See “Selma,” then Visit

Almost a year ago, I walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.  Even though it was a cold, blustery day in early January, the history of that bridge engulfed me, and gave me pause.  My mind wandered back to civil rights marchers, the violence of “Bloody Sunday,” Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rep. John Lewis, and others whose names rarely if ever get mentioned in American history books.  It was a surreal moment that I will never forget.

During our time in Selma, my wife and I also visited the Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church, the starting point for the Selma to Montgomery marches.  We retraced the path of the marches, including those sites where marchers slept and ate on their way to the state capitol.  We learned about dates and more importantly people such as James Bevel, Viola Liuzzo, Jimmie Lee Jackson, and Diane Nash, people whose names and stories were mostly new to me, and yet they had everything to do with the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The movie Selma recently came out, and reviews of the movie have generally been very positive.  While some will criticize the movie because of the places, personalities, and storylines it does or does not include, it is incumbent on all of us to see it, regardless of our age, race, gender, or background.  It tells a story that should not be confined to Black History Month; rather, it is an American story.  Learning is cumulative, and the movie Selma provides us with one more opportunity to venture outside of our comfort zone, increase our awareness and understanding, and talk about what we just saw.

When each of my daughters was in middle school, I remember my wife and I made sure each of them watched the television series Roots.  We watched as well, so we could talk with them about it.  Even though my daughters were reluctant at first, they nevertheless acquiesced because frankly, we did not give them a choice.  It was that important to us.  My suggestion is to take your older children to see the movie, Selma.  Better yet, take the family and visit Selma, and retrace the marches to Montgomery.  It will help you understand: Why Selma? Why 1965? And why this chapter of the civil rights movement is relevant to your life today?

When I reflect on Selma, the words of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. come back to me; “It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated.  We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.  Whatever affects one destiny, affects all indirectly.”