By Hamil R. Harris | The Washington Informer | Word In Black
This post was originally published on The Washington Informer
(WIB) – Although many freedom fighters and faith leaders make the yearly March pilgrimage to Selma, Alabama in commemoration of the hundreds of civil rights activists injured by police on March 7, 1965 — a day better known as Bloody Sunday — the 2025 gathering was particularly important.
This year’s convening was more than a 60th anniversary of the activists’ attempt to cross from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, before successfully doing so weeks later on March 24, 1965. In an age of President Donald Trump’s executive orders preventing the teaching of parts of Black history and eliminating federal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, the 2025 trek across the Edmund Pettus Bridge was a moment to emphasize the critical need for continued work in the fight for civil rights, racial equity and justice.
“My father was at the last leg of the march when Dr. King said ‘How long? Not long,’” said Akina Sanders Jackson, executive director of the Selma Center for Non-Violence Truth and Reconciliation.
King delivered that famous speech on March 25, 1965 in Montgomery after the marchers— from March 21-24– successfully completed the 54-mile journey to Alabama’s capital.
The civil rights leader’s speech came after the horrors of Bloody Sunday, the frustrations of Turnaround Tuesday (March 9, 1965), and the three-day march to Montgomery weeks later. By the time he delivered those four words from Montgomery’s capitol building, it was a time of jubilee and recognizing resilience after extreme sadness, tragedy and trials.
For Jackson’s family, being present in Selma at such a pivotal point in the fight for civil rights and American history was only part of a temporary plan to remain in the Alabama city.
“When my parents graduated from Harvard Law School they thought they would be here for a few years and then move to a big city,” said Jackson.
But six decades later, Jackson and her family are still living in Selma. However, despite strides in civil rights, the current administration makes her reflect back to King’s famous four words that question: how long until freedom comes?
“Time is not always measured in human terms,” she said, noting that in terms of political change, some things have worsened in recent weeks.
The Rev. Mark Thompson, a civil rights activist who has pushed for justice in the District, country and world, said there was a particular reason why he needed to be in Selma this year.
“This is my 25th year as a board member of the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee,” Thompson told The Informer. “We want to make the Jubilee better because too many of our leaders have shed blood and given their lives to get this struggle for equality.”
Bravery Despite Brutality, Honoring Activists’ Work and Legacies
It was early Sunday morning on March 7, 1965, when a then 25-year-old John Lewis led about 600 marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. When they got to the highest point over the Alabama River, the Rev. Hosea Williams asked the civil rights leader, later turned congressman, if he could swim.
His answer was “no.”
“We came to the highest point of the bridge and down below we saw a sea of Alabama State troopers,” Lewis said in an August 2013 interview with the CBS show “Face the Nation.” “I was prepared to go to jail. I feel blessed that I didn’t die on this bridge. I thought I was going to die.”
Lewis, leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and Williams of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) led the march across the bridge. However, once police attacked, he suffered a cracked skull, and men, women and children were beaten and bitten by police dogs.
With marches in Selma, Montgomery and other cities, August 6, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson (D) signed the Voting Rights Act into law.
Despite the gains in civil and voting rights, activists today are still fighting against voter suppression, racism, discrimination, disparities and inequities facing African Americans and marginalized communities.
Since Bloody Sunday, Turnaround Tuesday and the victorious crossing into Alabama on March 24, thousands have marched across this bridge in a town that as Jackson noted, is still “stuck between yesterday and tomorrow.”
However, this year, political, faith and civil rights leaders gathered to commemorate the 60th anniversary and offer a call to action in the continued fight for justice.
Last week U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (D) of Alabama reintroduced the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act that would prevent, “modern-day voter suppression and ensure every American has equal access to the ballot box,” named in honor of the late congressman who died in July 2020.
United States Sen. Angela Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), and Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) joined Sewell during a press conference in Selma on March 7, the actual date of the 60th anniversary.
“I’m honored every year to be a part of faith and politics pilgrimage,” Sewell said, during a press conference. “It is not just a Republican or Democrat. It’s America’s history that we actually are observing.”
Alsobrooks, on her first trip to Selma since being sworn in as senator, said that she is a beneficiary of a generation of courageous people who marched, and were even beaten and killed, fighting for equality.
“I’m reminded not only of their courage and their foresight, but I am deeply grateful that I am here as a result of their efforts,” she said during a press conference in Selma.
She shared her own family history in the fight for freedom.
“I am here as the result of the efforts of my great-grandmother, who I think about today, who on July 4, 1956, following the murder of her husband in Seneca, South Carolina, had to make a difficult decision.The family was told that if they didn’t leave, they’d kill the whole family,” Alsobrooks explained. “Within a week’s time, she brought our family to a place called Prince George’s County, Maryland.”
She told The Informer being in Selma “alongside civil rights leaders who have carried the torch for 60 years” was “a humbling experience.”
“We heard the stories from the foot soldiers,” Alsobrooks said, “as well as those whose voting rights have never been abridged but fought for others, like Congressman Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).”
While in Selma, Alsobrooks said she talked to lawmakers on both sides of the aisle like Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) about moving forward to work toward equity for all Americans.
“This was inspiring and I plan to come back here next year,” Alsobrooks said.
Continuing the Fight: Saving the Freedom Rides Museum
The Montgomery Bus Station, which housed the Freedom Rides Museum, is on the list of hundreds (first 443, then reduced to 320) federal properties Trump and Elon Musk have identified to sell as part of continuous cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
On May 20, 1961, activists, known as “Freedom Riders,” from across the U.S., arrived at the Montgomery Greyhound Bus Station and were attacked by a violent mob. More than a hub for visitors, the station and museum served as a site to remember an important part of American history.
For Thompson, the site has too much historical value to be sold. As the faith and equity leader works toward justice in the nation and world, Thompson emphasized that fighting to maintain important American history is critical.
“The Freedom Rides Museum can’t be sold,” Thompson told The Informer. “We have to be ready for that.”
Alabama U.S. Reps. Sewell and Shomari C. Figures (D) sent a letter to the White House after Trump signed an order for the General Services Administration (GSA) to remove and sell the Freedom Rides Museum in Montgomery from its list of federal properties.
“The museum serves as an essential historical landmark that not only honors the legacy of the Freedom Riders but also educates the public about our nation’s struggle for equality and justice,” the Alabama congressional leaders wrote. “Given its historical and cultural significance, we strongly encourage the GSA to remove the Freedom Rides Museum from the list.”
Thompson, host of “Make it Plain” podcast and global digital transformation director for National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), said that while in Selma, the civil, faith and political leaders used the 60th anniversary celebration to work to save the Freedom Rides Museum in Montgomery.
“We go to Selma to get our spirits renewed,” Thompson told The Informer. “We go to Selma to grow in the battle for social justice in the years ahead.”
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