Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Selma to Montgomery March
The March from Selma to Montgomery was a legal march that stretched 54 miles where the marchers were met with deadly violence from local authorities. The National Guard assisted the protestors in walking all day for 3 days to reach Montgomery. Martin Luther chose Selma to be the origin of the March because it had one of the lowest percentages of eligible black voters. The march didn't last long as Alabama state troopers beat the marchers back to Selma. This event was seen on TV by many Americans. This enraged people across the country and drew people to join the Civil Rights Movement. Ministers, priests, rabbis and social activists went to Selma to join the march. A couple days later, Lyndon B. Johnson addressed the nation pledging his support to the Selma protestors. On March 21, 1965, 2,000 people marched under the protection of the US Army and Alabama National Guard for 4 days until they reached Montgomery. The significance of this march was the large amounts of attention drawn to the violence shown towards the marchers. People watching the march on TV sided with the marchers since they were being beaten during a peaceful demonstration. As a result of this, the march from Selma to Montgomery was a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement.
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I agree that this was a major turning point for the African Americans in the Civil Right Movement because it finally got out to the world for how the marchers were being poorly treated during the march. Without the used of media on television, this may not have happened. What would have happened if there was no media to show this?
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