Jack's Hamburgers & the Birmingham Police Department

Like scores of others, I witnessed an unusual scene Thursday night: Bulldozers and other heavy equipment worked rapidly and repetitively to remove the old Jack's restaurant on Florence Boulevard. When I stopped to buy gasoline, on-lookers told me the process had begun around six o'clock; now at almost nine, nothing was left but rubble and waste. It was destroyed in less than three hours.

The Jack's on the corner of Glendale Avenue and the boulevard had stood for almost 30 years, experiencing add-ons, remodeling, and customer growth on a regular basis. Ironically, the old building had replaced an obsolete "George Wallace for Governor" headquarters.

Why ironically? As I left the other on-lookers and drove home, I thought of George Wallace and Bull Connor. Both had done much to bring a reputation of bigotry and violence to the state, and it had taken 30 years to eradicate this view of Alabama, Birmingham in particular. Now, in just 30 seconds, all the good had been undone, at least in the eyes of the world.

When the old Jack's fell, it revealed a sparking new edifice, the jewel in Jack's crown, at least for the next few weeks or months until an even more modern facility is built elsewhere. When the Birmingham Police Department's reputation fell, it left nothing but a bad taste in our mouths. The four officers responsible owe everyone in the state an explanation, but I'm not expecting one.


Reminder: Petco on Cox Creek Parkway is holding a Pet Adoption Day today from Noon until 4:00 p.m. Don't you need a new Frisbe partner or personal masseuse?