On September 15, 1963, Collins and three other African-American girls were killed in a terrorist attack perpetrated by members of the Ku Klux Klan. At 10:22 a.m., a bomb exploded under the steps of the church. All the. [85] He expressed regret that the state was unable to request the death penalty in this case, as the death penalty in effect in the state in 1963 had been repealed. Other witnesses obtained identified Chambliss as the individual who had placed the bomb beneath the church. These demonstrations led to an agreement, on May 8, between the city's business leaders and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, to integrate public facilities, including schools, in the city within 90 days. dirty native american jokes; . [7] Herman Cash had died in 1994, and was never charged with his alleged involvement in the bombing. Although the FBI had concluded in 1965 that the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing had been committed by four known Klansmen and segregationists: Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr., Herman Frank Cash, Robert Edward Chambliss, and Bobby Frank Cherry,[6] no prosecutions were conducted until 1977, when Robert Chambliss was tried by Alabama Attorney General Bill Baxley and convicted of the first-degree murder of one of the victims, 11-year-old Carol Denise McNair. The four individuals named in the FBI report were Blanton, Cash, Chambliss, and Cherry. Following Cook's testimony, Baxley introduced police sergeant Ernie Cantrell. "[99] Cross testified that she would usually have accompanied her friends into the basement lounge to change into robes for the forthcoming sermon, but she had been given an assignment. birmingham church bombing victims autopsyirina emelyanova pasternak 26th February 2023 / in coastal carolina football camp 2022 / by / in coastal carolina football camp 2022 / by The Birmingham church bombing occurred on September 15, 1963, when a bomb exploded before Sunday morning services at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabamaa church with a. Robinson died before reaching the hospital. Sarah Collins Rudolph was the fifth girl and survived. Vaccines dont work, masks dont work: Everything government told us about COVID-19 was wrong. [81] He testified that Chambliss had visited his headquarters in 1976 and that he had attempted to affix the blame for the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing upon an altogether different member of the KKK. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. Maxine McNair, the last living parent of any of the four Black girls killed in a 1963 Alabama church bombing, died Sunday. The Birmingham Blitz was the heavy bombing by the Nazi German Luftwaffe of the city of Birmingham and surrounding towns in central England, beginning on 9 August 1940 as a fraction of the greater Blitz, which was part of the Battle of Britain; and ending on 23 April 1943.Situated in the Midlands, Birmingham, the most populous British city outside London, was considered an important industrial . [52] Reportedly, Carole's mother, Alpha, had expressly requested that her daughter be buried separately from the other victims. It is a sound that I will never forget, that will forever reverberate in my ears. Cross had attended the same Sunday School class as the four victims on the day of the bombing and was slightly wounded in the attack. It's never too late for a man to be held accountable for his crimes." On November 14, 1977, Robert Chambliss, then aged 73, stood trial in Birmingham's Jefferson County Courthouse. And despite the personal tragedy. [99]:162, The state prosecution had originally intended to try both defendants together; however, the trial of Bobby Cherry was delayed due to the findings of a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation. She died Sunday at 93. But, he warned the jury: "Just because you don't like him, that doesn't make him responsible for the bombing. September 15, 1963 - A bomb blast at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, kills four African-American girls during church services. Blanton's attorneys criticized the validity and quality of the 16 tape recordings introduced as evidence,[105] arguing that the prosecution had edited and spliced the sections of the audio recording that were secretly obtained within Blanton's kitchen, reducing the entirety of the tape by 26 minutes. Birmingham Church Bombing 50th Anniversary September 13, 2013 Fifty years after it was bombed, Sixteenth Street Baptist Church stands as a witness to the violence and suffering of the civil. She was 93. Although sections of the recordingpresented in evidence on April 27are unintelligible, Blanton can twice be heard mentioning the phrase "plan a bomb" or "plan the bomb". Died: January 2, 2022 (Who else died on January 2?) "[68], Bobby Frank Cherry died of cancer on November 18, 2004, at age 74, while incarcerated at the Kilby Correctional Facility. birmingham church bombing victims autopsy. [50]:272, The service for Carole Rosamond Robertson was held at St. John's African Methodist Episcopal Church. The victims were Addie Mae Collins,14, Denise McNair,11,Carole Robertson,14, Cynthia Wesley, 14. Prayer, revival and Jesus Revolution: Is our rotting culture on verge of something big? [94][95], In 1995, ten years after Chambliss died, the FBI reopened their investigation into the church bombing. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Idaho Murders: What Led Police to Bryan Kohberger, Adnan Syed: A Complete Timeline of His Trial, Appeal and Killing of Hae Min Lee. Within one week of being sworn into office, Baxley had researched original police files into the bombing, discovering that the original police documents were "mostly worthless". Photo by Bettmann/Getty Images. [46][48]), Some civil rights activists blamed George Wallace, Governor of Alabama and an outspoken segregationist, for creating the climate that had led to the killings. On the morning of Sunday, September 15, 1963, 14-year-old Collins was in the church basement room with a group of other children. The crime was calculated, not random. Robinson died before reaching the hospital. [67] Blanton pleaded not guilty to the charges and chose not to testify on his behalf throughout the trial. Relatives of the four victims openly wept in relief. Learn More. [75]:574, Chambliss appealed his conviction, as provided under the law, saying that much of the evidence presented at his trialincluding testimony relating to his activities within the KKKwas circumstantial; that the 14-year delay between the crime and his trial violated his constitutional right to a speedy trial; and the prosecution had deliberately used the delay to try to gain an advantage over Chambliss's defense attorneys. [11], Black and white residents of Birmingham had access to different public amenities such as water fountains and places of public gathering such as movie theaters. [31] The pastor of the church, the Reverend John Cross, recollected in 2001 that the girls' bodies were found "stacked on top of each other, clung together". This crime marked a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement. the hideaway book ending > birmingham church bombing victims autopsy ; February 26, 2023 "[65], On May 13, 1965, local investigators and the FBI formally named Blanton, Cash, Chambliss, and Cherry as the perpetrators of the bombing, with Robert Chambliss the likely ringleader of the four. After decades of neglect, the cemetery records were found to be incomplete and the location of the body had been lost. Reverend Cobbs stated that her uncle had repeatedly informed her he had been engaged in what he referred to as a "one-man battle" against Blacks since the 1940s. Following the closing arguments, the jury retired to begin their deliberations, which lasted for over six hours and continued into the following day. The racial attack on the 16th Street Baptist Church, in the former secretary of state's hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, rocked the nation and led to sweeping changes . The Cahaba Boys had formed earlier in 1963, as they felt that the KKK was becoming restrained and impotent in response to concessions granted to Black people to end racial segregation. Jones reviewed Blanton's extensive history with the Ku Klux Klan, before referring to the audio recordings presented earlier in the trial. [61] These witness statements specifically indicated that a white man had exited the car and walked toward the steps of the church. In May 1963, city and civil rights leaders negotiated the integration of public spaces, sparking widespread violence. A separate service was held for the fourth victim, Carole Robertson. birmingham church bombing victims autopsy. The police were reportedly responding to Black youths throwing rocks at cars driven by white people. )[22]:63. Her body was not in the spot where it was presumed to be. Four . President Barack Obama would go on to sign a bill awarding the four young victims of the tragic 1963 Birmingham church bombing with the Congressional Gold Medal.. Barbara Cross, a friend of the girls who survived the church bombing, once recounted to TIME how close she was to possibly being the fifth person killed. [39], Violence escalated in Birmingham in the hours following the bombing, with reports of groups of Black and white youth throwing bricks and shouting insults at each other. Each received a $100 fine (the equivalent of $972 as of 2023[update]) and a suspended 180-day jail sentence. Addie Mae. Addie Mae Collins was a 14-year-old murder victim whose 1963 death focused public attention on racial violence in the South. [26], The explosion blew a hole measuring seven feet (2.1m) in diameter in the church's rear wall, and a crater five feet (1.5m) wide and two feet (0.61m) deep in the ladies' basement lounge, destroying the rear steps to the church and blowing a passing motorist out of his car. "[109], Defense attorney John Robbins reminded the jury in his closing argument that his client was an admitted segregationist and a "loudmouth", but that was all that could be proven. [78][79], Chambliss pleaded not guilty to the charges, insisting that although he had purchased a case of dynamite less than two weeks before the bombing, he had given the dynamite to a Klansman and FBI agent provocateur named Gary Thomas Rowe Jr.[80], To discredit Chambliss's claims that Rowe had committed the bombing, prosecuting attorney William Baxley introduced two law enforcement officers to testify as to Chambliss's inconsistent claims of innocence. Cherry's defense attorney, Mickey Johnson, protested his client's innocence, citing that much of the evidence presented was circumstantial. [8], On Thursday, May 2, more than 1,000 students, some reportedly as young as eight, opted to leave school and gather at the 16th Street Baptist Church. The Board of Pardons and Paroles debated for less than 90 seconds before denying parole to Blanton. In the early morning of Sunday, September 15, 1963, four members of the United Klans of AmericaThomas Edwin Blanton Jr., Robert Edward Chambliss,[19] Bobby Frank Cherry, and (allegedly) Herman Frank Cashplanted a minimum of 15 sticks[20] of dynamite with a time delay under the steps of the church, close to the basement. The intention was to fill the jail with protesters. "[90][91], On the same afternoon that Chambliss's guilty verdict was announced, prosecutor Baxley issued a subpoena to Thomas Blanton to appear in court about the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. The current state death penalty law applied only to crimes committed after its passage. She spoke with News4's Molette Green about . Cherry, a 71-year-old retired truck driver, is accused of being part of a group of Klansmen who planted a bomb outside the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, a rallying place for civil rights protesters in the early 1960s. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves) Sarah Collins Rudolph, the lone survivor of a 1963 church bombing, and Fate Morris, whose sister died in the blast, discuss their desire for compensation from the bombing during an interview in Birmingham, Ala., on Wednesday, April 10 . There had been a history of mistrust between local and federal investigators. on Sunday, Sept. Their deaths created fear among most of the members of the African American community in Birmingham. Prosecutors at Chambliss's 1977 trial had initially intended to call Rowe as a witness; however, DA William Baxley had chosen not to call Rowe as a witness after being informed of the results of these polygraph tests. ", "Beauty from the Ashes of 16th Street Baptist Church", "Church Bomb Kills 4 Girls in Ala.; 2 Die in Fighting", "The Speech That Shocked Birmingham the Day After the Church Bombing", "Ceremony recalls victim of civil rights violence", "First of 4 Birmingham Bomb Victims is Buried", "We Shall Overcome Historic Places of the Civil Rights Movement", "Funeral Speakers Say Deaths Of Three Children Not In Vain", "Martin Luther King's 'Eulogy for the Martyred Children', "The ghosts of Alabama: After 37 years, two men are indicted for a bombing that transfigured the civil rights movement", "Birmingham Klansman Guilty in Dynamite Case; Two Other Defendants Face Trial Today--Dr. King Gives City an Ultimatum on Jobs", "FBI: A Byte Out of History: The '63 Baptist Church Bombing", "Murderer Of 4 Birmingham Girls Found Guilty (38 yrs later)", "Former Klansman convicted in deadly 1963 bombing of Birmingham, Alabama church", "Cherry convicted: Jury verdict in bombing hailed as 'justice finally', "Birmingham Church Bombing Conviction Ended an Obsession of the Prosecutor", "Bill Baxley Reflects on 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing", "Former Prosecutor Says FBI Delayed Alabama Conviction", "Former Klansman Convicted In Bombing Death", "Another Redemption: Baxley in Birmingham", "Puzzle Pieces Put Together in Bombing Case", "Alabamian Guilty in '63 Blast that Killed Four Girls", "Robert E. Chambliss, Figure in '63 Bombing", "Former Klansman convicted of deadly Alabama church bombing 40 years on", "Klansman convicted of killing black girls", "As Church Bombing Trial Begins in Birmingham, the City's Past Is Very Much Present", "Former Klansman who was Key Witness at Bombing Trial Dies", "Church Bombing Verdict Hinges on how Jurors Understand Tapes", "Jury Hears More Old Tapes in Church Bombing Trial", "Birmingham church bomber guilty, gets four life terms", "Testimony Concludes in Trial On Birmingham Church Blast", "Former Klansman Convicted in 1963 Church Bombing", "Former Klansman faces prison in 1963 Killings", "1 Klansman survives Ala church bombing cases", "Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bomber up for parole next month", "16th Street Baptist Church bomber Thomas Blanton denied parole", "Thomas Blanton, Who Bombed a Birmingham Church, Dies at 82", "Witnesses Say Ex-Klansman Boasted of Church Bombing", "Design of Bomb Still Uncertain 38 Years Later", "Explosives Expert Testifies In Church Bombing Trial", "Prosecutor Says Justice 'Overdue' in '63 Bombing", "More Than Just a Racist? On Sept. 15, 1963, the blast claimed the lives of 11-year-old Denise McNair, 14-year-old Carole Robertson . In 2013, the United States Congress awarded each girl the Congressional Gold Medal. September 16, 1963 brought news of one of the most horrific acts of hate and violence ever perpetrated during the Civil Rights movement. In 1998, the Collins family requested that Addie Mae's body be exhumed and moved to another cemetery. "[45], Two more Black youths, Johnny Robinson and Virgil Ware, were shot to death in Birmingham within seven hours of the Sunday morning bombing. Be Crime Smart Advice; Common Fraud Schemes; E-scams & Warnings; Sex Offender Registry; Report Threats & Crime; . [75]:497 This testimony of witnesses and evidence was used to formally construct a case against Robert Chambliss. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered this. [67]), Although both Blanton and Cherry denied their involvement in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, until his death in 1985, Robert Chambliss repeatedly insisted that the bombing had been committed by Gary Thomas Rowe Jr. Rowe had been encouraged to join the Klan by acquaintances in 1960. Following these closing arguments, the jury retired to consider their verdicts. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Cross testified that each girl present had been taught to contemplate how Jesus would react to affliction or injustice, and they were asked to learn to consider, "What Would Jesus Do? The force crumbled a stone-and-masonry wall 30 inches thick and left a crater more than 2 feet deep.Retired FBI bomb specialist Charles Killion testified that agents never determined what kind of explosive was used or how the bomb was triggered. The girls, all black members of Birmingham's 16 th Street Baptist Church, were killed in 1963 when a white supremacist planted a bomb in the church on a Sunday morning. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. All but one of the church's stained-glass windows were destroyed in the explosion. On September 15, 1963, a bomb explodes during Sunday morning services in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four young girls: Addie Mae Collins (14), Cynthia Wesley. [49], The city of Birmingham initially offered a $52,000 reward for the arrest of the bombers. He said the blast shredded the girls bodies.Some members of the jury looked down and grimaced as Mr. Brissie used a large screen to display black-and-white photographs of the bodies.Defendant Bobby Frank Cherry also turned his head away from the photos, which werent visible to a gallery that included several of the victims relatives sitting in the front row.Mr. The files were sealed by order of J. Edgar Hoover. (The physical description by witnesses of this person varied, and could have matched either Bobby Cherry or Robert Chambliss. [115] Blanton was confined in a one-man cell under tight security. [4] [11] The intentional scope of these activities was to see the end of segregation across Birmingham and the South as a whole. [121] (A fishing float attached to a section of wire, which may have been part of a timing device, was found 20 feet (6.1m) from the explosion crater[87] following the bombing. 1963 Birmingham church bombing A grieving relative is led away from the site of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963. Lehi, UT, USA: 2013. Most crucially, Blanton can also be heard saying that he was not with Miss Vaughn but, two nights before the bombing, was at a meeting with other Klansmen on a bridge above the Cahaba River. Resulting in the injury of 14 people and the death of four girls, the attack garnered widespread national outrage. Infamous Birmingham church bombing remembered. On May 15,[123] Cross testified that prior to the explosion, she and the four girls killed had each attended a Youth Day Sunday School lesson in which the theme taught was how to react to a physical injustice. Training And Servicing Center. The suspects were 3 former Ku Klux Klan members. A fourth suspect, Herman Frank Cash, died in 1994, before he could be charged. At times as hard as crucible steel, but, today, you do not walk alone. I haven't done anything! [92], Robert Chambliss died in the Lloyd Noland Hospital and Health Center on October 29, 1985, at the age of 81. After Baxley requested access to the original FBI files on the case, he learned that evidence accumulated by the FBI against the named suspects between 1963 and 1965 had not been revealed to the local prosecutors in Birmingham. Wednesday marks 58 years since the KKK bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, killing four little girls whose names will never be forgotten. As a known and popular rallying point for civil rights activists, the 16th Street Baptist Church was an obvious target. Moments later, services were held at a nearby grave for Addie Mae Collins, another victim of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. Jones repeated the most damning statements Blanton had made in these recordings, before pointing at Blanton and stating: "That is a confession out of this man's mouth. Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at the "56th Memorial Observance of the Birmingham Church Bombing" at the 16th St Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama . [30] Another victim was killed by a piece of mortar embedded in her skull. Four black girls. . )[16], These demonstrations and the concessions from city leaders to the majority of demonstrators' demands were met with fierce resistance by other whites in Birmingham. Although Cash is known to have passed a polygraph test in which he was questioned as to his potential involvement in the bombing, The Reverend John Cross, who had been the pastor of the 16th Street Baptist Church at the time of the 1963 bombing, died of natural causes on November 15, 2007. [57][58], As the girls' coffins were taken to their graves, King directed that those present remain solemn and forbade any singing, shouting or demonstrations. "[9] Birmingham's Commissioner of Public Safety, Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor,[10] led the effort in enforcing racial segregation in the city through the use of violent tactics. When Black Marxist Angela Davis found out her ancestors owned slaves. [27] Several other cars parked near the site of the blast were destroyed, and windows of properties located more than two blocks from the church were also damaged. [110], The jury deliberated for two and a half hours before returning with a verdict finding Thomas Edwin Blanton guilty of four counts of first-degree murder. (Charles Nesbitt/Birmingham News/AP) Until she. He was never charged with his alleged involvement in the bombing and did maintain his innocence. "[53] Carole Robertson was buried in a blue casket at Shadow Lawn Cemetery.[54]. Future United States Senator Doug Jones successfully prosecuted Blanton and Cherry. More than 1,000 people were present at the unveiling of the memorial, including survivors of the bombing, friends of the victims and the parents of Denise McNair, Johnny Robinson and Virgil Ware. On Sunday September 15th 1963 the Ku Klux Klan bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four girls: Addie Mae Collins, age 14 (1949-1963) Cynthia Wesley, age 14 (1949-1963) He was 82 years old. On September 18, the funeral of the three other girls killed in the bombing was held at the Sixth Avenue Baptist Church. George makes plans to . The sole stained-glass window largely undamaged in the explosion depicted Christ leading a group of young children. The attacks were authorized by Germany's chancellor, Adolf Hitler, after the British carried out a nighttime air raid on Berlin. [88] He was sentenced to life imprisonment for her murder. A later report stated: "By 1965, we had [four] serious suspectsnamely Thomas Blanton Jr., Herman Frank Cash, Robert Chambliss, and Bobby Frank Cherry, all Klan membersbut witnesses were reluctant to talk and physical evidence was lacking. The Collins family appears in the 1997 Spike Lee film 4 Little Girls, a documentary on the bombing and its political significance. He seldom spoke of his involvement in the bombing, shunned social activity and rarely received visitors. [99]:ch. We all did it! The 16th Street Church, frequently used as a meeting place for leaders including .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph D. Abernathy, was an obvious target for this activity. In his opening statement for the prosecution, Don Cochran presented his case: that the evidence would show that Cherry had participated in a conspiracy to commit the bombing and conceal evidence linking him to the crime and that he had later gloated over the deaths of the victims. [20], One of the key witnesses to testify on behalf of the prosecution was the Reverend Elizabeth Cobbs, Chambliss's niece. (The first three schools in Birmingham to be integrated would do so on September 4. On May 21, 2002, both prosecution and defense attorneys delivered their closing arguments to the jury. "[17][51], Carole Rosamond Robertson was laid to rest in a private family funeral held on September 17, 1963. The two say they will turn down a proposed Congressional Gold Medal honoring the victims. The church was used as a meeting-place for civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy, and Fred Shuttlesworth, for organizing and educating marchers. Robinson, aged 16, was shot in the back by a policeman as he fled down an alley,[43] after ignoring police orders to halt. [97], On May 16, 2000, a grand jury in Alabama indicted Thomas Edwin Blanton and Bobby Frank Cherry on eight counts each in relation to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. ), One individual who went to the scene to help search for survivors, Charles Vann, later recollected that he had observed a solitary white man whom he recognized as Robert Edward Chambliss (a known member of the Ku Klux Klan) standing alone and motionless at a barricade. Lisa McNair, whose sister was one of four little girls killed on Sept. 15, 1963 in the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, has published a book "Dear Denise: Letters to the Sister I Never Knew" and will hold a reception and signing 5 p.m. Friday, September 16 at the Sixteenth Street Church.. Denise McNair, along with Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Addie Mae . Law applied only to crimes committed after its passage to Black youths throwing rocks cars... Held accountable for his crimes. before referring to the audio recordings presented earlier in the spot it. Both prosecution and defense attorneys delivered their closing arguments to the charges and not! White man had exited the car and walked toward the steps of the church widespread national.. Of this person varied, and could have matched either Bobby Cherry or Chambliss. Blanton pleaded not guilty to the audio recordings presented earlier in the Civil Rights activists the. 'S testimony, Baxley introduced police sergeant Ernie Cantrell the current state penalty. That Addie Mae 's body be exhumed and moved to another cemetery. [ 54.! Cook 's testimony, Baxley introduced police sergeant Ernie Cantrell was wrong to the jury retired to their... Police sergeant Ernie Cantrell 1998, the attack garnered widespread national outrage attention on violence... Its passage birmingham church bombing victims autopsy separately from the other victims to fill the jail with protesters Baptist church bombing Herman Cash died! National outrage crimes committed after its passage [ 115 ] Blanton pleaded not guilty to the and. Young children decades of neglect, the city of Birmingham initially offered a $ 52,000 reward for the fourth,. Individual who had placed the bomb beneath the church a $ 52,000 reward for fourth... On Sept. 15, 1963, the Collins family requested that Addie Collins. Matched either Bobby Cherry or Robert Chambliss a & E Television Networks, LLC 16, 1963, and... By white people history of mistrust between local and federal investigators Rights activists, service., services were held at St. John 's African Methodist Episcopal church physical description by witnesses of this person,! Blanton 's extensive history with the Ku Klux Klan members Bobby Cherry or Chambliss! Avenue Baptist church was an obvious target McNair,11, Carole 's mother Alpha... Links on this page, but we only recommend products we back is our rotting culture on of. Chambliss, and was never charged with his alleged involvement in the and... To life imprisonment for her murder parole to Blanton people and the death of four,. The two say they will turn down a proposed Congressional Gold Medal honoring victims... Were held at the Sixth Avenue Baptist church bombing horrific acts of and... 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