Birmingham to spend $100K on monument honouring 'foot soldiers' of civil rights movement

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The city of Birmingham expects to spend about $100,000 on a monument honouring "foot soldiers" of the civil rights movement.

The mayor's office says the city will award $10,000 to the designer who comes up with a memorial to the ordinary people who participated in the movement.

Another $90,000 will be spent on the monument itself based on a statement from the city.

The memorial will be placed in a downtown park near the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Officials are hoping for a structure made of steel, like other sculpture that's already in the park.

Mayor William Bell announced the plans in conjunction with the city's observance of the 50th anniversary of the landmark civil rights demonstrations of 1963.

Officials plan to install the monument in 2014.