"History is a relay race. Generations before us carried the baton. Now they have passed it to us. --Vice President Kamala Harris
NATION: On Saturday, March 2, while some complaints were entered into discussion over the reason Vice President Kamala Harris was issued a memorial date to address masses of faithful Americans gathered at Edmund Pettus Bridge in recognition of the Bloody Sunday, as faithful as those who follow her, Vice President delivered a riveting address remembering the day that 600 African Americans were bludgeoned by Selma, Alabama police officers.
By Michelle Crawford-Sapenter "Let us continue to fight and let us make some good trouble along the way." --Vice President Kamala Harris echoes the "Good Trouble..." phrase coined by the Congressman who, in 1965, prior to his rise to fame while executing his Congressional contribution to the state of Georgia and the nation, led the march over Edmund Pettus Bridge & along with 600 , endured the hateful blowback against the right by Alabama resident's right to vote. Something as treasured as the essential right to vote which had been feverishly sought after and fought for by the late, Democratic Congressman John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020)
"Get in Good trouble, necessary trouble and help redeem the soul of America." --Comments by the late, Congressman John R. Lewis
On the day that erupted into blood letting at the hand of Selma police officers, the 600 African Americans marched 54 miles to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge leading from Montgomery , Ala to Selma as the hope undertaken , that day, would encompass the pursuit of the right to vote. At the end of the day, the end of the bridge on the Selma side was not a pretty sight.
As police awaited the 600 marchers arrival in Selma, once there, there had been numerous shouts of discouragements were the first attack and though verbal, the words spoken were as much a harsh blow that struck against the acknowledgement by marchers of their inherent right to vote as American citizens.
On Saturday, March 2, 2024, 59 years following the the Bloody Sunday march and the quite literal attacks launched against the 600 by police who used fire hoses, Billy clubs, German Shepherds in their plan undertaken to discourage the black wall of hope that trudged forward despite the bloody beatings in the tenacious effort to exercise their human and American rights. Harris spoke before hundreds who met with her at the base of the Edmund Pettus Bridge to, once again, make the 1,248′ foot trek from Montgomery to Selma , Alabama. Having crossed the Edmund Pettus, this time, in this era, without strike not strikes being brought against the masses, Vice President Harris spoke stating her petition , such that is agreed upon by millions, to encourage Congress to pass the Freedom To Vote. Harris , also, announced the rekindling of the plan to ensure that Congress, also, passes the John Lewis Voting rights Advancement Act. In times before his passing in July of 202o, Congressman Lewis sought to establish a memorial commemorating the plight of the people who, defiant against all that challenged their Constitutional rights, stood, endured and as once stated by former President Barack Obama, "...were hard pressed by not crushed..." as it remained their mission to insist and never quit until the people of Alabama secured the right to vote for black residents. John Lewis' name , should it be erected upon the edifice of the Edmund Pettus would represent the symbol of freedom and justice and the nature of Americans who persevere and stand forward demanding their rights, as American citizens, be observed and respected. Vice President Harris and those who met with her on Saturday, marched and stood for this historic and monumental cause to changed the name of the Edmund Pettus Bridge--that which remains stretched across the banner of a most significant bridge; echoing a significant era in American history that, today, exists as a reminder of a cold and cruel time in the United States as , today, the Montgomery to Selma bridge remains under the name of Edmund Pettus, a Confederate brigadier general, US Senator and a state-level leader who served as the Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. Today, the name of the Montgomery to Selma bridge should bring honor to the state of Alabama and to the United States by, in this era, baring the name of the American Congressman who led the Bloody Sunday march to victory--the Late John Robert Lewis...Bridge.
Vice President Harris stated , " the story of Selma is a story of our nation adding "Freedom iOS fundamental." Harris stated , in regard to the fundamental right to freedom, "...the fight to protect it is not over."
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