Planning Return to Selma, Alabama 50 Years Later

I had written here a number of years ago that I planned on returning to Selma, Al in 2015 for the 50th Anniversary and the annual reenactment march across the Edmond Pettus Bridge even if I had to be pushed across the bridge in a wheelchair. Well this month I began making arrangements for that upcoming trip. The reenactment takes place in early March every year but this year is special. This year marks 50 years. There will be thousands of people from all over the country wanting to celebrate this moment in history.

I will be joined by my youngest son who lives in San Francisco. He's interested in being a part of the celebration and the history of this event. There are other friends who have asked about joining us. I began checking around for places to stay and was able to get a couple of rooms in Montgomery. That will allow us to make visits to other civil rights historical sites in Montgomery and Birmingham, Al.

This year has marked anniversaries of the Voting Rights Bill, Freedom Summer, the death of civil rights workers and other significant events. It also was a year where we've watched activities in Ferguson, Mo. that made a lot of people wonder what had been accomplished since Selma. Recently the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr. was evoked as part of the justification for bombings in Syria. His non violence is sadly still not understood.

John Lewis, Congressman from Georgia and one of the leaders of the march in Selma in 1965, recently pointed out that there most likely wouldn't have been a President Jimmy Carter, a President Bill Clinton or a President Barack Obama if there hadn't been that march across the Edmond Pettus Bridge. A number of years ago I returned to Selma and was walking with the then mayor of Selma, a young black man. He thanked me for what I did in 1965 and pointed out that it was only because of those 'foot soldiers for justice' that he was able to be mayor of that city.

I look forward to returning with family and thousands of others to mark such an important part of history in our country.