There is a prevailing narrative about the Civil Rights Movement that focuses on the approximately 600 people who found themselves on a bridge in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965. On that day and in that place, they faced unquestionable violence, moments that have forever been captured in photographs and history books.
However, that event, now called Bloody Sunday, was not the entire story.
USA Today
The 1965 civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery was a watershed moment in the fight for Black Americans’ voting rights, but wouldn’t have been possible without a few helping hands along the way.
Three African American farm owners along the 54-mile route offered their properties as campsites for the marchers on the four-day trek, housing iconic civil rights activists including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King and John Lewis.
Associated Press
The landmark voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965 didn’t happen in just one day: Participants spent four nights camping along the roughly 55-mile (89-kilometer) route through Alabama, sleeping in tents and near farm buildings under the watch of guards to prevent white supremacist attacks.
54 Miles to Home is a documentary featuring the untold-until-now stories of the three families who risked their lives by opening up their land to provide campsites for the thousands of marchers along the 54 mile route from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. The Halls, Steeles and Gardners share for the first time what their parents and grandparents sacrificed and how their families’ legacies and this historic land can be preserved for generations to come.
Honoring the historic Selma-to-Montgomery march that changed the world.
Video highlights from the 59th Anniversary Selma-to-Montgomery Commemoration event at the City of St. Jude on March 21, 2024.
Produced by KHARI Creative
Executive Produced by The Conservation Fund
Click here to watch the video.
With civil rights education under threat, a preservationist helps Black families save key sites in the South.
The Washington Post explores the drive to preserve key historic civil rights sites and tell a cohesive, robust story about the Selma-to-Montgomery march.
Click here to read the full article.
Click here to listen to the article read by Robert Samuels, Pulitzer Prize-winning author.
