Birmingham Independent

This article is about the 1960s newspaper. For the 1890s newspaper, see Birmingham Independent (1890s).

The Birmingham Independent and the Cahaba Valley News was a weekly newspaper published between 1964 and 1967. It was a successor to the Cahaba Valley News which was incorporated in 1962 and began publication in 1963. The paper merged into the Shelby County Independent in 1965. It continued as The Alabama Independent and Birmingham Independent until 1969, and as The Alabama Independent, with offices at 25 West Oxmoor Road, until 1974.

The Cahaba Valley News was incorporated on November 16, 1962 by Carroll McQueen, Carl Fischer and James Faulkner.

The overarching editorial stance of the Independent was opposing communism, a label which it eagerly painted onto any endeavor associated with promoting civil rights, labor rights or human rights. During the Civil Rights Movement, the Independent was known for publishing the photographs, names and addresses of white people who attended racially-integrated events, or meetings of groups thought to promote racial integration. As part of a campaign of intimidation, segregationists would distribute copies to the yards of neighbors of those appearing in the paper, with that person's photograph circled.

References

• Huntley, Horace (February 3, 1995) "Interview with Eileen Kelley Walbert" BCRI Oral History Collection - accessed March 12, 2021