Today’s guest columnist is Barbara Keight Staub.

“I would’ve beaten King if those damn merchants hadn’t given in.” — Bull Connor, Commissioner of Public Safety, 1963

Nine years after Brown vs. Board of Education ordered the integration of public schools, most private facilities in the Deep South were still segregated in 1963.

Banks refused to hire Black tellers, there were no Black reporters at white-owned newspapers, corporations wouldn’t allow Black employees to hold executive positions, and department stores were void of Black salespeople.

At age 90, Michael Pizitz may be the last person still alive who attended the meeting of Birmingham’s downtown merchants in June 1963. I feel fortunate to hear this story firsthand, sitting in his family’s office near Highland Avenue.

In the spring and summer of 1963, Black Southerners and their allies were advocating for integration by boycotting retail stores in downtown Birmingham. Meanwhile, Bull Connor—whose position gave him administrative authority over the police, fire departments, libraries and other public spaces in Birmingham—enthusiastically defended segregation.

Dr. King, Rev. Shuttlesworth and other Birmingham ministers had been busy visiting the local giants of commerce—including U.S. Steel, Birmingham’s largest employer at the time—and asking them to integrate. They were turned away.

“Segregation was the law of Birmingham,” Michael explained. “Eventually, the reverends realized the only people they could effectively pressure were the stores. You could boycott a retail store more easily than you could a utility company.”

Prominent civil rights leaders urged Black shoppers to avoid Birmingham’s downtown stores. It was not uncommon for Black shoppers to be confronted by organizers on the streets and encouraged to take their buying power elsewhere.

By May 1963, retail owners felt the pressure. Stores such as Loveman’s and Pizitz, which had basement stores that sold goods at discounted rates, attracted more Black shoppers than their competitors and were hit hardest by ongoing boycotts.

While Black citizens boycotted stores that adhered to segregation, white citizens vowed to boycott stores if they integrated. Michael estimated that sales were down 10 to 15 percent during the most intense period of social unrest.

The Pizitz family had also been receiving threats at home. Michael remembers his family blowing a whistle loudly into the phone to deter callers. His mother went to the police, fearing harm to the family or the store.

The same month, hundreds of Black elementary and high school students were arrested by Bull Conner’s forces during a peaceful march. Images of children being attacked by hoses and police dogs were widely reported, standing out against even the darkest injustices that occurred during the Civil Rights Movement. It was a watershed moment.

“We all realized that this couldn’t go on forever. The violence downtown was escalating. A decision was made that the store owners needed to find a path toward integration,” Michael explained.

Every store downtown was invited to a meeting to discuss next steps. Michael was 29 when he accompanied his father to represent the Pizitz Department Store, which his family had operated on the corner of 19^th Street and 2^nd Avenue North since its opening in 1925.

The meeting was not publicly advertised. There were about 20 stores represented, including Pizitz, Loveman’s, Woolworth’s, Newberry’s, Burger-Phillips, S. H. Kress, Blach’s, Parisian, Sears and numerous smaller stores.

The meeting wasn’t recorded or transcribed. Michael admits his memory is hazy, although he understood the gravity of the moment. We’ll never know exactly what was said, but we do know what was decided.

On the Monday after the meeting, the stores removed their segregated water fountain signs. “To the best of my knowledge, that vote was unanimous,” Michael said. “It was agreed that on Monday of the following week, the restroom signs would come down.”

On the third Monday, the five stores that had restaurants within their buildings agreed to desegregate them. Sears was the only outlier, opting to close their lunch counter instead.

The final task was more controversial: hiring Black salespeople. It was a heated discussion. The call to action was for large stores to hire two Black salespeople, while smaller stores were asked to hire one.

Michael shared that while Pizitz and a handful of others agreed to this, the majority wouldn’t budge. “Those who refused to do it expressed a fear that White staff would lose their jobs,” he said.

Nonetheless, Pizitz soon had two Black salespeople, both promoted from within the store. “They had been with us for 15 years or so, if I recall. They were well-respected by their colleagues,” Michael shared. He doesn’t remember there being any conflict in the store following their promotions.

In roughly four short weeks, Birmingham retailers had gone from separate water fountains, bathrooms and restaurants to having White and Black salespeople working alongside one another. Within six months, Black salespeople became much more common.

“Pretty soon after the retail integration, the threats died down. The violence and picketing slowed,” Michael said.

Bull Connor finally left town, moving to Montgomery for a state position. The passing of the Civil Rights Act would follow in 1964, outlawing segregation and discriminatory employment practices in stores, theaters, restaurants and more.

In the end, it was economic pressure and threats of violence which prompted powerful Birmingham families into integrating their retail businesses. Michael himself doesn’t view it as heroic, but rather, a story worth documenting.

If you have loved ones who lived through this period of turmoil and change in Birmingham, take time to ask them about it. Recorded memories are a powerful tool for preserving our city’s history for future generations.

Keight Staub

Barbara Keight Staub is a writer and internal communications manager. She moved to Birmingham in 2011 and earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism from UAB in 2015. Her work has appeared in many Birmingham publications.

David Sher is the founder and publisher of ComebackTown.  He’s past Chairman of the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce (BBA), Operation New Birmingham (REV Birmingham), and the City Action Partnership (CAP).

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Invite David to speak for free to your group about how we can have a more prosperous metro Birmingham. dsher@comebacktown..com.