Tommy Wrenn
Tommy Wrenn (born c. 1932 in Sumter County; died October 12, 2010 in Birmingham) was a dental technician and Civil Rights worker, and the founder of the Civil Rights Activist Committee, which collects histories and organizes programs for surviving "foot soldiers" of the Civil Rights Movement.
Wrenn served in the U. S. Army in the 1950s. During the Civil Rights Movement he worked as a field staffer for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, planning marching routes and obtaining permits when possible. He attended the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in August 1963. He suffered a concussion with Klansmen ambushed a march in St Augustine, Florida.
Wrenn remained socially active, serving on community groups and running for political office. He was a member of the Jefferson County Citizens Coalition.
Wrenn founded the Civil Rights Activist Committee in 1991. The group collects oral histories, which it publishes in a newsletter, and organizes reunions and other events for surviving Civil Rights workers. He died following a heart attack he suffered just after giving a speech at Southeastern Bible College in October 2010.
References
- Huntley, Horace and John W. McKerley, eds. (2009) Foot Soldiers for Democracy: The Men, Women, and Children of the Birmingham Civil Rights Movement. Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Press ISBN 9780252076688
- Faulk, Kent (October 21, 2010) "Birmingham resident and Civil Rights foot soldier Tommy Wrenn dies."
External links
- Interview with Wrenn on YouTube.com