The commemoration draws visitors to Selma, including politicians paying homage to on of the key moments in the civil rights movement.
Two weeks later, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led demonstrators out of Selma on a march to the Alabama Capitol. The marches and images of the violence shocked the nation and helped galvanize support for passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Vice President Kamala Harris spoke last year in Selma. Then-President Barack Obama in 2015 gave a speech at the foot of the city’s Edmund Pettus Bridge to mark the 50th anniversary of the civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery. Former Sen. Hank Sanders, a founder of the annual commemoration, said the celebration will likely look somewhat different this year. He said there will be a focus on not just rebuilding Selma but striving for the “beloved community,” a phrase popularized by King to describe a community of justice and cooperation.
“With all of this devastation, it’s not something the people of Selma can do by themselves. It’s going to take people from all over the country,” Sanders said. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
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