 King and the SCLC had recently been involved in a campaign to desegregate the city of Albany , Georgia , but did not see the results they had anticipated . Described by historian Henry Hampton as a " morass " , the Albany movement lost momentum and stalled . King 's reputation had been hurt by the Albany campaign , and he was eager to improve it . Determined not to make the same mistakes in Birmingham , King and the SCLC changed several of their strategies . In Albany , they concentrated on the desegregation of the city as a whole . In Birmingham , their campaign tactics focused on more narrowly defined goals for the downtown shopping and government district . These goals included the desegregation of Birmingham 's downtown stores , fair hiring practices in shops and city employment , the reopening of public parks , and the creation of a bi @-@ racial committee to oversee the desegregation of Birmingham 's public schools . King summarized the philosophy of the Birmingham campaign when he said : " The purpose of ... direct action is to create a situation so crisis @-@ packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation " . 
