knows that it's best boys
He knows that it's best
Tell you to plead guilty
He knows that it's best
Down in the valley
The valley so low
Put your head out the window
And hear the wind blow
You can hear the wind blow
You can hear the wind blow
Put your head out the window
And hear the wind blow
Below is a slideshow of the Birmingham Jail and its environs:
No comments:
Post a Comment