Thread by @NAACP_LDF

#OTD in 1965 brave activists attempted a 54-mile march from Selma, AL to Montgomery, AL for #votingrights.

But upon crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge, state troopers with billy clubs & tear gas assaulted the men & women.

This day became known as #BloodySunday.

Even injured, they were committed to completing the march.

The heinous violence led @NAACP_LDF to file & win a lawsuit against the AL Governor, which afforded the marchers federal protection for a subsequent march.

You can read the march plan here: naacpldf.org/ldf-at-selma-5…

#BloodySunday, the protected march that took place weeks later, & the fearless leaders of the civil rights movement are credited for the passage of the #VotingRights Act of 1965.

The #VRA tore down the barriers to the ballot box for Black Americans. 🗳️

.@repjohnlewis was at the forefront of the march & was beaten to the point of fearing death on #BloodySunday.

But his relentless commitment to civil rights did not wane.

Till today, he is a bastion for voting, women's, LGBTQ, employment, and other civil rights and reforms.

.@repjohnlewis lifetime of sacrifice & the courage of the #BloodySunday foot soldiers are honored every year at the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee. #Selma55

In such a time as this, it is critical that we go a step further in honoring their sacrifice.

Selma foot soldiers were beaten & bloodied for #votingrights so that in the critical juncture our nation is in now, we could all have a voice. We must:

📣be informed voters
📣urge our community to register & vote
📣vote in every election, on every issue

#OurVoteOurVoice