American pastor
Joseph W. Ellwanger Jr.
(born February 18, 1934) is a
Lutheran
pastor, author, and
civil rights activist
. He was a key figure in the
Civil Rights Movement
in
Birmingham, Alabama
, and the only white religious leader included in strategy meetings with
Martin Luther King Jr.
[1]
Early life and education
[
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]
Born in 1934, Ellwanger spent part of his childhood in
Selma, Alabama
, where his father was a pastor and president of
Alabama Lutheran Academy and College
. Ellwanger graduated from
Concordia Seminary
in St. Louis, Missouri.
[2]
Career
[
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]
From 1958 to 1967, Ellwanger served as pastor of the
African-American church
, St. Paul Lutheran, in Birmingham. During that time, Ellwanger became colleagues with Martin Luther King Jr.
Ellwanger answered the call of King and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to recruit students and clergy to join the movement in Selma to take part in the march for voting rights from
Selma to the state capital of Montgomery
. Ellwanger took part in mass meetings, involving himself and members of his congregation in Civil Rights activities, and ultimately took a leadership role in community organizing. Ellwanger helped Martin Luther King Jr. and others plan the Birmingham demonstrations and helped organize the Saturday, March 6, 1965, march in Selma to support voting rights.
[3]
Ellwanger was the only white minister in Birmingham who took such an active role in supporting equal rights for
African Americans
.
[4]
Ellwanger spoke at the funeral for one of the four girls killed in the
16th Street Baptist Church bombing
in September, 1963, where Dr. King delivered the eulogy.
[5]
King included Ellwanger in a group of 15 pastors who met with
Governor George Wallace
. Ellwanger also met with
President Lyndon B. Johnson
to voice support for the
Voting Rights Act of 1965
.
[6]
In 1967, Ellwanger left for
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
, where he served as pastor of Cross Lutheran Church until 2001.
[7]
In 1969, Ellwanger worked with the
Black Panther Party
to expand the free breakfast program in Milwaukee.
[8]
In 1970, Ellwanger founded the prison ministry "Project RETURN," with the mission of aiding and rehabilitating citizens returning from incarceration.
[9]
After retiring from Cross Lutheran, Ellwanger spent a decade as a grassroots organizer for WISDOM, a statewide coalition of social justice groups in
Wisconsin
. Ellwanger founded WISDOM's statewide Reform Our Communities (ROC) Campaign to reform Wisconsin's criminal justice system.
In 2008, Ellwanger was named as the recipient of the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award. It is the highest honor bestowed on an individual by the
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
.
[10]
Ellwanger was a recipient of the 2016 Social Innovation Prize from Interfaith Older Adult Programs. The award included $10,000 to continue his work to end mass incarceration in Wisconsin.
[11]
Books
[
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]
Ellwanger has been a subject in a number of books, including
King: A Biography
by
David Levering Lewis
,
Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965
by
Juan Williams
,
Kids in Birmingham 1963
, and
On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail
by
Charles E. Cobb Jr
.
- Ellwanger, Joseph (2014).
Strength for the Struggle: Insights from the Civil Rights Movement and Urban Ministry
. HenschelHAUS Publishing.
ISBN
978-1-595-98296-4
.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Joseph Ellwanger: "Strength for the Struggle" - WBHM 90.3"
. June 13, 2014.
- ^
mulvennk (November 3, 2014).
"Joseph Ellwanger "Strength for the Struggle"
"
– via YouTube.
- ^
"Ellwanger, Joseph"
.
crdl.usg.edu
.
- ^
Gray, Jeremy (November 14, 2008) "Birmingham institute to honor the Rev. Ellwanger for early civil rights support." Birmingham News
- ^
Heinen, Tom (January 17, 2004) "Bombing revealed the danger of silence."
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
- ^
Talks at Google (August 10, 2016).
"Rev. Joseph Ellwanger: "Strength for the Struggle" - Talks At Google"
– via YouTube.
- ^
"Cross Lutheran Church :: Pastor Emeritus Joseph Ellwanger"
.
crosslutheranmilwaukee.org
.
- ^
"Comrades: A Local History of the Black Panther Party" Judson L. Jeffries, Indiana University Press, December 25, 2007
- ^
Phil Brooks (March 5, 2013).
"Origins: by Joe & Joyce"
– via YouTube.
- ^
Garrison, Greg (November 1, 2008) "Rev. Joseph Ellwanger to receive Shuttlesworth leadership award." Birmingham News
- ^
"Interfaith Announces 2016 Winner of the $10,000 Social Innovation Prize in Wisconsin - Interfaith Older Adult Programs"
. October 17, 2016.
External links
[
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]
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Events
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timeline
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| Prior to 1954
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1954?1959
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1960?1963
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1964?1968
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Activist
groups
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Activists
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By region
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Movement
songs
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Influences
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Related
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Legacy
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Noted
historians
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